We ate the oysters oreganato, whipped eggplant, marguerite pizza, fig and pig pizza, meatball, chopped salad and lasagna. All very good. The potato knocchi were not that good so I was disappointed.
BrendaB
My second trip to Oliver's. The food was as outstanding as it was the first time. Love the Happy Hour prices on wine. The Pasta Limone was bursting with flavor. The right amount of lemon. The eggplant dip appetizer was delicious. We finished off with a tiramisu - rich and creamy and wonderful. I can't wait to go back.
Danielle J.
Food service ambiance CHECK CHECK CHECK! On the edge of the tech center and a stellar spot! Service was upbeat and amazing anticipation of service! High end quality food and service with trendy setting but still comfortable and not stuffy or snobby. Tuesdays are 1/2 prices bottle wine special. Bartenders were great for wine sample and suggestion. Food is not just run of the mill Italian, though you can get their elevated classics. Great for business dinner or nice time with friends.
Robert F.
Denver has a dearth of decent, neighborhood Italian restaurants. Several of the historic places were still around when I came to town in the late 1980s. They were uniformly awful. Most of the newer neighborhood spots are very average. Oliver's (alas, not in my neighborhood) is unexpectedly fantastic. I can't find a single person in this restaurant who appears to be Italian. The kitchen is entirely Hispanic. However, the great American melting pot has somehow produced excellent Italian food. Whoever consulted on the menu and trained the staff really knew what they were doing. The menu has a Roman slant and features pinsa (Roman-style flatbread). There are lots of specials and combinations. This place is owned by the Blue Island Oyster Bar folks, so there's a small oyster bar with a good selection of oysters and Monday oyster specials. The space is much prettier in the bar area at the rear. The front seating seems kind of bare, except for a huge tree in the middle of the booths. There's also a large patio, enclosed for the winter. The staff seems a little tentative to me, but has always been friendly and helpful. I've tried a variety of dishes. Everything is nicely cooked and the sauces have that true depth of flavor only derived from long and slow simmering. I've finally found my favorite neighborhood Italian restaurant, but, alas, it is not in my neighborhood. Come on guys--open one in central Denver!
Greg K.
This was my first time here. When you walk in you are instantly greeted by a very friendly host. They took time to look at the notes on the reservation and noticed there was a birthday in our group. They sat us and let us know happy hour was ending shortly. The server was extremely friendly wished happy birthday to the person at our table and took our orders to get in for happy hour. The food was quite delicious. We stated with the calamari and ordered the spicy rigatoni and carbonara for our mains. That was followed up by the blood orange olive oil cake. I definitely will be back to try other entrees and deserts!!
Michelle K.
Excellent experience at Oliver's Italian tonight for my birthday. The restaurant is in the shopping mall on the end. It just opened last year around Halloween. It's really cute inside. The bar is beautiful. They have a great cocktail list but since it's a school night I went with one of their signature mock tails - trying both the Thinking of Summer and the Sicilian Sunset- both were fantastic. We caught the tail end of their Sunday happy hour and ordered some Calamari. Fun fact: This restaurant is the sister of Blue Island Oyster Bar so they have a great oyster menu too. Our server and the whole staff were really wonderful. We loved our entrées (spicy vodka rigatoni and the carbonara). We were full but had to get the blood orange olive oil cake to share because it's my birthday. It was well worth making the room! Highly recommend this place for date night or a small friend's gathering. They have a beautiful patio that I look forward to checking out this summer. Will definitely be back!
Arnold F.
The pesto and spicy vodka was incredible. I didn't enjoy the truffle fries since they were very skinny, but the brussels sprouts were incredible. We also ordered the gin tower, but given that we aren't big fans of gin, we didn't really enjoy it but if you like gin, this is perfect for you. The service was great. The environment was awesome and we can't wait to go back to try their bottomless spritz.
KathleenS
Excellent food and service! We ordered the honeydew and prosciutto appetizer-outstanding! Then we had chicken Parmesan and Rigatoni with Vodka sauce. The chicken was full sized breasts, not pounded filets and the Rigatoni sauce was perfectly spiced. Also had sausage with it which is only served ground. The sausage was way overdone. Aside from that a great meal and attentive service.
We came here for brunch to try the bottomless spritz deal. The food was amazing, however the service left much to be desired, and the spritzes were pretty bad/flat. We waited for about 20-30 minutes for each drink we ordered and heard other tables complaining about the same issue. There were only about 3-4 other tables in the restaurant, so there was no good reason for the slow service. After we were seated for an hour, we asked for another round of spritzes, and our server (who had already dropped off our check right after we received our food) checked her watch to see if she could turn us down, as the bottomless deal only lasts for 1.5 hours. We felt the checking of the watch and waiting for so long for our drinks tainted the experience as a whole.
Meghan F.
Stopped by while in town and loved the decor and overall environment. The pasta was fresh,and the carbonara sauce was so good! The flatbread was delicious! The fries were perfectly seasoned and crisp, the dripping sauce was also really good! We were so full by the time desert came I could barely eat it, but it was a fantastic tiramisu! Service was friendly and attentive.
I cannot say how Oliver's found a way to serve a dish that is simultaneously overly rich as well as utterly bereft of flavor, but they somehow managed that trick. Give me a flavor to love or hate, guys. Don't just serve me a bowl of food substances that you call by an Italian name. So disappointing.
Mike S.
Expected better experience given this restaurant is affiliated with the Blue Island Oyster Bar and Seafood restaurant. Blue Island is outstanding, Olivers is not. Host station staff were rude when we arrived. Entrees took 1hr and 15 minutes to get to us and food was average.
Jane B.
The food and the ambiance of this place was terrific. Our server seemed to be having a hard day, maybe, as multiple things were missed or incorrect, but she was very sweet and everyone has bad days, so I won't give too much grief about that. We had clams and oysters and a few small noches like the eggplant dip and my mom got the crustini. Everything was clean-your-plate delicious. They also happened to be on happy hour when we came in & it was a truly great happy hour (hh menu in photos). The wine was delicious and the vibe on the patio was precisely what we were looking for on this early spring day. Overall, I had a good experience and would definitely come back for the food. I'm confident the service was a fluke, like I said, we all have off days and she was very kind.
Ernest S.
Had a great meal at Oliver's last night - early dinner with great service and good food. I ordered the veal chop, it was huge and cooked just the way I like it, tried the wife's Vodka sauce pasta with sausage - also very good. The calamari appetizer was fantastic too. Only negative comment - Was not a big fan of the Negroni sampler - all were too sweet for my taste. Will go back to Oliver's for sure...
Julie M.
Let me start off by saying, you will be royally treated if Mark waits on you. So personable and lively that we saved an extra seat for him at our table. He made my husband 60th birthday very special. He was accommodating, outgoing, and attentive, we will definitely be going back to sit in his section The food was amazing. Some of the best Italian food we have ever experienced. I have a lot of food allergies and they were able to work with making my meal a bit off of the original menu. Definitely five stars and we will be returning.
We ate the oysters oreganato, whipped eggplant, marguerite pizza, fig and pig pizza, meatball, chopped salad and lasagna. All very good. The potato knocchi were not that good so I was disappointed.
My second trip to Oliver's. The food was as outstanding as it was the first time. Love the Happy Hour prices on wine. The Pasta Limone was bursting with flavor. The right amount of lemon. The eggplant dip appetizer was delicious. We finished off with a tiramisu - rich and creamy and wonderful. I can't wait to go back.
Food service ambiance CHECK CHECK CHECK! On the edge of the tech center and a stellar spot! Service was upbeat and amazing anticipation of service! High end quality food and service with trendy setting but still comfortable and not stuffy or snobby. Tuesdays are 1/2 prices bottle wine special. Bartenders were great for wine sample and suggestion. Food is not just run of the mill Italian, though you can get their elevated classics. Great for business dinner or nice time with friends.
Denver has a dearth of decent, neighborhood Italian restaurants. Several of the historic places were still around when I came to town in the late 1980s. They were uniformly awful. Most of the newer neighborhood spots are very average. Oliver's (alas, not in my neighborhood) is unexpectedly fantastic. I can't find a single person in this restaurant who appears to be Italian. The kitchen is entirely Hispanic. However, the great American melting pot has somehow produced excellent Italian food. Whoever consulted on the menu and trained the staff really knew what they were doing. The menu has a Roman slant and features pinsa (Roman-style flatbread). There are lots of specials and combinations. This place is owned by the Blue Island Oyster Bar folks, so there's a small oyster bar with a good selection of oysters and Monday oyster specials. The space is much prettier in the bar area at the rear. The front seating seems kind of bare, except for a huge tree in the middle of the booths. There's also a large patio, enclosed for the winter. The staff seems a little tentative to me, but has always been friendly and helpful. I've tried a variety of dishes. Everything is nicely cooked and the sauces have that true depth of flavor only derived from long and slow simmering. I've finally found my favorite neighborhood Italian restaurant, but, alas, it is not in my neighborhood. Come on guys--open one in central Denver!
This was my first time here. When you walk in you are instantly greeted by a very friendly host. They took time to look at the notes on the reservation and noticed there was a birthday in our group. They sat us and let us know happy hour was ending shortly. The server was extremely friendly wished happy birthday to the person at our table and took our orders to get in for happy hour. The food was quite delicious. We stated with the calamari and ordered the spicy rigatoni and carbonara for our mains. That was followed up by the blood orange olive oil cake. I definitely will be back to try other entrees and deserts!!
Excellent experience at Oliver's Italian tonight for my birthday. The restaurant is in the shopping mall on the end. It just opened last year around Halloween. It's really cute inside. The bar is beautiful. They have a great cocktail list but since it's a school night I went with one of their signature mock tails - trying both the Thinking of Summer and the Sicilian Sunset- both were fantastic. We caught the tail end of their Sunday happy hour and ordered some Calamari. Fun fact: This restaurant is the sister of Blue Island Oyster Bar so they have a great oyster menu too. Our server and the whole staff were really wonderful. We loved our entrées (spicy vodka rigatoni and the carbonara). We were full but had to get the blood orange olive oil cake to share because it's my birthday. It was well worth making the room! Highly recommend this place for date night or a small friend's gathering. They have a beautiful patio that I look forward to checking out this summer. Will definitely be back!
The pesto and spicy vodka was incredible. I didn't enjoy the truffle fries since they were very skinny, but the brussels sprouts were incredible. We also ordered the gin tower, but given that we aren't big fans of gin, we didn't really enjoy it but if you like gin, this is perfect for you. The service was great. The environment was awesome and we can't wait to go back to try their bottomless spritz.
Excellent food and service! We ordered the honeydew and prosciutto appetizer-outstanding! Then we had chicken Parmesan and Rigatoni with Vodka sauce. The chicken was full sized breasts, not pounded filets and the Rigatoni sauce was perfectly spiced. Also had sausage with it which is only served ground. The sausage was way overdone. Aside from that a great meal and attentive service.
We came here for brunch to try the bottomless spritz deal. The food was amazing, however the service left much to be desired, and the spritzes were pretty bad/flat. We waited for about 20-30 minutes for each drink we ordered and heard other tables complaining about the same issue. There were only about 3-4 other tables in the restaurant, so there was no good reason for the slow service. After we were seated for an hour, we asked for another round of spritzes, and our server (who had already dropped off our check right after we received our food) checked her watch to see if she could turn us down, as the bottomless deal only lasts for 1.5 hours. We felt the checking of the watch and waiting for so long for our drinks tainted the experience as a whole.
Stopped by while in town and loved the decor and overall environment. The pasta was fresh,and the carbonara sauce was so good! The flatbread was delicious! The fries were perfectly seasoned and crisp, the dripping sauce was also really good! We were so full by the time desert came I could barely eat it, but it was a fantastic tiramisu! Service was friendly and attentive.
Restaurantji Recommends
I cannot say how Oliver's found a way to serve a dish that is simultaneously overly rich as well as utterly bereft of flavor, but they somehow managed that trick. Give me a flavor to love or hate, guys. Don't just serve me a bowl of food substances that you call by an Italian name. So disappointing.
Expected better experience given this restaurant is affiliated with the Blue Island Oyster Bar and Seafood restaurant. Blue Island is outstanding, Olivers is not. Host station staff were rude when we arrived. Entrees took 1hr and 15 minutes to get to us and food was average.
The food and the ambiance of this place was terrific. Our server seemed to be having a hard day, maybe, as multiple things were missed or incorrect, but she was very sweet and everyone has bad days, so I won't give too much grief about that. We had clams and oysters and a few small noches like the eggplant dip and my mom got the crustini. Everything was clean-your-plate delicious. They also happened to be on happy hour when we came in & it was a truly great happy hour (hh menu in photos). The wine was delicious and the vibe on the patio was precisely what we were looking for on this early spring day. Overall, I had a good experience and would definitely come back for the food. I'm confident the service was a fluke, like I said, we all have off days and she was very kind.
Had a great meal at Oliver's last night - early dinner with great service and good food. I ordered the veal chop, it was huge and cooked just the way I like it, tried the wife's Vodka sauce pasta with sausage - also very good. The calamari appetizer was fantastic too. Only negative comment - Was not a big fan of the Negroni sampler - all were too sweet for my taste. Will go back to Oliver's for sure...
Let me start off by saying, you will be royally treated if Mark waits on you. So personable and lively that we saved an extra seat for him at our table. He made my husband 60th birthday very special. He was accommodating, outgoing, and attentive, we will definitely be going back to sit in his section The food was amazing. Some of the best Italian food we have ever experienced. I have a lot of food allergies and they were able to work with making my meal a bit off of the original menu. Definitely five stars and we will be returning.