The Black Olive
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The experience didn't meet the expectations. The first drink we ordered from the menu couldn't be made. We weren't told why... just "I can't make that one." Mmmk. We asked about happy hour specials and it was confusing. A list of what the happy hour specials are would be helpful. We couldn't get the happy hour wings + pizza combo because we weren't ready to order pizza. I just needed a few minutes to scan the menu. The wings missed with seasoning but the sauce helped. We asked if we could build our own pizza... the reply was "It depends." Okay...depends on... what?? Pizza arrived and we dove in. Not bad. I had a white sauce pizza with caramelized onions and mushrooms. Our visit missed the mark that we were hoping for.
I saw some reviews on TikTok that peaked my interest then I read the reviews on google to prepare me. First visit I made a reservation so I wouldn't have to wait. Seated quickly but service was slow. Waitress wasn't very attentive and whatever drink I had was not good. The food? Great. Had the ragu and it was fantastic. Buffalo chicken pizza was good and even better on happy hour. I could not get the ragu off my mind so we cane back. Seated right away but then left alone for over 5 mins. I go to order the ragu and the waiter says they took it off the menu. My heart hurt. They didn't bother updating the menu. We ordered one pizza and it took 48 mins-restaurant had less than ten people in it. After all that-it wasn't even made correctly. The place is cute but not the elevated experience I think they're trying to deliver. Poor service, sticky floors, out of date menus and holes in the bathroom walls don't line up with $14 Caesar salads.
Overall , I wasn't impressed lol. BUT: The door greeters were nice! They inquired on if my guest and I wanted to sit in the Hip Hop or R&B side and we opted for the R&B side. Our waitress was also very sweet and attentive. She was also new, but seemed very knowledgeable about all the menu items, which I was impressed! We ended up ordering drinks and those were good! I can't remember what my friend requested, but I got the Blood Orange Mule and it was perfect. We ordered Truffle Fries, garlic parm wings, and shared "The Carrollini" pizza. For one, the serving of fries was so small but it was good -- just not worth the $11. The wings were alright and the pizza was just way too sweet; I didn't like it. To note, although we sat on the R&B side, they didn't play ANY R&B music. It was so pointless.
Overall great experience. Beautifully decorated with art/photos of Black musicians and pleasant vibe with music playing at an audible level but not overwhelming that you can't have a conversation. Service was friendly, informative and efficient. Everything I ate was amazing. Black eyed pea hummus: Such a unique idea for hummus & must try. The bread is good enough to eat with or without hummus. It could probably use more bread given the amount of humus. If you don't like olives, the hummus still tastes amazing without the olive salsa in the middle. Crispy wings: Perfectly crispy and the fennel ranch flavor was so good (as someone who does not usually like ranch) Italian meatballs: Delicious sauce and large meatballs with a perfect texture Short rib ragu: The noddles were huge and the short rib was tender. The ragu is a little spicy and a little sweet.
My friends and I had the pleasure of visiting The Black Olive Pizzeria, and overall, we had a good experience! As with any new business, there were a few hiccups along the way. I initially made a reservation for eight guests, but our group grew slightly larger. I spoke with the owner beforehand, who assured me that accommodating the additional guests wouldn't be an issue. We were told we'd be seated in the mezzanine area overlooking the R&B section, which sounded great. However, upon arrival, we were directed upstairs to a lounge area with couches, as another party had taken the table we had reserved. While the staff did their best to accommodate us, it may be worth noting that larger groups could face some logistical challenges. That said, I truly appreciate their efforts to make it work for us. For my meal, I started with the wings, which were decent, but the Bug Out pizza was definitely the highlight for me. The live music was a great addition to the ambiance, and our group enjoyed having the upstairs space to move around and dance a little. A quick tip--be mindful of parking. I found a lot around the corner for $8, but I recommend allowing extra time to find a spot. Also, be mindful that the tip is included in your bill. Since the restaurant is still new, I'd advise giving some grace regarding wait times and overall expectations. Despite the minor seating issue, the staff was exceptionally kind, which is always appreciated. I'm grateful to the owner for doing her best to accommodate us, and I look forward to returning soon!
Today I had the opportunity to visit Black Olive Pizzeria! This is a new establishment located on Broad St in close proximity to The Quirk Hotel. It is a large space and aesthetically pleasing. There are large prints of notable black people with low lighting and very cute color patterns. The menu is on a smaller scale and truly focuses on specialty pizzas and a few small plates. I ordered the meatballs and they were great. It was the right combination of sauce and meatballs. They were moist and the Parmesan was a good touch. My friend ordered the Bug Out pizza (pepperoni, sausage, burrata, arugula, hot honey) and it was decent. It was flavorful. We just wished that the temperature was a little hotter when it came to the table. All of the pizzas are personal size. The service was on the slower side when it came to getting our drinks. I just assumed it's because they are fairly new. The drinks were good and our waiter was definitely working to make sure we had everything we needed while waiting on food and drinks. I will definitely be back to try other things on the menu.
I had really high expectations for this restaurant because I heard it was good. The ambience is very nice. I do like how there's two sides to the building so maybe I will go back and try out the other side and the dinner menu. However, the food was mediocre. The crab pizza was best thing that was ordered at my table, but the chicken Parmesan was very dry and lacked flavor so maybe next time I'll go back and get a pizza instead. The service was very good and so were the drinks.
The concept of the restaurant brought us here, as a true R&B lover! I loved that they dedicated an entire side of the restaurant to playing R&B. The food could've been better and was definitely overpriced. We ordered buffalo wings, the shrimp appetizer and lasagna which all were presented nicely. The drinks were also pretty watered down. It was pretty empty for a weekend and they had a downstairs setup with a DJ but was a ghost town. This place definitely has potential with some reworking of the menu and better drinks!
This restaurant was very urban and up-to-date with its decor and styling, it had the feel of walking into a music studio. Smooth sounds we're playing across the speakers and later a live DJ was ready to spend some tunes. Our server was very sweet and knowledgeable about the menu and she gave Great choices of what to select from the menu. The food was very tasty, but I felt like there could have been more soulful options on the menu or with a fusion of soul and Italian. Overall, this was a great experience and I plan to come back and try it again. I was slightly disappointed that in our party of three we were charged the 20% gratuity on the menu, and even more disappointed to learn that the tip did not go fully to our server. A percentage went to the house and the rest went to her. I guess everyone needs to get a piece of the action to create the ambience to make all systems go.
I went to dinner with my husband after visiting The Dean Collection exhibition at VMFA. This was my second time eating at the Black Olive. As per my first visit, the food was absolutely delicious. I really liked that they offered a Sunday Football special of a pizza & wings for 25.00. We ordered the Beef Pepperoni Pizza for my husband & the Garlic-Parmesan wings under the special pricing. I also ordered a Mushroom pizza for myself. As previously mentioned, the food absolutely delightful. The service, however, on this particular day was a bit disjointed. Even though there were not a lot of patrons in the dining area, there were extended periods of time when service people came to check on us. Also my husband ordered dessert & it took at least 20 minutes for us to receive it. The dessert, crème brûlée cheesecake, was amazing so that took some of the sting out of the extended wait time. The only other issue I had was that due to an event they hosted on Saturday, they were out of some of their menu items on Sunday. I am always sort of baffled when restaurants run out of provisions especially on a Sunday when people do tend to go out to eat. Overall, our experience was positive & I would return to try more menu items especially their pizzas.
Wasn't impressed. The experience felt messy..our waiter couldn't (or wouldn't) make certain drinks and lacked basic friendliness. I had the SpottieOttieDopaliscious (5/10) and buffalo wings (8/10). Not rushing to come back unfortunately.
Our reservation was at 7:30, but when we arrived, another party had taken our table. Even after I spoke to management, they didn't ask the other group to move. They did try to accommodate us by bringing a table from downstairs, but it only fit a few of us out of our party of 11. We ended up sitting in a lounge-style area with couches and coffee tables, which wasn't ideal for dining. It would have been nice to have our reserved table along with that space for a more comfortable experience. Service was also quite slow. I didn't receive water until 8:36, and my appetizer didn't come out until 8:51, well over an hour after our reservation time. On a positive note, the Miso Prawns were absolutely delicious, a solid 10/10. I also ordered The Bug Out pizza, but it had more arugula than I preferred, and the bottom was overly charred, making almost every bite taste burnt. One of the best parts of the evening was the live band. They were fantastic and really elevated the atmosphere. A heads-up for future guests: a 20% gratuity is automatically added to the bill, regardless of party size, but it's not listed anywhere on the menu or mentioned by staff. The only reason I knew was because I had seen it mentioned in a Google review. I understand the restaurant is still new, and I'd love to give it another try in a few months once they've had time to work through the kinks. Unfortunately, this first experience was a bit rough.
My cousin introduced me to this place yesterday and I truly enjoyed It. Since it's a pizzeria, of course we had pizza! We had "The New Yorker" and "The Wire". Both were very delicious. The New Yorker was a cheese pizza while The Wire was a Crab Pizza with pesto sauce. I didn't get a picture but the cheese pull was insane on both! The drinks were good as well. I had the "Pornstar Martini" while my cousin had the "Velvet Notes" I love how the restaurant has 3 different parts. The right side was for the conservatives, the left was for the not so conservatives and the basement was where the party and hookah was at. The only downside of this place, was the service. It was sooo slow! Although, our bartender "Devin" made some amazing drinks! read more
4 months ago
This is our second time at The Black Olive. In my first review I would not have returned. It was a close friend of mine birthday celebration. Upon entering we were greeted and the host walked us down to the lower level. We had six tables reserved. The bartender came over immediately and took our drink orders and small plate orders. We didn't want any hookah but it was offered. We later ordered a pizza as well later on. Our food was better than expected. The prawns were flavorful, the meatballs weren't warm enough but had some spice to it and were larger than expected. The Caesar salad had kale and red onion in it which was different. We enjoyed the food and the vibe on the lower level was better. The pizza could use more sauce and the cheese had a nice pull to it. The meat on the pizza didn't taste frozen at all. We had to ask for refills a few times, but the server did a good job considering she had at least 20 people to serve.Overall, better this time around. read more
One of the few restaurants open on New years and so glad we stopped in. Our waiter and even the cook made sure that our food was delicious. The pizza was amazing and the bartender did a wonderful job with the drinks. Everything was delicious and I loved that they had one side for families and the other side for adults. read more
The experience didn't meet the expectations. The first drink we ordered from the menu couldn't be made. We weren't told why... just "I can't make that one." Mmmk. We asked about happy hour specials and it was confusing. A list of what the happy hour specials are would be helpful. We couldn't get the happy hour wings + pizza combo because we weren't ready to order pizza. I just needed a few minutes to scan the menu. The wings missed with seasoning but the sauce helped. We asked if we could build our own pizza... the reply was "It depends." Okay...depends on... what?? Pizza arrived and we dove in. Not bad. I had a white sauce pizza with caramelized onions and mushrooms. Our visit missed the mark that we were hoping for. read more
1 year ago
I saw some reviews on TikTok that peaked my interest then I read the reviews on google to prepare me. First visit I made a reservation so I wouldn't have to wait. Seated quickly but service was slow. Waitress wasn't very attentive and whatever drink I had was not good. The food? Great. Had the ragu and it was fantastic. Buffalo chicken pizza was good and even better on happy hour. I could not get the ragu off my mind so we cane back. Seated right away but then left alone for over 5 mins. I go to order the ragu and the waiter says they took it off the menu. My heart hurt. They didn't bother updating the menu. We ordered one pizza and it took 48 mins-restaurant had less than ten people in it. After all that-it wasn't even made correctly. The place is cute but not the elevated experience I think they're trying to deliver. Poor service, sticky floors, out of date menus and holes in the bathroom walls don't line up with $14 Caesar salads. read more
1 year ago
Overall , I wasn't impressed lol. BUT: The door greeters were nice! They inquired on if my guest and I wanted to sit in the Hip Hop or R&B side and we opted for the R&B side. Our waitress was also very sweet and attentive. She was also new, but seemed very knowledgeable about all the menu items, which I was impressed! We ended up ordering drinks and those were good! I can't remember what my friend requested, but I got the Blood Orange Mule and it was perfect. We ordered Truffle Fries, garlic parm wings, and shared "The Carrollini" pizza. For one, the serving of fries was so small but it was good -- just not worth the $11. The wings were alright and the pizza was just way too sweet; I didn't like it. To note, although we sat on the R&B side, they didn't play ANY R&B music. It was so pointless. read more
Overall great experience. Beautifully decorated with art/photos of Black musicians and pleasant vibe with music playing at an audible level but not overwhelming that you can't have a conversation. Service was friendly, informative and efficient. Everything I ate was amazing. Black eyed pea hummus: Such a unique idea for hummus & must try. The bread is good enough to eat with or without hummus. It could probably use more bread given the amount of humus. If you don't like olives, the hummus still tastes amazing without the olive salsa in the middle. Crispy wings: Perfectly crispy and the fennel ranch flavor was so good (as someone who does not usually like ranch) Italian meatballs: Delicious sauce and large meatballs with a perfect texture Short rib ragu: The noddles were huge and the short rib was tender. The ragu is a little spicy and a little sweet. read more
My friends and I had the pleasure of visiting The Black Olive Pizzeria, and overall, we had a good experience! As with any new business, there were a few hiccups along the way. I initially made a reservation for eight guests, but our group grew slightly larger. I spoke with the owner beforehand, who assured me that accommodating the additional guests wouldn't be an issue. We were told we'd be seated in the mezzanine area overlooking the R&B section, which sounded great. However, upon arrival, we were directed upstairs to a lounge area with couches, as another party had taken the table we had reserved. While the staff did their best to accommodate us, it may be worth noting that larger groups could face some logistical challenges. That said, I truly appreciate their efforts to make it work for us. For my meal, I started with the wings, which were decent, but the Bug Out pizza was definitely the highlight for me. The live music was a great addition to the ambiance, and our group enjoyed having the upstairs space to move around and dance a little. A quick tip--be mindful of parking. I found a lot around the corner for $8, but I recommend allowing extra time to find a spot. Also, be mindful that the tip is included in your bill. Since the restaurant is still new, I'd advise giving some grace regarding wait times and overall expectations. Despite the minor seating issue, the staff was exceptionally kind, which is always appreciated. I'm grateful to the owner for doing her best to accommodate us, and I look forward to returning soon! read more
2 years ago
Today I had the opportunity to visit Black Olive Pizzeria! This is a new establishment located on Broad St in close proximity to The Quirk Hotel. It is a large space and aesthetically pleasing. There are large prints of notable black people with low lighting and very cute color patterns. The menu is on a smaller scale and truly focuses on specialty pizzas and a few small plates. I ordered the meatballs and they were great. It was the right combination of sauce and meatballs. They were moist and the Parmesan was a good touch. My friend ordered the Bug Out pizza (pepperoni, sausage, burrata, arugula, hot honey) and it was decent. It was flavorful. We just wished that the temperature was a little hotter when it came to the table. All of the pizzas are personal size. The service was on the slower side when it came to getting our drinks. I just assumed it's because they are fairly new. The drinks were good and our waiter was definitely working to make sure we had everything we needed while waiting on food and drinks. I will definitely be back to try other things on the menu. read more
1 year ago
I had really high expectations for this restaurant because I heard it was good. The ambience is very nice. I do like how there's two sides to the building so maybe I will go back and try out the other side and the dinner menu. However, the food was mediocre. The crab pizza was best thing that was ordered at my table, but the chicken Parmesan was very dry and lacked flavor so maybe next time I'll go back and get a pizza instead. The service was very good and so were the drinks. read more
The concept of the restaurant brought us here, as a true R&B lover! I loved that they dedicated an entire side of the restaurant to playing R&B. The food could've been better and was definitely overpriced. We ordered buffalo wings, the shrimp appetizer and lasagna which all were presented nicely. The drinks were also pretty watered down. It was pretty empty for a weekend and they had a downstairs setup with a DJ but was a ghost town. This place definitely has potential with some reworking of the menu and better drinks! read more
1 year ago
This restaurant was very urban and up-to-date with its decor and styling, it had the feel of walking into a music studio. Smooth sounds we're playing across the speakers and later a live DJ was ready to spend some tunes. Our server was very sweet and knowledgeable about the menu and she gave Great choices of what to select from the menu. The food was very tasty, but I felt like there could have been more soulful options on the menu or with a fusion of soul and Italian. Overall, this was a great experience and I plan to come back and try it again. I was slightly disappointed that in our party of three we were charged the 20% gratuity on the menu, and even more disappointed to learn that the tip did not go fully to our server. A percentage went to the house and the rest went to her. I guess everyone needs to get a piece of the action to create the ambience to make all systems go. read more
I went to dinner with my husband after visiting The Dean Collection exhibition at VMFA. This was my second time eating at the Black Olive. As per my first visit, the food was absolutely delicious. I really liked that they offered a Sunday Football special of a pizza & wings for 25.00. We ordered the Beef Pepperoni Pizza for my husband & the Garlic-Parmesan wings under the special pricing. I also ordered a Mushroom pizza for myself. As previously mentioned, the food absolutely delightful. The service, however, on this particular day was a bit disjointed. Even though there were not a lot of patrons in the dining area, there were extended periods of time when service people came to check on us. Also my husband ordered dessert & it took at least 20 minutes for us to receive it. The dessert, crème brûlée cheesecake, was amazing so that took some of the sting out of the extended wait time. The only other issue I had was that due to an event they hosted on Saturday, they were out of some of their menu items on Sunday. I am always sort of baffled when restaurants run out of provisions especially on a Sunday when people do tend to go out to eat. Overall, our experience was positive & I would return to try more menu items especially their pizzas. read more
Wasn't impressed. The experience felt messy..our waiter couldn't (or wouldn't) make certain drinks and lacked basic friendliness. I had the SpottieOttieDopaliscious (5/10) and buffalo wings (8/10). Not rushing to come back unfortunately. read more
7 months ago
The Bartender was amazing, such a joy, the drinks were good and you cannot beat a 3$ draft beer (happy hour) read more
2 years ago
Our reservation was at 7:30, but when we arrived, another party had taken our table. Even after I spoke to management, they didn't ask the other group to move. They did try to accommodate us by bringing a table from downstairs, but it only fit a few of us out of our party of 11. We ended up sitting in a lounge-style area with couches and coffee tables, which wasn't ideal for dining. It would have been nice to have our reserved table along with that space for a more comfortable experience. Service was also quite slow. I didn't receive water until 8:36, and my appetizer didn't come out until 8:51, well over an hour after our reservation time. On a positive note, the Miso Prawns were absolutely delicious, a solid 10/10. I also ordered The Bug Out pizza, but it had more arugula than I preferred, and the bottom was overly charred, making almost every bite taste burnt. One of the best parts of the evening was the live band. They were fantastic and really elevated the atmosphere. A heads-up for future guests: a 20% gratuity is automatically added to the bill, regardless of party size, but it's not listed anywhere on the menu or mentioned by staff. The only reason I knew was because I had seen it mentioned in a Google review. I understand the restaurant is still new, and I'd love to give it another try in a few months once they've had time to work through the kinks. Unfortunately, this first experience was a bit rough. read more
I had the prawns and Cesar. This was a first stop on a bar hopping tour. I will say it was pretty good however the Cesar could have used some more things in it such as croutons. It just was kinda kale and dressing with onions. The prawns were really flavorful. When we first sat down we were not necessarily attended to. Seemed like we waited what felt like 10 minutes for someone to address us. Seemed like there was a lapse in staff or something in the lounge area as there was only 1 waitress. Our experience was saved once the bartender Kev arrived. He stepped up and took care of us. It did seem strange that the bar tender was both making drinks and serving us but we were grateful. Overall the ambiance is beautiful and the space is huge, the music was a vibe. I will say the place is a bit on the pricier side. We got the salad with prawns and 3 drinks and paid about $100 this we would have appreciated being attended to once we were seated instead of waiting around watching the waitress do anything but that. read more
1 year ago
1 year ago
Came one day with my mom on a lunch outing. The pizza wasn't even hot. The wings were okay and they were hot. Just wish they baked the pizza longer it wasn't hot. The server was nice and it came out in about 15-20min. read more
2 years ago
Reservation made a couple of weeks in advance. We started off with a bite to eat on the hip hop side. The meatballs and wings were decent. I'll try the pizza next time. We then ventured down stairs where the dj was spinning. The decor was vibrant. Lucked up and secured seats at the bar. Drinks were great. Hookah was $45. All around we had a good time. #TastesByTate #TateApproved read more
2 years ago
First time and it's a chill vibe to unwind from the work week. You can reminisce to the video playlist of 90s-early 2000s hip hop on the far wall. We did not make reservations, but bar seating was available. Devin gave excellent service and great menu suggestions. There's a R&B lounge as well as Martini lounge downstairs. The Wire pizza was phenomenal! Shareable portions. Definitely will come back to this gem in downtown. read more
2 years ago
I went only a solo date for Valentine's Day and sat at the bar! I did not have reservations but I definitely recommend it because of how quickly the crowd picks up! Now this is a new hot spot to the Richmond area and it did not disappoint! I ordered the seafood pizza which included lump crab cheesy goodness topped with an old bay pesto..his pizza was worth every penny! I didn't get the chance to really explore the place but they have three bars including one downstairs and seating in the two bars upstairs, if you're into hip hop and R&B the decor and music playing will take you down memory lane! Again not much to report as I only ate at the bar but will definitely go back to have a seat at the table and really dive into the menu! read more
2 years ago
Amazing nice vibe hookah incredible and food 10/10 I had the prawns and the wire pizza honestly was impressive I've been trying to get in here for two weeks but if u grab u a reservation you wont be disappointed please come here and see for your self read more
2 years ago
We enjoyed the food but the service was chaotic and disjointed. There were 3 different servers we had to work with, one for drinks, one for food and another for hookah. It was a struggle getting their attention and it took long for them to return to our table. There were no condiments or cutlery for us to use, we had to stop a food runner and ask for assistance. We ordered margaritas with a sugar rim but were told we couldnt have a rim because the rimmer was at the bar upstairs and not downstairs where we were. The music was unnecessarily loud, we couldn't hear ourselves. read more
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This just might my new favorite spot in Richmond, VA. I absolutely love every single thing I've tried on the menu. I don't have the prawns pictured, but they are amazing too and so is The Wire. Everything is made to perfection! And the vibes?! They are EVERYTHING! Good music and good energy. I also appreciate the service and making sure we are having a good experience. I've been THREE times in the last 3 weeks and I'll definitely be back! Keep up the great work!!! read more
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