Olive was originally a diner built in the 1930s. It’s small with limited seating, so we recommend that you make reservations. Our favorite place to sit, however, is on the small patio behind the restaurant. They’ll hand you flashlights for reading the menu and you’ll stay warm with space heaters among the lovely herb garden, which offers an aromatic extra to your dining experience. We both loooooooove fresh rosemary, and when our server wasn’t looking, we snapped off a couple sprigs and made them into hair accessories! Shhhhh! Don’t tell on us!
What we had:
Potato and leek soup, $6: Rashida's world was rocked by this deliciously creamy and savory soup. "Mmmm!" she said. "I could have eaten an entire crock pot full!" Rashida, the Dayton Daily's newest Dining Diva, is a vegetarian who was raised vegan and has never bitten into animal flesh. "I guess you can say I have a sensitive palate," she told Connie, who asked for a little taste of the soup. "Ooooh, the taters make it so meaty-feeling! Oops!" Connie said. Trying quickly to recover from her faux pas, Connie changed the subject: "So, the leeks are a really nice addition. They make the soup so hoity-toity!" Rashida agreed. (Whew!)
Savory Danish with Fig, Pear, Harvarti Cheese and Balsamic Vinegar: This was a special not on the menu. "Hug me, Harvarti!" Rashida exclaimed. The sweetness of the fig and pear coupled with the tangy balsamic vinegar on a flaky cheese-infused danish just makes you drool. It made us drool. This dish was delicate and delightful. For such a darling dish, though, we would have liked the pear to be a bit softer. But overall, it was a lovely light addition to our plates.
Fried Leeks, with aioli dipping sauce, $5: And the leeks have it! "This dish definitely wins 'the funnest to eat' award!" Rashida said. Pop one in your mouth or dip it in the garlicky aioli sauce, munch and just wait until your tummy says yummy!
Vegetarian Hummus Socca Pizza, $18: Rashida was of the mind to try two separate socca pizzas, but Connie warned her that the protein-filled chickpea crust might be more than they could handle at one time. Good thing Rashida listened to her. With toppings like feta cheese, Harvarti, cucumbers, carrots, radishes and microgreens, this was definitely a lot of pizza and a vegetarian's dream to boot! Did we mention it had radishes on it? Radishes! Plus, it's gluten-free!
Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream Flight, $8: Since we were beyond stuffed at this point, we thought we'd try a light option for dessert: four petite scoops of ice cream to share. "I'm a big fan of Jeni's ice cream," Connie said. "All the flavors are amazing, and I can't wait for you to try them, Rashida!" We ordered Sweet Corn and Red Raspberry, Wildberry Lavender, Salty Caramel and Riesling Poached Pear Sorbet. Rashida doesn't remember much after her first bite of the Wildberry Lavender. Seriously. Everything stopped. Time stopped. Moving stopped.Thoughts stopped. Finally she was able to speak": "I have tasted Utopia!"
The info: Olive, an Urban Dive, 416 E. Third St., Dayton; (937) 222-3483. Open for brunch, Saturday 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.; lunch, Monday – Friday, 11 a.m. – 3 p.m.; dinner, Thursday – Saturday, 5 – 10 p.m. Closed Sundays. Make reservations for 5 or 10 p.m. and get 10 percent off bill when mentioning discount. Olive updates its menu every season. The menu is posted on their website: http://olivedive.com
Rashida Rawls and Connie Post are two of Dayton Daily News’ Dining Divas. Think of them as your personal taste testers. Where should they go next? Write to them at Life@CoxInc.com.
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