Olive's Greek Taverna - Rochester Wiki

Olive's Greek Taverna is a family-owned Greek restaurant tucked into the basement of one of the buildings in Northfield Common in Pittsford. Olive's serves traditional Greek food like gyros and mousaka, as well as a selection of Greek pizzas. A small wine bar has a good selection of Greek wines. Olive's also has a selection of salads and a variety of homemade desserts.

They also offer catering.

Olive's is small and cozy - it seats about 30.

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See Archive Page for comments prior to 2008.

2008-01-11 16:15:06 First of all, my friends and I go for lunch MANY times a month and have for years. We've never had a single negative experience and neither have the people that we've recommended it to. All of the food is homemade, with the exception of the Dolmades which are imported. I go with Greek friends as well, who happen to own their own well known restaurant and have never heard them complain about a thing. As for the ATM, it's there because they don't except credit cards, because they are too darn expensive to process. Years ago when first going there, not knowing this, a friend and I went without any cash and they gave us an IOU! An IOU! Who does that anymore? If they were willing to take the chance with a whole lunch bill, I'm sure that they were truly less than concerned about the $3.00 wine incident below. Olive's is a MUST for everyone! —TonyThompson

2008-01-26 18:20:07 Very good the one time we were there. Food is slightly better than Aladdin's which is fair because Olives' is a little more pricey. —DamyHa

2008-02-10 15:45:56 My wife and I enjoy Olive's a lot. We have never had a bad experience in about 20 visits. My wife caters small events and is a tremendous cook, but even her attempt at producing food to mirror Olive's isn't possible. I would strongly recommend this restaurant to anyone and disagree completely with the comments on poor service. The staff is extremely friendly and the fireplace adds a nice touch to this warm family establishment. As for the negative comments on the wine, suck it up buddy and be thankful that you can afford to go out to dinner. —BradClement

2008-06-10 10:20:47 This place was just simply awful. The food was terrible, a better choice would be The Olive Tree on Monroe Ave in the city, Mykonos Express, or any Greek Diner. (Or family restaurant as they like to call them.) They dont accept credit cards and serve you soda in the can. They should just make the place a fast casual restaurant. —MrRochester

2009-06-29 19:00:17 Seems to me that Aladdin's', Sinbads, King Davids, and Olives have pretty much similar food. I actually would recommend Olives Greek Taverna's gyro's over the other ones in the area; i purchased the gyro with spicy sauce and it was wicked good and the portion was decent size. Inside of the restaurant is small, i think it seats like 40 or 60 people. The service was good but not super friendly. If you are in the area i would recommend you trying it. Yes, i have to agree with other people that cash only policy and restaurant not being able to accept credit/debit cards is a huge negative, especially this day in age. I don't care how "pricey" is to accept credit cards, if you are operating a restaurant accepting cards should be a no brainer. —DennisPtak

2009-08-03 18:15:49 I feel sorry for anyone who had a negative experience here—Must have gone on an off night. Adorable and welcoming. Excellent food (In my opinion better quality than Aladdin's, Sinbad's Eros, and old Mykonos). Great service too! —Leisel

2009-08-31 19:59:15 Was not impressed. I feel the food is nowhere near as good as Sinbad's and cost a lot more. Also were passed over during our wait as some of the regulars came in. When I approached the hostess, was given the YOUR NEXT. For the prices,I think they can afford to process credit cards. —almorinelli

2009-09-14 08:56:24 FYI if you were passed over because some "regulars" came in, perhaps it was because those individuals had a reservation, or had called ahead. I know that Olives accepts reservations for parties of 3 or more (see their website). Many small restaurants juggle reservations with walk-ins the best they can, with limited seating available. —LoisGraham

2009-10-07 20:23:46 Gail & Nick do an amazing job of making you feel right at home. The service is always friendly and there are ample items on the menu as well as numerous specials to choose from. Everything is always fresh & hot! The Mezedes platter is to die for. Add a bottle of Kretikos red and one of thier exquisite meals and you have a night to remember! Yes, it's small, no, they don't accept credit cards, and if you go on the right night you may just experience a little bit of my Big Fat Greek Wedding! Loads of fun! —CharlesBroersma

2009-12-07 14:13:15 Went here with my wife and two young children last weekend. In spite of having gone to other places in Schoen Place before, I'd never noticed Olives.

We were seated right away, after arriving around 5:00PM on a Saturday. 15 minutes later, the place was packed.

The host seemed somewhat indifferent as he seated us and told us about the specials, but our server was fine. I had a spicy pasta dish, my wife had some sort of salmon-wrapped-in-fila dish, and the kids each had a cheese pizza.

The meals were all good, though the spicy pasta was overpriced, and somewhat oddly presented - it was essentially layers of pasta with large pieces of chicken in between them. I had a coke, which they served in the can - kind of tacky. Olive's offers a decent selection of wines, but I didn't partake.

Service was fine throughout the meal. We were checked at appropriate intervals, the server was friendly with everyone, including the kids, and presentation of the check was prompt.

Ambiance is lacking - yes, dark can be romantic, but there's no disguising the the fact that you're in a windowless basement. Along with our kids, several others showed up later, but all were well-behaved. Perhaps going later would increase your chances of having an "adults-only" meal, if that's what you're looking for.

I'd go there again. —RichMulvey

2010-07-20 23:06:24 I see nice comments for Olive's from 2009, but wonder if the management has changed since then as my recent experience was not a pleasant one.

Couple of days ago, I met a friend at Olive's in Pittsford Canalside for a drink. A little later, I was meeting another friend for dinner there. The friend who was not staying long ordered a juice and a spanakopita plate. Everything was fine until then or that is what we thought. After my friend paid her check, the young server brought the change back saying that "it was an insult that she had not been tipped more for the times she was in and out for us". We were totally shocked and caught off guard. We went inside to address the issue with the owner/ manager, however, the lady who looked like the manager or owner who was pouring wine said nothing, did not make eye contact, just turned her back and walked away. We were left standing there, ignored and humiliated. I was shocked and so upset and asked another server who was well aware of what was going on (the first server had dissappered by then), how much I owed them for the wine I had drank. As I was paying, this other server said in a rude tone that "there is a new restaurant across the street and you should go there"...

I have or the first time in my life, experienced such rude behaviour and writing here still upsets me.

I live in Pittsford, I love Pittsford, I love going out to the canal side, but I am sorry to see that this establishment does not fit the service quality that we need to have there. And some people should just stay away from the service industry... —WineDine101

2010-07-26 08:32:27 WineDine101 - oddly enough, I was there the same day you mentioned. I also sat on their patio, and observed some of the goings-on ... we enjoyed our food (and service). My guess is that you tipped poorly, after being difficult and taking so much time from the staff. The diners in question (who changed tables at least once) were a bit obnoxious. The server(s) made approximately 20 trips in and out of the restaurant to accommodate every request, while juggling orders from tables inside and outside. The servers picked up the mess left by this table's children and sloppy patrons, including debris from other restaurants that was brought to the Olive's patio! I can't speak to anything that happened inside the restaurant but I can tell you that Olive's has NOT changed owners and the management/staff is the same. —EatinOut

2011-03-27 11:17:21 I love Greek food, but all these places seem to be outlets for http://greciandelight.com. The Olive Tree is sorely missed. —ThomasPawlik

2011-05-09 11:34:45 Definitely DO NOT recommend this place. The server was polite, but the management was rude and far too concerned with making money to actually address the issues at hand. This restaurant only takes cash but does have an ATM indoors. However, after a few attempts at the ATM of trying to take money out, the ATM machine broke. Management knew about the broken ATM and failed to mention this important detail to their guests. Without a way to pay, the manager demanded (yes, demanded) on the spot that we mail the check immediately without even addressing the fact money may have been taken from my account due to their faulty ATM, or even offering to cover our $5 appetizer.

This restaurant has OK food...definitely not good, authentic Greek. The restaurant needs some serious work.

Positive - good location and atmosphere. —GreekOne