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| - I got a pack of those City Dining Cards (you get $10 off on a $30 minimum food purchase at participating restaurants) and decided to use the Olive or Twist card for a dinner prior to seeing the Phantom of the Opera at the Benedum. I've been to this place once before for dinner and a couple of other times just for drinks. I've never really been blown away by my experiences there but I've never had any reason to complain either. I got there at 6:00 and the place was pretty packed with the happy hour crew and theater goers but I got lucky and nabbed the last two stools at the end of the bar. I was greeted cheerfully and almost immediately by the bartender who showed me the beer list. I choose to stay local ordering an East End Fat Gary and looked over the menu as I waited for my date to arrive.
Although it was a little loud, the atmosphere was very comfortable and my lady and I contributed to the noise as we discussed how our day went before ordering off of the menu. I was torn between the Crispy Braised Pork Belly Sandwich and the Pan-Seared Atlantic Char. But my decision got easier when my date choose the char... we have this rule that we will never get the same thing so that we can share each other's entrée.
Our orders came about 15 minutes later. The pork belly was amazing! Cheddar, bacon, lettuce, tomato and a creamy sauce topped the pork belly in between a really fresh Ciabatta bun. Mmmm, delicious! It also came with a side and being as cold as it has been, the tomato basil soup was nice compliment to the sandwich. Off course I got to taste the Atlantic Char that my girlfriend ordered. It looked and tasted a little like a good cut of salmon only a little thicker and saltier. It was good, but I really think that my sandwich was the tastier of the two meals.
Olive or Twist? I'd say it's a good pre-theater option and I'd recommend it. The service was good, the bartender was attentive, the food was excellent and the price was competitive for the area. My only knock, and it's really not much of a knock, is that I think the serving portions are a little less than what we here in America have grown accustomed to. Most restaurants serve you much more food than you really should consume and that's one of the reasons why we here in America have more of an obesity issue than other nations.
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