Fig & Olive | New York City

My buddy, Kinjal, and I headed to the trendy Meatpacking District to dine at Fig & Olive during Restaurant Week Winter 2012.

At Fig & Olive, each dish is prepared with some of the finest (and flavored) olive oils of the Mediterranean region.  This fabulous restaurant is a cross between French, Italian, and Spanish cuisines.

The wines featured at Fig & Olive are from the South of France, Spain and Italy – all along the Mediterranean coastline.

LOCATION:
420 West 13th Street
New York, NY 10014
(Meatpacking District)
Other locations – Midtown, Uptown, Westchester, West Hollywood

MENU: Fig & Olive Menu.
COST: $$$
CUISINE: Mediterranean
RECOMMENDED TO: Bar Scene, Casual Dining, Couples, Groups, Romantic Dining.
AMBIENCE: Romantic/Classy/Trendy


MY REVIEW
We both started off with drinks.  As much as I wanted to order wine at a Mediterranean restaurant, the cocktail menu looked much more appealing.  I went for the Rossellini, a drink blended with passion fruit Vodka, freshly squeezed blood orange juice, and fresh lime juice.  Look at the size of this drink.  Refreshing and tasty.
Kinjal went for a glass of red, the Grenache/Cabernet Sauvignon from France.  She liked it, but it was rather dry for me.  I’m still a wine novice.
We ordered 3 items from the Crostini Tasting Menu for an additional $7 on the Restaurant Week Menu:
– Mushroom, Truffle Artichoke, Parmesan (fantastic, a bold mushroom & artichoke flavor – my favorite)
– Crushed Tomato, Olive Oil (although this was delicious, it is also very common, opt for the Roasted Bell Pepper, Ricotta, Caper instead)
– Manchego, Fig, Marcona Almond (delicious, slightly on the sweeter side and topped off with manchego cheese)
As part of Restaurant Week, we both chose an appetizer.  I went for the Zucchini Carpaccio which is zucchini topped off with olive oil, pine nuts, and parmesan Picholine Olive Oil.  This appetizer was light, but nothing to write home about.  I was quite limited in my choices since I don’t eat certain types of meats.
Kinjal went for the Provencal Carrot & Thyme Soup made with carrots, celery, onion, garlic, thyme, olive oil crouton and then finished off with Cilantro Olive Oil.  Her soup was good, but I didn’t love it since I’m not a fan of carrot soup.  Speaking of soup, the Northern Italian Mushroom & Truffle Soup looks really good.
We both went for the Penne Funghi Tartufo as our entree.  Penne pasta tossed with cremini mushroom, black trumpet, parmesan, parsley, scallions, and then finished off with lots of White Truffle Olive Oil.  This is easily one of the best pasta dishes I have ever had, however I do believe all that extra White Truffle Olive Oil was probably unnecessary, but so so good!
For dessert, we each ordered a different dessert.  I went for the Chocolate Pot De Crème which was basically a chocolate and crème mousse combination. 
This dessert was yummy, but way too overpowered with chocolate.  I think 50-50 of each would have been amazing.
Kinjal went for the Dessert Crostini which was a sweet shortbread loaded with butter, topped off with mascarpone cheese, and then finished off with black cherries.  The shortbread was sweet, the cheese, creamy, and the grapes tart, it was a combination of sweet-sour.  Pretty good!

VERDICT: 4 / 5
I really loved the atmosphere at Fig & Olive. It is a romantic Mediterranean restaurant with a wide selection of entrees to choose from. Although there were lots of couples, I couldn’t help but notice how many groups of women were at this restaurant, most of them were drinking wine and sharing appetizers – I guess women love wine and olive oil (antioxidants please)!

Speaking of olive oil, the olive oil here is excellent quality and infused with different flavors, such as, Pumpkin Olive Oil, Cilantro Olive Oil, Sundried Tomato Olive Oil, White Truffle Olive Oil, etc. Each dish is topped off with a different kind of olive oil. Brilliant, right?

Although my friend was 10 minutes late, we were seated promptly which was great. Overall, the service was good, but it did take a while for us to get our drinks as the restaurant started getting more crowded. The portions at Fig & Olive are reasonably sized, and we were both pretty full by the time we left. I can’t wait to dine here again – next time I’ll be checking out the 5th Avenue location in Midtown.

Food: Good
Drinks: Excellent
Decor: Excellent
Service: Good
Value: Good

TELL ME: Have you been to Fig & Olive, or ever tried Mediterranean cuisine?  If so, what did you think?  What did you order?