Olea Mediterranean Taverna

28 Nov

I visit a lot of restaurants. I take pictures, notes, and sometimes I begin to write blog entries about said restaurants. Then life steps in and directs my productivity elsewhere. Every so often, though, I have a reoccuring feeling about a restaurant: I think about the great experience weeks or months after the initial visit.

Olea in Fort Greene is one of these restaurants. I visited in mid-October, back when the air was still warm enough in the late morning to sit outside for brunch.

Sunday morning brunch, if pushed more toward noon, can involve some waiting for a table. My friend and I were early risers, so we were seated (a little before 11) at one of four outside tables, where we could people watch from the corner of Lafayette and Adelphi Streets.

I started with hot apple cider ($4), which wasn’t overly sweet (hot cider does not require mounds of sugar!). We split the almond-stuffed, bacon-wrapped dates ($5) for an appetizer. My sister has been making these for years, so when I saw them on the menu, I knew it would be a delicious way to start our meal. It was!

For my meal I had the brioche french toast with fruit ($8.50). French toast was perfect: slightly crispy on the outside, airy on the inside, and was served with maple syrup. The fruit was not so perfect: it wasn’t fresh and consisted of pineapple, two pieces of melon, and one grape. Bad fruit day?