When I went to Olives Cafe & Wine Bar in Edmonds a few weeks ago, I was dumbstruck by the quality of the food.
Though I had always been a fan of the place, it wasn’t ever my first choice for dining out in my hometown.
But our food on that recent night was really special — handm
ade squash agnolotti with sage creme fraiche and perfectly toasted pine nuts (my friend’s dish) and (for me) seared scallops that transcended the usual trappings of the overused dish. They were served on fried potato cakes and came splattered with a creamy, to-die-for mushroom sauce.
We ooohed and aahhhed our way through the entire meal.
Well, it turns out something might have been up at old Olives.
I just heard, via press release, that Olives owner chef Michael Young, closed the doors on his 6-year-old restaurant last week and opened it right back up again this week with a new name and a new, simplified menu.
Meet Il Buffone, featuring Neapolitan-influenced wood-fired pizza and hand-cut pasta, plus a few salads, spreads and antipasti, according to this menu.
According to the press release: “The Italian name means joker, fool or literally, the buffoon. In Shakespeare’s plays, the fool was the teller of the truth. Each pizza on the menu is named after fools from The Bard’s portfolio.”
Good news: That squash agnolotti is still on the menu. Thank goodness!
Bad news: I don’t see the scallops.
However, there appears to be a good reason for all the changes: Young, who recently opened The Winged Pig on Fifth in Edmonds, is trying to simplify his menu and his life.
According to the press release, Young said: “Over the years we became a bit ostentatious. This is a return to that simple approach.”
There is another reason: “Part of it is very selfish. My daughter was born two months ago and I can see changes in her every day. I don’t want to miss these times because I am working 12-hour days in the restaurant.”
Also, according to the press release: “When we opened, we were the first restaurant in Snohomish County to do small plates. Now there are similar restaurants all over.
“But, if you want a great plate of hand-cut pasta, or a thin-crust, wood-fired pizza that is cooked in 90 seconds, you have to drive to Seattle.
“I want to provide that experience to my neighbors. They can expect everything from a classic tortellini en brodo to rabbit stroganoff on the new menu.”
Hours for the new restaurant are 4 to 9 p.m. Sunday through Wednesday; and 4 to 10 p.m. Thursday through Saturday.
That means no more lunch.
What do you think? Will you miss the old Olives?
Do we need another placed in Edmonds focused on wood-fired pizza?
We might. I just have to try the pizza to find out.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
