Olive Bistro - New Menu

Olive Bistro, Pune, are introducing some dishes to their menu as well as tweaking some classics which are popular with regular folks. Chef Noah Barnes has tried to incorporate a home-cooked food feel {simple, clean flavours, large portions, not too pricey} in the dishes he serves, a concept truer to bistros as opposed to fine-dine cuisine. PuneFoodiez were invited for a special preview

First-up, we were served a couple of soup samplers - OB Minestrone soup, a rustic chunky tomato soup with fresh herbs and winter vegetables and the Roast Carrot and Dill soup, a smooth, creamy soup with a slight sweet after-taste with tortellini stuffed with burnt butter, finely chopped carrots and a hint of dill. Between the two, I preferred the latter. The Red Wine Poached Pear salad with rucola, candied walnuts and small chunks of aged gorgonzola was stellar. It was a nice play on textures and flavours and the amount of the blue cheese was enough to keep me delighted and at the same time not offend those who haven't really taken to it's sharp taste.

I loved the Smoked Chicken and Wild Mushroom lasagne which was baked in the wood-fired oven. Layers of pasta, smoked chicken and mushrooms topped with a layer of crispened cheese, this stunning dish was the main of the day.

The Paprika Scented Chicken Legs was described by Chef Noah as a crowd-pleaser and justifiably so. Perfectly grilled chicken legs with a nice burst of sweet-spicy paprika flavour, it will appeal to those who like their food, for the lack of a better word, 'Masaaledaar', and it should be great with some chilled beer. The risotto accompanying the Slow Braised Lamb Shank was nothing to write home about but the lamb was well cooked and had a pleasant understated rosemary infusion. But it was the fish course thrilled me the most. Not because it was the best dish of the day but because for once here's a restaurant that has actually replaced basa with a real fish. The Oregano Scented Indian Salmon {rawas} was fresh and flaky with a mild lemon-caper-cream sauce, crushed potatoes and a side salad. Awesome.

The wood-fired Italian Basil and Walnut Pesto Pizza with Chicken Frankfurters wasn't too bad but I preferred the vegetarian version because that one had more of the sweet bell peppers which lended itself nicely to the savoury pesto. Another decent vegetarian option on the menu is the rustic Saffron Polenta with Ratatouille and a Blue cheese sauce. Good flavours, substantial portion with chunky vegetables and again, the sharpness of the blue cheese kept in check, nothing to complain at all.

The dish of the day was undoubtedly the Tiramisu Jar. It's really difficult to get good Tiramisu in Pune but these guys have absolutely nailed it. It's creamy and decadent with the right amount of coffee and liquer..pure bliss! The Macarons, however, were a bit too chewy for my liking and none of the flavours I tasted {chocolate-hazelnut, redcurrant, orange cointreau} really came through. Guess I'll be sticking with Le Plasir for these French delights.

There were also a few cocktails out of which I liked the Sangria and Fresh Mandarin Mojito. The Lemongrass Martini was refreshing in the afternoon heat. Do check these out as well!

If you haven't been to Olive lately and needed a reason to, this is it.