It looks like Greek & Middle Eastern food is the cuisine of the moment right now in HK! We have come to Olive on Elgin Street on a Friday night, and it is jammed. I have never seen it this busy, ever! But good for them, this stalwart of Soho does serve some mighty fine Mid East food, so it seems reputation has preceded. Luckily Mrs L and I have reservations.
The food here is good. Will I say it's the best Mid East food in HK? Probably not, but for sheer convenience of Olive being right next to the esco, you can't really go wrong. Having said that though, the halloumi starter was by far the best I have had in HK. The portion actually had a decent few slices halloumi, and it was fried to perfection so it gets that little crispy skin. It was so good in fact that we ordered a second round! The lamb kofta starter was fabulous, moist minced lamb grilled on the skewer - yummers. The mains were unfortunately a bit disappointing, the moussaka was a bit more aubergine and tomato stew, and the chicken taouk (kebab) was a bit dry - you could probably do better on your home BBQ, or go down to the take out in Wan Chai. The dishes cost around HKD200 for mains and HKD100 for starters.
The staff were great and super friendly, but somewhat stretched in the busy restaurant. The bosses could probably do with adding a couple more servers, but where they could stand is another matter. The tables were crammed in, so if you are sitting in a thoroughfare, be prepared to be bumped a bit as the staff and patrons go about their business.
I do like the wine selection here, they have some Lebanese wines which make in interesting change from the usual Soho fare. However, you will have to ask for the wine menu and get the staff to keep pouring. It seems with the restaurant so busy, they have dropped drinks service off the agenda.
Don't forget too, it is part of AsiaXPAT's Super Monday, so get signed up! read more