Photo by Sid Hastings
Olio
Calling Olio the more casual sibling of chef-owner Ben Poremba’s adjacent restaurant Elaia is accurate, of course, but also does it a disservice. This restaurant and bar inside a converted 1920s service station in the city’s Botanical Heights neighborhood stands on its own merits. As at Elaia, the menu nods to Poremba’s Mediterranean-spanning upbringing, with hummus, several eggplant dishes and a standout baby-octopus salad. A recent menu revamp has added, among other dishes, pizza. Though the beverage team underwent changes at the start of 2015, Olio remains a great spot to sip beer, wine or a cocktail.
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From the owners
Join Olio for a truly unique dining experience from James Beard Award nominee chef/owner Ben Poremba. The menu is steeped in rich Mediterranean and Middle Eastern culinary traditions, where bold flavors and rustic, colorful dishes are a feast for eyes and palates. Nationally recognized for its beverage program, Olio boasts 200+ wine selections from far-away places such as Georgia, Lebanon and Austria. Drink as Hemingway did, whether he was in Paris, Key West, or Spain, with the carefully documented encyclopedia of historical cocktails. Olio is located in a renovated 1930s Standard Oil gas station that has been filled with dramatic and modern light fixtures, found objects, and antique glasses. The kitchen is open daily for lunch from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and dinner from 5 p.m. to midnight.