Came for the brunch mania experience ($38/pp). Everyone in group must purchase it. It consist of three courses plus crazy feta hush puppies for the table complimentary (any additional was at an added cost).
This location is in Olney in a strip mall with plenty of parking.
Cava Mezze is a Mediterranean centered restaurant with food that reflects those flavors.
We were greeted by a pleasant hostess and shown to our table.
The ambiance was refined with a slight upscale vibe. We were seated in the main dining area, which was an open air concept as we could see the kitchen staff preparing food and the bar area as well. They had high table seating by the bar as well. The also offered outdoor seating as well.
We were greeted by a pleasant server, who gave us the menus to peruse. There were 3 courses and you could order one from each course. We were a party of two. We selected:
Course 1: Crispy potato terrine
Course 2: Baklava waffle and smoked salmon toast
Course 3: French Toast and Chicken and waffle
They also had brunch mania drink specials and I chose the mimosas (oj or grapefruit) for a quarter so I had to have a couple of those (I was not driving!) and my guest got the non-alcoholic blackberry sage lemonade for $2 and a $2 passionfruit lemonade as well (all parties at the table have to participate in the drink specials menu).
The server arrived with the complimentary crazy feta hush puppies and they were good: cornmeal, jalapeño, and red onion deep fried with harissa butter and honey on the side. They were very good.
The 1st course arrived: The crispy potato terrine arrived hot with whipped feta on the side sitting in a herb vinaigrette. I enjoyed the crispy top of the potato square and the layers of perfectly cooked potato slices. The vinaigrette provided a nice balance to the whipped feta and potato.
The second course: baklava waffle and smoked salmon toast. The waffle arrived hot made with crispy phyllo dough and topped with walnuts, and cinnamon orange honey. The waffle was fresh and the flavors went well together. I got the smoked salmon toast with just the salmon on the toast and the whipped crazy feta, pickled beets, dill, and arugula on the side. The citrus vinaigrette was on the salmon and the toast was nice and crispy, but not hard. The smoked salmon was fresh. I really enjoyed it.
The third course: French toast and chicken and waffles. The French toast was by far our favorite: crispy French toast covered with marinated berries, orange honey, vanilla, and whipped cream. It was SO good! The chicken and waffles was not what we expected: the chicken that arrived was like the chicken prepared for a schnitzel: flat, breaded, and fried with hardly any flavor ( it did say it in the menu description, but we only saw chicken and waffles...). It was accompanied by honey, feta, and green onion. The waffle was just ok. Needless to say, this was the one dish we did not care for.
The quarter mimosa was ok, just a basic one, but the lemonades were really good with me preferring the blackberry safe over the passionfruit.
All in all, a nice place to enjoy brunch and have a decent meal. read more