Food wasn't flavorful. We weren't offered bread as all the tables around us did. Limited selection of entrees. Don't waste your time or money there. Go to any other italian place!! read more

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This place is amazing. Would give it a higher rating if I could. I'm not sure why other reviewers are complaining about the atmosphere. We found it to be very comfortable, not crowded, just a nice place. The service was excellent. The server was very knowledgeable and friendly. And the food - possibly the best meal I've ever had. I had the chicken al Mattone and it was cooked perfectly, and the flavour was out of this world. The sides also were extremely well done. My wife had the Tagliata, grilled skirt steak. I must say that I had a taste, and it blew me away. For food this good, prices are quite reasonable, and the whole place is casual and unpretentious. Will definitely go back next time we're in Kingston. read more

Been here a few times, but never "wow-ed" by the food. Same goes for the service. Last time we came was in the summer for dinner for a party of 4. We didn't have a reservation and we wanted to sit outside, so we waited at the bar for an outside table to be ready (took about 30 mins, but we didn't mind at all). Great mojitos at the bar! Anyways, we got seated outside and then for 45 minutes no waiter came over. We finally flagged someone down but they said they weren't our waiter, but would find ours and send them out. Then a guy rushed over, opened up his notepad and said "heard you guys were ready to order?". It was a bit rude...he seemed irritated to have to take our order, and no smile or "hello my name is" or "hello I'll be taking care of you this evening". At an expensive fancy Italian restaurant, you expect great service! Seems no one wanted to serve us. Not a good feeling, especially when you spend over $150 on dinner. I had the tortellini, and it was OK. All the dishes are plated so beautifully, they look like they're going to taste incredible, but it's always so-so. A+ for presentation, but lacking everywhere else it seems. read more

Olivea - Italian Near Me - Kingston, Ontario

Just amazing! All their dishes are must try! Especially their seafood linguine, the best I've had in century. read more

Olivea - Beef Carpaccio and pear salad. - Italian Near Me - Kingston, Ontario

For those of you with or without a sophisticated palate you will appreciate the thought and well selected ingredients that go into every item on the menu. I have been enjoying the food experience at Olivea for a few years now when I'm in town 4 or 5 times a year. I tell all my friends to make sure they stop by on the lovely patio or dine inside the attractive upscale restaurant when in Kingston. They are so appreciative after dining there. Olivea's chef CICI BANKS is truly a talent! I actually had the best steak I have ever eaten there last night. I visit restaurants in Toronto, Boston and Naples frequently and I have to say Olivea is top notch! Friendly, efficient and knowledgeable staff make the dining experience complete and keep me coming back every time. LOVE, LOVE this piece of Kingston. BOOK AHEAD, especially in the summer months. read more

this restaurant has the best Italian food in Kingston I would highly recommend the pasta Pomodoro as well as their steaks. They have deliciously cook steaks they are perfect. There the bread is also phenomenal and like something you would get an Italian bakery. Would highly recommend there are desserts as well especially their tiramisu. This is an excellent restaurant to support during this chaotic time where the restaurant industry is struggling read more

This is one of my favorite restaurants in Kingston! I have been there numerous times and the food is always excellent. Firstly, the focaccia bread that they put out to start is to die for. It is served with fig infused balsamic vinegar and extra virgin olive oil from the Kingston Olive Oil Co. - I always eat more than I'd like to admit! For my entree, I ordered the pasta special, which was a Puttanesca Tagliatelle pasta with cherry tomatoes, squid, Arctic char, and prawns. It was really well done - I just thought it lacked a bit of spice (mind you, I love a bit of heat). In the past I have ordered the Aglio Olio with Arugula and Prawns (my all time favorite), the seafood linguine, the pesto gnocchi, and the Chicken Al Mattone with gnocchi. I would recommend all of them! For dessert I shared a cannoli and tiramisu with my boyfriend and they were incredible. I have also had the raspberry tortufo and it is another classic item to order! Overall, I highly highly highly recommend! The service is the perfect balance of attentive and relaxed. It is quaint and charming inside and always buzzing with people. Make sure to book a reservation or else you will not get a table! read more

Olivea - Pasta special: tagliatelle puttenesca with squid, Arctic char, and prawns - Italian Near Me - Kingston, Ontario

Loved it. The waiter was very friend and responsive. We had the walnut and pear salad, fish of the day, spaghetti and risotto. All of the food are of great quality. The bread, the balsamic vinegar and the olive oil are excellent as well. Price wise isn't excessive. Overall better than expected. read more

My second visit, great food choices, wonderful atmosphere. Very well prepared and presented dishes. Jazz on Tuesday, worth the visit. Always busy but they accommodated me. Will be back. read more

I stopped in with a friend in between Toronto and the Ottawa area. The patio was a great place to eat and have a view of the public square. The food is reasonably good, but not excellent. Below my expectations for the price point, which was a bit high. read more

I taken to this restaurant by my hosts on a recent trip to Queen's University. I had the special, a filled vegetarian pasta and the chocolate cake as desert. The food was good, the service professional, the setting nice (although a little loud). I wish the vegetarian dishes would have been highlighted on the menu. The prices are on the high side. read more

Went there because it came highly recommended from a friend, but the pasta was undercooked, and the seafood was overcooked, quite disappointed with the food. The service was very normal and the vibe is nice, might have just been a bad meal but still disappointed. read more

3.5/5 - I guess I have to be mindful that this place is in Kingston and that if you have limited options downtown here, then yes, this would be a good place to go. However, coming from Toronto, I was a little disappointed in their seafood linguine. This place has a nice ambience - dimly set with photos of Italy around the walls. Menu offers your typical Italian fare with quite a bit of options. I only got the chance to have their seafood linguine and bruschetta but wanted to try a few other things on the menu as well. Seafood linguine unfortunately had a mildly spicy sauce with a lot of olives (as you can tell, I'm not a huge fan of olives). However, props for cooking the linguine to al dente! The seafood itself was ok - the scallops were not the best selection but the portion size of the dish itself was good. However, looking at the price point of this dish, my expectations were a bit higher and this dish didn't quite meet that. But I do have to be mindful that this is located right in downtown Kingston. Given the opportunity, I'd come back and try other things on the menu and hopefully sample better dishes. read more

Right in the heart of downtown kingston, this place is a MUST for lunch! Great size portions, very knowledgeable staff, and a small yet cozy atmosphere. I've been to Olivea's twice and will definitely go back a third time. read more

The newest restaurant to try and catch on in the Kingston area. Great location downtown with a beautiful patio and lay-out inside. Ambitious menu to start with which was executed with some misses. Started with the anti-pasto platters which lacked imagination and portions. Pasta alla carbonara was a good attempt but the heat left the eggs a little cooked. Steak was done a little rare and with a lot of salt. I think it is worth a second try as the place seemed to be just getting their feet underneath them. read more

Ordered the mushroom risotto here. It was good but way too salty and also the portion size was pretty small. I'd say that there are other places that are probably better value for money as the prices here are kind of high for what you get. read more

Our curbside pickup of truffle fried, grilled yellow tuna and duck confit proved to be our most delicious meal of this pandemic! Proof that hot takeout can be wonderful. read more

Went to Olivea last night and had the best meal. Even better than our meal was our waiter, Brandon. Best waiter I've ever had in a restaurant. read more

Very disappointed. For the price I was expecting MUCH better. Portions were very small, and the pomodoro pasta was very plain. Even I could have made a better tomato sauce. I ordered it to go and by the time I got home all of the sauce was soaked up by the over-cooked pasta. They also didn't add any Parmesan or cheese to the plates. read more

A nice spot to spend dinner at. The ambience is great, there was live entertainment also. The service was amazing and the food awesome. I had the gnocchi. It was very tasty. The bread is amazing also. It's a little expensive but the portion size is good. I would like to return again sometime. read more

Food is good, service is not. Server did not tell us the procedures to get a $4 mojito until the end of the night and did not bother to waive the fees. The food is well seasoned, however it is not worth visiting if you expect service that is quality. read more

This restaurant is so nice. Service was amazing and food tasted very good! Enjoyed it very much and would consider this a perfect restaurant for anyone! read more

Ordered a grilled chicken breast along with my pasta. The chicken was rancid, tasted microwaved, and gave me food poisoning. Kitchen and management do not follow proper food safety protocol in this establishment, and do not care about customer satisfaction, only profitability. This establishment is a hazard to public health. I highly advise against ordering any meat or dairy products from their menu. read more

This wasn't a great spot for us. We reserved as newbies to the area and treating friends. They advertised live music for the evening, which was the decision maker for us. On arrival we were shown to a table for n the backroom. We complained that we had reserved specifically to hear the live music with dinner. Sorry, you have to specifically request a front table in the restaurant if you want to hear the music, we were told. So we ordered. The waiter was super nice and seemed to know his menu. Friendly. Visits from him were spread out a bit too much, we waited for every thing, including water service. Food was below expectations. Pasta was over cooked. The spaghetti ordered by one of us was linguini. The dipping oils were superb and sourced locally. Two of us ordered a chefs special that was supposed to be very good. Neither of us liked it and would compare it to an oil soaked linguini. The strongest flavor that came through was similar to eating a Christmas tree. Collectively we rate this as an adequate meal but not even near the quality of a chain restaurant. So we won't return but luckily there are other places to explore in Kingston so it's not a total bust. read more

I have heard amazing things about Olivea, but to say the least, I was not incredibly impressed. The atmosphere itself was very nice, however, it was not very intimate. Tables of two were put inches away from each other, so if you are on a date, you are also listening to the conversations of the two couples directly next to you. The service was not the best I have experienced, although it was decent. It almost felt as if I was being rushed out of the restaurant. For pasta, I would definitely say it is quite overpriced. I got their gnocchi with beef cheek ragù, truffle and parmesan, and to say the least it was not the best. The gnocchi was chewy and great, however, the sauce itself was incredibly salty. The salt did not come from the parmesan, but came from the beef cheek ragù. Nevertheless, my boyfriend ordered the orecchiette with Italian sausage, tomato and rapini and loved it! These two dishes combined, cost $45 and I would say it was not worth it. Toasted bread was given beforehand and could be dipped in olive oil and balsamic. I love bread, however, the toasted bread was really quite difficult to eat. It was too toasted and lost the chewy texture that I love. We ordered the hazelnut torte for dessert and that was incredibly delicious! Overall, I do not think I will return here for a meal. Nevertheless, I may come back to try another plate. read more

Four stars in Kingston. We ate the daily brucesstta, carpaccio, gnocchi and gorgonzola salad paired with a resaling wine. While the ambiance was delightful with big windows and a good combination of modernity and comfort the food was ok. The carpaccio was slightly too thick and the salad was cheesy I would return to try again when I am in Kingston. bill came to 63 plus tip. I am a food snob therefor I gave it three stars but I think for a small town it deserves four stars. read more

I'm reading some other reviews and I'm going to have to disagree a little - the food was average, and I did not find that it lived up to the higher price range. I liked Olivea for the local quirks and atmosphere, it's fresh and urban and a little edgy. read more

Pleasant, local cuisine and a great patio overlooking the town square. Nice selection of beer and jazz nights. Cozy interior with lots of light wood, leaving it to feel open yet intimate. Great place for good food and drink, and you can hold a conversation without raising your voice. Totally excellent dining experience. read more

I was new in town and was tired of eating on my yoga mat on the floor. I went and splurged a little for a nice dinner and Olivea provided just that. I went on an incredibly busy Thursday, which is their live jazz night. They were very accommodating, considering it was just me. They wanted to seat me at a table but I insisted I would just sit at the bar so a couple could have a table. The bartender, though incredibly busy, could see I was by myself and made sure she stopped and chatted with me when she had the chance. I ordered the chicken parmigiana and it was so incredibly delicious. It was perfectly cooked, with just the right amount of sauce and lots of cheese. I then ordered a tiramisu for dessert which was equally as delicious. They have lots of great beers on tap, including ones from Ganonaque brewery. The live jazz that night was splendid. It was so nice just to sit and watch them jam out in the restaurant, and others didn't seem to think it was too loud for conversation. Can't wait to go back again, perhaps for a date night. read more

Olivea - Tiramisu - Italian Near Me - Kingston, Ontario

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Was very happy to find this place. Great location, great service, & a really good meal. We had oysters for an appetizer. They were from Nova Scotia and delicious. Our entrée was a large pasta dish, but I found it tasty, however small for $25. Seriously, how expensive are noodles. It could also have used more than just two pieces of seafood. read more

Pasta is the main event here. They also make a simple plate for my son, just Alfredo, butter and garlic (just the way he likes it). I love the aglio olio arugula dish, so fresh and delicious. The patio tables is a really good spot to people watch in kingston. I recommend this place - not wheelchair accessible but the patio spot is good and for those in wheelchairs you could also use the elevators in the restaurant building across the street or the city hall building. read more

An excellent find on the way to Ottawa. Kingston Ontario is a great older and seemingly wealthy community. The service was very very strong. Carpaccio and Bolonaise were first rate. Caprese salad was too big to finish. The Italian version of Chippino was the best seafood I have had in years . A wonderful evening read more

Very good pasta. One of my favorite spots in Kingston. One time I went and ordered wine that tasted off. The waitress was super about getting me and my friend new glasses of wine. Very good service and tasty food. Go here. read more

My husband and I ate here for our anniversary. Since we are from out of town, we didn't choose this place specifically. The draw to this restaurant over others was the billboard advertising lamb chops as a dinner special. We both love lamb chops and don't get them very often. When we walked in, the hostess explained that there wasn't a table available, but if we wanted to come back in a half hour she would be able to seat us. We took a short walk and when we returned there was a table available outside which is where we wanted to sit. Our meals were cooked to perfection and the server was very attentive and personable. I have to say this was one of the better fine dining experiences we have had. read more

Good food overall. Alfredo sauce was perfect. Daily special was mushroom ragu and it was too salty. Caesar salad was perfect

Very delicious. The charcuterie board was so yummy!! Everyone was so happy with their meal!!

Great food! Loved the menu: lots of intriguing choices. The gnocchi were as light as air. The fritto misto was tender and delicious; my only regret was that there wasn't more of it. The lemon caper aioli that accompanied it was so good, I wanted to lick the dish clean. The salad with the pear and Gorganzola was first-rate; I loved every bite. My only complaint was the focaccia, which was the consistency of Wonder Bread. Even so, one needs bread as a tool with which to eat when eating Italian. Our server cleared it away long before we were finished eating. read more

I don't know how people can like this restaurant. They don't even have real ice tea, it was pre-sweetened brisk. The bread was stale and tasteless. The ceasar salad was dry with almost no dressing. The pasta was boring. Avoid this place. read more

We were there today and it was OK. I felt like a lot of our food needed salt badly (and the salt shakers we aquired were all empty) and the chicken that we each got was very, very burnt on the outside. My chicken also had a lot of fat, which made it unpleasant. The pasta was fantastic, despite the fact that the sauce lacked a lot of salt and was way too rich. My husband's dinner had amazing vegetables that were cooked to perfection, but our proteins were just so bad I couldn't give higher marks. The Kingston Olive Oil Co's mission fig balsamic was easily the best thing I had all night (it was INCREDIBLE!!!) Our waitress was nice but seemed like she had too many tables to adequately take care of all of them. I'd probably go somewhere else in the future - for our $80 dinner I could have gotten something really fantastic elsewhere in the city. read more

Stopped by for lunch and ordered the octopus for an appetizer. It was cooked and seasoned perfectly and I might even go so far as to say it was the best we've ever had. We also ordered a couple of salads and added shrimp, which was also seasoned and cooked to perfection. I'm always impressed when seafood is cooked well since most places don't get it quite right. The pasta with bolognese sauce was delicious and the pasta was cooked al dente. Would definitely go back if we're ever back in Kingston. read more