A Taste of Greece in The Woodlands: The Olive Oil

The Woodlands is filled with chain restaurants. Not that I’m complaining, but it’s nice to try something different sometimes. Last Saturday, a friend and I found that something different: The Olive Oil, a Greek restaurant.

As we entered the restaurant, we were ready for a full Greek experience, but really had no idea what to expect.

I felt like we were immersed in the unique culture as soon as we opened the door. A keyboard player sent Mediterranean music throughout the restaurant and murals on the walls showed the beauty of Greece.

We tried to make a reservation after hearing how popular Saturday nights are, but the restaurant only allows a certain number of reservations each hour. Nevertheless, we were seated within 10 minutes of arriving around 7 p.m. and we had a good view of the dance floor.

The menu offers traditional Greek meals, as well as some more American-style dishes for those less ambitious diners. Fortunately for those of us who are uneducated in Greek cuisine, the menu read like a dictionary, with each item fully described. Entrée prices ranged from $5 to $24, with most meals costing around $13.

For our appetizer, we ordered pita bread with hummus. The warm bread was well-spiced and delicious and the hummus tasted fresh. The Greek salad was also tasty and seemed authentic.

Almost as soon as we received our appetizers, the entertainment began. Saturday nights are “Greek Nights,” complete with Greek dancers, a bellydancer, live music, plate-breaking and many shouts of “OPA!”

An announcer explained some important parts of Greek culture as we watched the dancers. Some customers were given colorful plates to toss to the dance floor, shattering them to a united cheer of “OPA!” All of the acts were entertaining, which continued throughout our entire meal.

For our entrée we wanted the full Greek experience, so we ordered the Greek sampler to share. It included moussaka, pastitsio, cheese pie, spinach pie, gyro meat, dolmas, tzatziki, pita bread, green beans, chick souvlaki and oven roasted potatoes.

We likened moussaka and pastitsio to the Greek versions of lasagna. Moussaka is layers of eggplant, cheeses and ground meats. Pastitsio replaces the eggplant with noodles, but also has a surprisingly sweet twist. I think these components provided some of our best examples of traditional Greek food, but the new flavors were not too appealing on our first exposure to them.

The cheese and spinach pies are basically fillings wrapped in flaky phyllo dough. The spinach was a bit too strong for my taste, but the cheese pie was fine.

Gyro meat is generally placed inside of a pita for a traditional Greek sandwich, but we ate the meat alone. The spices were tasty and the meat was tender.

Dolmas are grape leaves that are stuffed with ground meat, rice and spices. Again, not our favorite item on the plate. The filling was flavorful, just not appealing to my tastes.

We both quite enjoyed the tzatziki sauce. The cool creamy sauce has a cucumber-like flavor and is a good contrast to the warm spiced pita bread.

The green beans served as a side dish, but a delicious one nonetheless. They were mixed with tomatoes and seasoned just right.

Chicken souvlaki is a grilled chicken skewer, marinated and spiced in a tasty combination. It was definitely my favorite part of the meal – although possibly because it was the most familiar flavor to me.

The oven roasted potatoes, also a side dish, were one of our favorite items on the plate. They were warm and featured a hint of lemon.

We made sure to save room for dessert. I insisted on getting the baklava – the only Greek dish I knew prior to our Olive Oil experience. It did not disappoint. The flaky dessert consists of a phyllo stack filled with honey, crushed walnuts and cinnamon. We were both impressed by its flavor.

The service we received was surprisingly great, considering how busy the place was. People were dancing around the room and plates were shattering, but our glasses were filled and our food was warm.

I would highly recommend The Olive Oil for anyone looking to try something different. Saturday’s “Greek Night” is quite an experience, something the whole family will enjoy.