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Review content:
They have valet parking, which is a necessity in Charlestown, since most of the very small amount of parking is resident only.
After we parked, we found out the wait was an hour and a half. So we put our names down anyway, since we had come all the way out, we were not to be deterred. Olives does not take reservations and it is first come, first serve, so go early or at least expect a wait. We wandered around Charlestown for a while. It's a very quaint, old New-England place with adorable houses and buildings. That lasted about 45 minutes, and then we wandered back to the restaurant and checked in. We then decided to go outside and wait. About 10 minutes later the hostess came out and said the chef's table was available if we would like it. The chef's table at many restaurants is actually in the kitchen so you can talk to the chef and watch what is going on. At Olives it is two bar stools facing onto the open kitchen. It was great, we could watch see the chefs were doing and chat with them as well.
First came the bread and olives (of course). They were a cut above what one normally receives in even a high quality restaurant. The waitress we had was very helpful, and between her and the chef standing in front of us, we were able to pick out some appetizers and main courses. The sommelier also helped us pick out an excellent bottle of wine to go with our food. I had the foie gras flan as an appetizer, which was decadent beyond belief, but not terribly heavy, which was surprising and very welcome. My boyfriend had the tuna tartare, which was also delicious. The real thrill of the evening came as we were waiting for our appetizers; Todd English himself came out of the back and started talking to us. He was making a slightly different tuna tartare for some other group, which he handed us a small plate of to sample. Needless to say it was perfect, and even slightly better than the one my boyfriend had.
Dinner came next. I ordered the seared duck breast with foie gras and dried cherry sauce. The sweet-rich combination of cherries and foie gras was perfect (Olives has more foie gras dishes on their menu than you can count). My boyfriend had salmon, which was quite good. The portions were a nice size, more than enough to fill you up, but not grotesquely huge either. We also ordered dessert; I had the caramel turtle sundae, which was absolutely delicious. My boyfriend had a rich chocolate cake, which was also fabulous.
The service at Olives is wonderful, about what you would expect at any 5 star restaurant. The waitress we had and the sommelier were both very open about sharing with us what they thought was the best on the menu, and even cautioned us away from some dishes, which I really appreciated. The décor at Olives is pleasant and minimal, not taking away from the food at all. Olives is very expensive, but the food and the experience make it a worthwhile splurge.
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