Olea

Two strikes and you're out - that's my motto for this mediterranean den of sub par service.\r I tolerated the extended delay to receive my dinner the first time I dined at Olea - and when the food arrived they had messed up the order - but the food was pretty good and I was in no rush - so I forgave them. But on a recent Sunday brunch excursion, I was greeted by a uniformly unfriendly staff - starting with the hostess and extending to foul faced wait staff.\r We were seated at nearly 3pm - well after the sunday brunch rush - and another unacceptable delay was in store for us. At 3:30pm after repeated inquiries about the food they offered to buy our drinks without offering any explanation. When 4pm ticked by, the novice hostess came to tell us that they could not tell us when the food would be ready. Clearly you jest you're thinking! But I kid you not - the worst ""restaurant"" I've been to in a long time. Perhaps they need a crystal ball because this establishment should not call itself a restaurant if they are unable to produce the meals they advertise. This is obviously a result of poor management - surly, incompetent staff cannot run a place to the ground without the manager's approval. No mediterranean warmth, no mediterranean food - clearly a NO from me. more

I'm enamoured of this Ft. Greene spot, in ambience, price & quality/selection. It's far better than most of the other Ft. Greene, Park Slope, Smith Street spots I've tried and have been disappointed with. I've worked in the restaurant business for over a decade, and this is one of the few places in the area that speaks of a real passion for food & wine. The eclectic menu & well-chosen wine list are pan-mediterranean, and the prices beyond fair for the quality. Sure, not all of the items are fabulous, but most are solidly good, inventive & well executed. It's obvious that they worked hard to find good wines from lesser known regions in order to keep the prices reasonable (and they are, for what you get! Restaurants in Manhattan have some of these same wines at $10-15 more a bottle). I've brought several food-loving friends here & they all loved it too. Never been to brunch, but brunch is almost always a harried affair wherever you go, so I wouldn't judge the place by a brunch experience. Not all of the servers are ""3 star"" quality but for Brooklyn they are great, quite knowledgeable, earnest & like the place--it makes for a really comfortable atmosphere. I highly recommend this place! Pros: well chosen wine list; wed. night prix-fixe! ;ambience; selection Cons: some of the dishes don't quite work out (but most do); can be busy! more

I don't understand why anyone would say the service is bad....maybe they are just really rude or unpleasant people. Everytime I have gone (which is alot), I have had amazing service. The waitresses and waiters are very pleasant and good-looking! Especially the bartender, he is very friendly and cute. The mood is great and the food is excellent. I have taken family from out of town and they loved it to going out with my friends for a glass of wine and tapas. Very romantic setting as well. I would recommend dinner for the best atmosphere, brunch is excellent but sometimes a wait. Olea has something for everyone, true quality. more

We went to Olea for my Bday. It was a friday night and the host told us that the wait was 20 min. Not bad for a friday, we thought. We sat at the bar and our bartender didn't greet us. We wait around five minutes at the bar and the bartender didn't say a word!!! very annoyed he drop off two menus at us in a very rude way!! We just left, I don't think is worth it to be treated like that. People in restaurants sometimes forget that this is a HOSPITALITY bussines, I can tell, I worked in one. more

Olea's rather large selection of food, be it entrees or appetizers never fails to please. Freshness is the key word in describing the ingredients. I highly reccomend the lamb and plan on returning. Fantastic! And what an ambiance! Pros: Fantastic food Cons: It packs quickly more

the food was great and i'm looking forward to going there again...we had several tapas and they were all good and at 3-5$/each even better...I had the codfish for dinner and it was Excellent, great combination of flavors and super fresh...good wine list and dessert too...service was not that great but it was packed and understaffed, so that may be it... more

I was shocked to see the negative comments. Since it's opened up it's become one of my favorite places. The brunches and dinners have always been excellent and the service (particularly the Italian waitress) is very warm, welcoming and prompt. more

Olea has consistenly delicious brunches. Dinner has been great too, and they have a very decent wine selection. The only caveat is that the service has been bumpy. The first time we went the waitress was clearly unfamiliar with the food and made the rather grave faux pas of calling haloumi a Turkish cheese when in fact is is Cypriot. Most recently, our 4th time back for brunch, there was total chaos - no one hosting or seating or clearing tables, so there was a long line of people out the door, waiting for numerous empty tables. The visibly stressed woman behind the bar was incredibly rude to us. Everything was fine after we were finally seated. However, recommendation to the owner: it's a bad idea to break in a new bus boy during the Sunday brunch rush! Pros: food, wine, great brunch Cons: unpredictable service more

I live in the neighborhood and Im not sure why anyone continues to go to this restaurant. I tried it twice and both times my food was average at best. The french toast I ordered was soggy and I couldn't believe they topped it with fruit that looked a week old. Don't be fooled by the ambience, only go if you're more interested in patios than good food. more

The ambience at Olea is great (so is the sangria), but the quality of the food on a recent visit was shockingly bad. The bruschetta was topped with a tomato paste that seemed to be straight out of a can. My girlfriend, who worked as a waiter at a good Italian restaurant, said it was the ""worst"" she has ever tasted. I had crab ravioli as an entree. It was disgusting. She had fish. It was fairly tasteless. Maybe their Greek or Spanish food is better, but I'll never go back to find out. more

My husband and I have eaten here many times and have yet to be disappointed. Both dinner and brunch are excellent. Try the falafel encrusted artichoke hearts - yum. more

This new arrival in Ft Greene feels like an airy country inn in Southern Spain with its stucco white walls, wooden beams, and mosaic tile. The food is truely an ecclectic blend of various Mediterranean cuisines, from Spanish, to Greek, to Moroccan, to Turkish, all of which seem to blend seemlessly and create delicious offerings. I've tried ""the Imam Sighs,"" a vegetarian dish, the pork chops with mashed potatoes, the espresso-marinated steak, and the monkfish - all of which are melt-in-your-mouth delicious. I organized a 20-person dinner there for a bday, and everyone loved it. Highly recommend it! Pros: Delicious, Lots of food options, Great bar more

I've never had anything less than a crazy delicious meal at Olea. Whatever specials they have, try one - they're always great. And the calamari/mussels appetizer is AMAZING. Their bathroom is bigger and nicer than at most of my friends' places. The staff are lovely and not snooty at all. The atmosphere is very cozy and relaxing. I can't recommend this place enough. more

Fantastic food! Chef is amazing and the place is gorgeous. more