Nicely presented food, but small portions for the cost. Gazpacho was the best dish. The food was tasty but overpriced. Extremely noisy, not able to speak with your table mates unless raising voices and unable to hear the waiter with the specials. Suggestion would be to have a printed sheet for people to read the specials. read more

Had dinner at Olea last night. Atmosphere was lovely and service was very friendly. The martini and cosmo were below par. However, the oxtail croquettes were wonderful and surpassed the chicken croquettes at Carve in Ansonia which are also top notch. I selected the fish of the day which the Mediterranean sea bass la plancha (skin on) which I thought was very good and fairly priced at $27. My wife had the duck breast with the mushroom risotto. The duck was a huge disappointment. The duck was cooked fine however it lacked a sauce ( there was a sauce but it was barely apparent) to complement it and the presentation was ridiculous for a $36 entree. Had it not been for the disappointment with the duck this would have been a four star experience given the comfortable setting and wait staff. read more

We had a party of 12 people and everyone was totally satisfied. Amazing food and great wait staff. I highly recommend this restaurant.

Delicious Spanish cuisine in an attractive modern setting with exceptional service. Octopus appetizer could have been a bit larger. Seafood atop pasta with squid ink just right. Virua and Tempranillo wines tasty and well priced. read more

Super delicious food. Seasoning was spot-on. Great service, always be around and never intrude.

This had been one of my favorite restaurants in New Haven but my last experience was not good. I brought my daughter there at 4:45 on a weeknight it was raining hard. Walked in the restaurant and was promptly told they didn't open till 5:00. I said fine we would have a drink at the bar. I was again told they didn't open till five we left and walked back to the car in the pouring rain. Went back at five as the rain stopped. The owners son is the bartender this night he seemed to be doing us a favor by waiting on us. The usually amazing food was mediocre at best. The service was poor there were only three other tables in the place we finished dinner at seven and left. Maybe they just had a off night as Yale is not in session?, but unwilling be back any time soon. read more

Best restaurant in New Haven. Every detail of the meal is impeccably prepared. The tastes are irresistible. The decor is an extremely pleasing elegant, understated modernism. The service, professional but unfussy. read more

Great food and ambiance. I felt like I had left new haven. The service was perfect, they had an excellent wine selection and it was reasonably priced. Our favorite was the octopus, something you don't find everywhere and it was prepared perfectly. The menu is a little expensive, we had 2 apps two entrees, two desserts, and a bottle of wine, but you do get what you pay for with the whole experience. If you are not looking to spend a lot drinks and tapas at the bar would be a great direction to go. read more

The rare time I wish for a half star rating step. Four seems somewhat generous, but three strikes me as completely unfair, so four it is. There were no major flaws in food or service. Staff was welcoming and accommodating. We enjoyed the privacy of the two top that backs up to the bar. We dined early on a weeknight. I have no idea how the noise level is when completely filled, but it was nice to have background music actually in the background, and be able to talk without shouting or straining to hear. We chose gazpacho, the special fig and beet salad, trout, and grilled scallops. All were tasty, correctly prepared, and plated in pleasing manners. We passed on dessert, not for lack of enticing choices, but for dietary reasons, however phony. Nevertheless, the kitchen generously sent out a complementary cannoli selection for a known special occasion, and it was delicious. A very gracious gesture. So, why not easily give four stars, or maybe even five? Pizzaz and polish. I don't need to be entertained, but I want the food to have an attitude that is a little sassy, e.g. my scallops were on a bed of couscous. How rococo. The trout was accompanied with potato. Not a fatal flaw, but, c'mon, be inventive. When dessert has more flair than the main course, I'm disappointed! As mentioned earlier, service was good, but a little hovering, and when you serve bread, get it on the table. Especially when we didn't order charcuterie or any other traditional starters. Timing, intuitiveness, that is what I mean by polish. I saved my wine comments for last, always the Achilles Heel of most restaurants. We don't drink as we would like anymore. It's too dangerous to drive afterwards, and always egregiously too expensive. But we sprang for a bottle, and damn near the most expensive wine on the list, an Albariño(!) for $139. After all, it was a special occasion. First, the wine was superb. Second, I'm a self absorbed wine geek, and I resent paying 3+ times wholesale for wine. It spoils a great deal of the enjoyment for me, although I seriously tried to turn the other cheek on this night. The wine was a different vintage than on the menu (ugh!!), it was served ice cold (triple ugh!!! I hate that), and the stemware was meh. But, for God's sake, stop trying to put wine in my glass every single second after my volume level gets to some self appointed place, and then pour too much before I can stop you! Maybe I'm drinking at a different pace, maybe I'm the designated driver, maybe I hate five ounce pours (I do!). At least get all your servers to pour a consistent amount. The guy had it right, the girl did not. And I know servers can't be soothsayers, so they should ask the patrons what they want, or at least be conservative. Errors of commission are always better than omission. All of this is why I would have preferred 3.5 stars. $85 for food, $139 for wine, tax, 20% tip, it adds up. Special occasion or not, I still think that's an expensive meal, and our dessert was comped. I can't afford many $275 nights out, and I have a real good job. I'll save for another time my tipping thoughts on overpriced wine, although I bit the bullet tonight, mainly because everyone was very, very nice. To conclude, we had a pleasant experience, and will go back. Not immediately, but it's now in the rotation. read more

Hands down, best restaurant in New Haven. Would beat any restaurant in Manhattan in a heartbeat. Excellent service, delicious food and elegant yet welcoming ambience. Highly recommend the tuna tartare, croquetas, couscous and fideua! read more

Olea was incredible! The service was delightful and everyone was so kind and helpful. The food was so flavorful and excellently prepared! I highly recommend the steak and the veal dish! They gave us a desert and an appetizer on the house which was generous and delicious! I loved this restraunt and will definitely be returning! read more

Over priced, over hyped and pretentious. Restaurant's that participate in restaurant week should be interested in pleasing and making new customers. Instead Olea skimped on dishes. Food in addition OK but unremarkable-literally. read more

Its really sad to read the reviews on this gem and see people complaint about wait times. By now , in life, you know if you want great you have to wait. If its packed and busy is for a single reason , what comes out of that kitchen is a culinary journey, an adventure through your palate, an awakening of the senses. There is no weakness, from the décor , to the drinks , to the staff , to the main protagonist the food. I have eaten at several Michelin star restaurants and this gem belongs in that category. There was not one detail left out in every single dish . We were a table of 6 therefore tried about every single item on the menu , not one plate when back with a single crumb on it. Word of advice , if you have to wait for your table , head over to the bar and try one of the cocktails ( or two ) , they re as good as they get and open the door to the culinary journey ahead. Enjoy ! read more

Oh My God - Amazing. The food, the service, the restaurant. Everything about last night's dinner was amazing. Same chef as Ibiza and if I recall correctly, he had the only diamond rating for a latin restaurant in CT (or something like that) when he was with Ibiza. Now that he runs Olea, I am sure that the ratings, awards whatever else chefs' receive, are just around the corner. Every part of our meal was incredible from the moment we sat down to dessert. There were four of us having dinner and we are hard to please, but we all walked out of there completely satisfied and vowing to return in the very near future. read more

Service is good but always slow. Food is pretty good though. They are really into using froth in their dishes.

My friend, who was visiting from out of town, and I ate here two weeks ago. At first, the experience was odd. The restaurant was busy but not insanely so. We were two people and we seated in the way back, at a 4 top away from all the patrons, at the table closest to the kitchen door. We asked to be moved to a two top in a corner of the restaurant in the section where all the patrons were and that request seemed like a big imposition. It then took the staff several minutes to take our drink order, acknowledge us and bring us water. We then had a few people attending to us, one to take our drink order, one to take our order, one bringing water, a different person bringing out our wine and that all seemed really odd Finally we were given one waitperson and from there the situation changed. The ceviche was delicious and we ordered the sea bass and short ribs to share and everything was really delicious. Wine list was extensive, expensive and good. Due to the pricey nature of the items, I expected better service and was turned off at the beginning of our experience. In the end, the meal was very, very good and that made us ended on a high note. read more

If possible I would give Olea 10 STARS! Truly one of the finest culinary experiences anyone could ask for. The decor is remarkable. The staff were not only knowledgeable but very warm and receptive. Most importantly the food was a fine dining masterpiece. Every dish was extremely well thought out and perfectly executed. The desserts were to die for. Anyone within 100 miles of Olea should immediately drop whatever they are doing and make time to indulge in this wonderful experience. BRAVO!! read more

went for restaurant week, and enjoyed the appetizer, entree, and dessert

plates are small and expensive but very delicious and they give you little extra treats like appetizers and bread and chocolate. good selection of menu items. the chicken and the steak were both excellent as were the desserts! read more