Osteria Olio Review (After 6 visits)

Summary: Do not miss Osteria Olio. The best dining overall, and the only fine dining in Athens, in my opinion.

Background: My wife and I like food, and have traveled and dined all over the US (East Coast, West Coast, Chicago, Vegas). You might even call us food snobs. This is the only restaurant in Athens that my wife has legitimately loved. No disrespect to Slater's, the National, the Expat, the Last Resort, Seabear, Five and Ten, but Osteria is, in my opinion, on another level. Same quality as the good restaurants in Atlanta. Osteria is probably the only place I would go in Athens for true fine dining.

The Service: Prompt and formal. Just as it should be. At the bar, I've had a complete dining experience (cocktail, appetizer, dinner, check) in 45 minutes. Can also take longer, and when it gets really busy, you can feel a little neglected by the bartenders. But, it has never taken longer than an hour or so for a full meal unless we wanted it to. I will say that the bartenders at Slater's are a little better as stereotypically excellent bartenders, and the ones at the Expat generally a little more friendly. The staff at Osteria may grow into this, but they don't seem quite there yet. Also, they're usually very busy, and still growing into their roles at a new restaurant.

The Drinks: Cocktails are good, not exceptional. I've had Cosmopolitan, Old Fashioned, Manhattan, and Bee's Knees. All are fine, none of them are truly great. Better cocktails at the Expat, and probably Slater's as well. The wine list is very good, however. But overall, the cocktails are the one area Osteria could stand to grow. Probably they need to train their bartenders better, or else work on their recipes. But you're probably not coming to Osteria just to drink cocktails, and they really are serviceable, and the wine will not disappoint.

The Food: Absolutely fantastic. The chicken (Pollo Napoletana) and lamb shank (Agnello Brasato) are the best things I've had thus far. The chicken absolutely bursts with flavor and is among the best chicken I've had anywhere in America. The lamb is excellent, and melts off the bone. Less flavorful and savory than some, but that's a difference in cooking style and personal preference, not a quality issue. The Grilled Artichoke is also not to be underestimated. This is the best quality of food in Athens, and the only comparable in quality to the great restaurants in Atlanta.

The only downside is the pasta, which comes with a caveat: we got it gluten-free, takeout, on a busy night, fairly late in the evening. But it was a disappointment. The flavor wasn't that good, and the pasta wasn't cooked well. I've seen other posts praising the pasta, and I haven't tried it since, so it could be a one-off. But the pasta at the Expat is consistently excellent (had it dozens of times, always of better quality). Bear in mind the bad pasta was on my first Osteria Olio dining experience, and I've gone there almost half a dozen times since then, and will continue to do so.

The Cost: Normal price for higher end restaurants in the Atlanta metro area. Figure $100/person and you won't be wrong. You can do it for more or less, but if money is an object, this isn't the place for you.

Summary: I think I can honestly say that if you want pasta, go to the Expat; if you want steak, go to Slater's; if you want anything else, go to Osteria Olio. Definitely the place for anniversary/celebration/fine dining. My only hesitation in giving this review is that Osteria Olio may get more crowded, but I do consider it my obligation to print the truth in the public interest.