Olio

Specialties

At Olio, our humble bistro we have built into a restoration of a 1930s Standard Oil filling station, we give you great small plates and a top class beverage program. Mediterranean-​style small plates, salumi, cheeses, and a nightly rotisserie. For drinks, we have a carefuly selected wine list, wines by the glass, and wine flights from our sommelier staff. And from our barkeep, John Fausz, a small but curated beer selection meets a cocktail program emphasizing historical standards (what else would you expect from a recent Jeopardy contestant?).

Elaia is the finer side of all things Olio. Elaia is a small, intimate, 28-​seat fine dining restaurant with a nightly tasting menu in addition to its a la carte selections. The menu changes daily. An even more selective wine list is managed here by our sommelier staff, including Advanced Sommelier and General Manager Andrey Ivanov, who is on the floor each evening for pairings and wine discussion

History

Established in 2012.

Established in 2012

Olio is a space that was created from an abandoned 1930s era Standard Oil Filling Station. The old filling station was restored with all efforts to maintain the integrity of its original appearance; it is a historical restoration using the cultural resources of its time.

Elaia is a renovation of a home from the 1890s with original fireplaces, and a historical, intact, boiler in the wine room downstairs. A more elegant, fine dining aspect of the project has been created in this space.

The project has been imagined and planned for years, but restoration, renovation, and construction began late in 2011 and the two concepts were united by a common hallway between them.

We officially opened our doors for the first time on 11,11.12.

Meet the Business Owner

Ben P.

Business Owner

A native of Israel, Ben Poremba moved to St. Louis to earn a BA in philosophy from the University of Missouri — St. Louis. He learned the art of cooking [and eating] from his mother Rachel who has been a chef and a culinary educator for nearly forty years. An extensive world-​traveler, Ben staged in kitchens in France and Italy, and attended the Universita degli Studi di Scienze Gastronomiche [University of Gastronomic Studies] in Parma, Italy where he studied Food Culture and Gastronomy. Ben owned and operated a small catering company called Taste — Fine Catering, and was the executive chef at Winslow’s Home in University City and The Maryland House in the Central West End. He is also the co-​owner of Salume Beddu, an artisan salumi company that is dedicated to utilizing hormone-​free and antibiotic-​free locally-​raised pork for their products. Haven’t seen Ben? You can probably find Ben in the kitchen at Elaia humbly working away on our always changing menus.

Olio also recommends

La Patisserie Chouquette

107

reviews

パン屋

,

カフェ

Ben P. says,

«Our sister business. A piece of Paris right across the street from Olio.»