| rev:text
| - With its commitment to using high quality local ingredients and its hip setting on Old University Avenue, Oliver's is brimming with potential. While I did not dislike any of the components from my recent dining experience, I just didn't feel the quality of my meal justified the high price tag.
Oliver's oozes casual elegance, from the gleaming zinc bar that catches your eye the moment you walk into the restaurant to the slow lighting and black and white pictures of rural Wisconsin. It is a casual enough setting to stop by after work for a cocktail, but dressed up enough to be a date night destination.
I also give high marks to the service staff. A host warmly greeted my guest and me and promptly seated us. Our splendid server kept a close eye on our table throughout the meal, clearing dishes, checking beverage levels and the like.
Oliver's executive chef Patrick McCormick honed his craft under the tutelage of Heritage Tavern's Dan Fox and Nostrano's Tim Dahl. Under his direction, the restaurant employs a farm to table philosophy, utilizing products from Keewaydin Organic Farms in Viroqua, beef from Iowa's Grass Run Farms and pork from Fox Valley Berkshire
As I mentioned in my intro, while the food was above average, it was not at all memorable. My dining companion ordered the roast beef sandwich with cheddar, caramelized onions, and horseradish sauce. The roast beef had a satisfying deep sear. However, the sandwich came with no sides and cost $11.
Kudos to Oliver's for offering Wisco Pop's ginger brew - I am a huge fan of this invigorating beverage.
I ordered a bowl of the garlic potato soup ($8), a small house salad ($5) and an order of the house-made focaccia with honey butter (4 half slices for $3). The soup, topped with asparagus coulis, smoked trout, crispy leeks, lacked the richness and depth of flavor that I am accustomed to in other renditions of this soup. The fishy smoked salmon overwhelmed the other flavors of the dish and the pittance of crispy leeks meant the soup lacked much in the way of texture. While the house salad was a feast for the eyes, I longed for textural variety and a more imaginative dressing. The satisfying, freshly made focaccia provided the meal with some textural contrast and offered up flavor from well-made, slow fermented bread. My only beef was the $3 price tag. With the top shelf pricing utilized by Oliver's, they should consider offering a complimentary basket of bread. My lunch for two, with one non-alcoholic beverage, set me back $37 (with tip). While I'm OK paying a premium for exceptional quality, I do not feel Oliver's product is worthy of the hefty price tag.
Oliver's offers its happy hour from 3 to 6 Monday - Friday, featuring $5 Old Fashioneds, $6 pours of Columbia Crest wine and $4 Mules and Bucks (with Wisco Pop Ginger Beer, suh-weet). The happy hour food options also are intriguing (smoky butter popcorn, crispy squishy buns and poutine with brat gravy). With the happy hour pricing of the food and drinks, this may be the best opportunity to enjoy the talents of Chef McCormick without completing depleting your wallet.
|
![[RDF Data]](/fct/images/sw-rdf-blue.png)
![[cxml]](/fct/images/cxml_doc.png)
![[csv]](/fct/images/csv_doc.png)
![[text]](/fct/images/ntriples_doc.png)
![[turtle]](/fct/images/n3turtle_doc.png)
![[ld+json]](/fct/images/jsonld_doc.png)
![[rdf+json]](/fct/images/json_doc.png)
![[rdf+xml]](/fct/images/xml_doc.png)
![[atom+xml]](/fct/images/atom_doc.png)
![[html]](/fct/images/html_doc.png)