Cancel

Open app

Search

Olea

4.4 (214 reviews)
PriceySpanish
Closed • 5:00 pm - 10:00 PM

Olea Photos

OLEA ATMOSPHERE

What's the vibe?
Trendy
Romantic
Classy
Upscale

You might also consider

Recommended Reviews - Olea

Your trust is our priority, so businesses can't pay to alter or remove their reviews. Learn more about reviews.
Yelp app icon
Browse more easily on the app
Review Feed Illustration

Reviews With Photos

Jasmeet M.

I've been waiting to try this place for quite some time! Very happy I did! I came for restaurant week and asked what the bartender recommended. He advised I get the soup which I probably would not have gotten but I'm happy I did. It was light, yet creamy and full of flavor. The beef cheek was tender and paired well with the gravy. A delicious meal!

Duck Duck Leg Confit, somewhat dry, lacked flavor
Julia B.

Overall was an okay experience. For the price I want to feel blown away. The plating was nice but the dishes lacked brightness and depth of flavor. Service was fine, although at times I felt they were annoyed by us. Ambiance wasn't my cup of tea but that is a personal preference. I prefer a more warm and cozy vibe that is not as stale.

Pear salad
Kaitlyn W.

Truly a great dining experience and a great place for celebrations (such as a graduation from a nearby prestigious university). All of the food was refreshing and clearly high quality. All of the dishes had their own unique take on their traditional recipes/presentation, and were thoroughly enjoyed by all dinner participants. I was pleasantly surprised to get appetizers on top of the pre-determined three course meal. The bread was fine, but nothing stellar or to remember. The potato/chives bite was unique, but combined with the bread, these were just unnecessary carbs. The pear salad was fresh, and the lotus root chips were unique. The charcutería board was a good sample of items, but I personally think it's a lot for an appetizer. The sea bass as my main entree was great, and the browned top with crispy skin was delicious. I just wish I had saved room from earlier in the day to savor it more! Lastly, the pavlova was good, but too sweet for my personal tastes. I liked the additions of the strawberry and other garnishes to make the dish sweeter, but was ultimately its downfall for my palette. Great place with good service and a beautiful dining interior. Would love to come back if I'm ever in the area again.

Pavlova ice cream sandwich
Lydia L.

Excellent, verging on perfect!!! Look no further for your next special occasion in New Haven. I did the tasting menu with the wine pairing, and it was truly an incredible meal. The gnocchi with duck confit and the dessert (each with a mind-blowing wine pairing) were real standouts, but I enjoyed every course and every wine. Only two notes: the mushroom in the beef cheeks dish was rubbery and had an odd flavor to it, although the rest of the course was great. And I was asked if I wanted coffee or tea with dessert, I asked for tea, but it was never brought. I didn't make a fuss because I needed to head out, and it really wasn't a huge deal, but I mention it just as something to improve. Overall, everything was exceptional and I will definitely be back!!!

Mike S.

We came here for New Haven's restaurant week. Food was credible! In addition to the restaurant week menu, we also ordered octopus which was so good. The restaurant is super nicely decorated but it got a bit loud. The only thing that I didn't like was the service. Everything was very slow. We asked to add another appetizer 2 minutes after we placed the order. The waiter was very unhappy about it initially but still managed to place the order. In the middle of our dinner, he came over to complain to us again that the chef didn't like that we added another thing after we placed the order. What was the big deal???

Cod special
Michael T.

What an amazing place. The decor was classy with a black and white theme. The food was delicious and well balanced.

Andres A.

What a gem of a place. This restaurant is a bit off the beaten path. We had reservations which I suggest you make before coming. The restaurant is a bit small but with plenty of tables. We started with the charcuterie board which was an excellent start. It came with cured meats, cheeses, nuts, pâté and bread. My girlfriend also had the croquettes of rabo which she loved. For my entree I had The solomillo (steak with veggies) cooked perfectly. For dessert we had the torrija which was so creamy and delicious. Definitely, a great meal which we will definitely visit again.

Chi A.

Despite being a New Haven native, I've never been to Olea. I knew at some point I'd make my way here so when I gave my friend the option to pick where she wanted to go for her birthday dinner, she chose Olea. I called ahead to make a reservation and the host let me know it was a pre-fixe menu due to it being Yale's Parents Weekend. It was a 3 course with dessert for $65, which was very reasonable. We got there for our 8:30pm reservation and got seated by the window. The menu had many options to choose from despite it being pre-fixe. For my appetizer, I got the pulpo, the salmon for my entree and the tropical (gave it to my friend) for dessert. The food was really good, as was my drink (white sangria). The reason for the 4 stars, versus 5 is because our waiter was extremely miserable and barely even made eye contact with us. He was visibly irritated and perhaps tired, which I can understand, but that wasn't fair to us. I tried asking questions about the menu but he could have cared less. What made it worse was it was a birthday dinner so at the very least, he could have been a bit more pleasant. Overall, we had a good time and I'll definitely be coming back here again.

Menu
Victoria S.

I had a nice dinner at Olea right before the Thanksgiving holiday. I was able to snag a day-of reservation, where I had a quick but enjoyable meal. The decor is modern yet inviting. I had the salmon (super flavorful and cooked just right) along with the chocolate textures. I loved the chocolate textures! They were small desserts with different chocolate variations (ice cream sandwich, mousse, nougat, and a milky drink). The chef also gave me a complimentary cookie. The service was so good! They were kind, welcoming, and gave great recommendations. This is a great little spot in downtown New Haven!

Dinner menu October '23
Elena M.

This is one of if not the best restaurant in New Haven! The food is incredible, surprisingly large portions. Highlights have been the Bacalao, Duck Confit, and the Pulpo appetizer. Perfect for a special occasion or date night, though it is loud (even on a Tuesday at 8, when we visited). They take reservations on OpenTable though we walked in and got one of the last tables. Service is very attentive, it's a bustling environment, much less stuffy and a bit younger than Union League, though definitely dominated by Yale people.

Chipirones
Lizzy L.

It was my first time dining at olea and I was throughly impressed by the food and the ambiance. Our server was friendly - very knowledgeable about the menu and the space (the restaurant used to be an old garage!). As a party of six, we ordered several appetizers to share. Unfortunately, one of the appetizers we ordered was never brought out. Otherwise service was smooth. The food was fantastic - from the aperitif to the dessert. All the appetizers we tried were delicious but my favorites were the chipirones (silky squid ink sauce that was perfect on rice) and the ceviche (so flavorful and refreshing!). I ordered the scallops as my main course. The dish was beautifully plated and tasted even better! Others in our party ordered the chefs daily fish, duck leg confit, and cochinillo - every dish was stunning. I was impressed by the attention to detail paid to every single plate. You really can't go wrong ordering anything! It's definitely on the pricey side, but so worth it for a special occasion/celebration (or if you want to impress a date!).

Delicious cod

See all

8 days ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

3 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

5 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

4 days ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

3 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0
Photo of Julia B.
173
19
13

4 months ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 1

1 year ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0
Photo of Michael T.
211
49
264

1 year ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

1 year ago

Helpful 3
Thanks 1
Love this 1
Oh no 0

9 months ago

Amazing food and service tonight. The specials were out of this world, Pear salad and oysters. Wow!

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

11 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

9 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

3 years ago

Helpful 7
Thanks 2
Love this 6
Oh no 0

4 years ago

Helpful 3
Thanks 1
Love this 2
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

1 year ago

From the quality of the entres to the deserts, Olea is a fantastic experience 5+ stars...

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

3 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

7 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

4 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 1
Love this 0
Oh no 0

1 year ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 1
Love this 1
Oh no 0

3 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 1
Love this 0
Oh no 0
Photo of Luke R.
30
36
103

3 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 1
Love this 1
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0
Photo of Jaime R.
37
10
13

2 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0
Photo of Al T.
1
163
3

1 year ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

3 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

4 years ago

Helpful 2
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

6 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0
Photo of Mark N.
161
988
7192

6 years ago

Helpful 6
Thanks 0
Love this 7
Oh no 0
Photo of Soum L.
510
28
2

2 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 1
Love this 0
Oh no 1

5 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

5 years ago

Helpful 2
Thanks 0
Love this 2
Oh no 0

3 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

3 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 1

2 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0
Photo of Kyle F.
26
107
0

3 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

Page 1 of 6

Olea Reviews in Other Languages

You might also consider

Sabor Latino Deli

Sabor Latino Deli

(24 reviews)

$

My goodness, I take my hat off to you. The food tasted amazing and was cooked to perfection…read more Congratulations, and the prices are extraordinary. Wishing you much culinary success. I'm a chef myself and I'm amazed by your culinary talents. Blessings.

I drive past every day and this weekend I finally decided to try this place! Came in for lunch…read morearound 1 PM on a Saturday. There were a few people eating at a table there, and some people finishing up ordering, which gave me time to look at the menu. They also have a cafeteria style food which looked delicious but I was not confident about ordering it. But I had seen good reviews for the cubano so I ordered that with everything on it, along side a soursop smoothie (water based, they have the option for milk) and fried yuca. All together it was around $20. I say and waited at a table and and had my very freshly made food in a few minutes. They have some casual indoor seating and a nice outdoor seating area with a few tables for people who want to eat immediately. The cubano was delicious. There was a generous amount of meat, great flavor, and really filling. I only ate half of it, saving the rest for later. The fried yuca was hot out of the fryer, tasted good and crispy. Little salt added and I forgot to grab some sauce while I was there so I ate it with some hot sauce I have. I also liked the smoothie a lot. I'm glad I tried this deli and glad I live close by to try more things on the menu!

Olea - spanish - Updated May 2026

Loading...
Loading...
Loading...