A new gelato and espresso shop will fill a four-year vacancy at Mercato Grove when Otto Gelato & Espresso opens at noon on Saturday, Aug. 1, in the former FILL's Donuts space on Mercantile Drive.
The shop is a collaboration between Clark Hale, owner of the neighboring Pizzeria Otto, and Pronto Gelato co-founders Andrea Spella and George Kaden.
Hale announced the opening on Thursday, July 23, in a press release reported by the West Linn Tidings.
Otto Gelato will serve small-batch gelato, sorbetto, and traditional Italian espresso drinks. The menu will include flavors like Gianduja (a blend of chocolate and hazelnut), pistachio, and stracciatella, alongside the full Spella Caffè lineup of espresso drinks and shakeratos (iced shaken espresso).
Spella and Kaden, who founded Pronto Gelato in 2023, source milk from a family-owned dairy in Corvallis, selected after testing suppliers across the region, according to the announcement.
Pronto Gelato already operates a scoop shop on Northeast Alberta Street in Portland's Cully neighborhood.
Spella brings two decades of espresso expertise to the venture. He started Spella Caffè as a cart in Portland in 2006 and opened a brick-and-mortar location downtown in 2010.
The shop is known for its hand-pulled lever espresso machine. Kaden owns Campana restaurant in Portland; the two first connected in 2017 when Spella sold espresso beans to Campana.
Hale opened the original Pizzeria Otto on Sandy Boulevard in Portland in 2014 after a career in software development. His Lake Oswego location held its grand opening on Friday, Dec. 12, 2025, taking over the former Oven & Shaker space at Mercato Grove.
The FILL's Donuts space has sat empty since 2022.
FILL's was one of five of the six original ChefStable restaurant tenants at Mercato Grove to close; only Grassa remains from that original lineup. The development at 4055 Mercantile Drive now also houses The Whole Bowl and Sool K-Food & Bar.
Otto Gelato & Espresso opens at noon on Saturday, Aug. 1. Regular operating hours have not been announced.
