“Martini, anyone?: Olive Black is the place!

**** After a hard day, a martini sounds great. Those who know me, know that I am a vodka martini guy and the restaurants I frequent start the process the moment they see me pull up. I am pretty comfy with my regular, but tonight, we went to a lounge that is unique ,as they are an actual “Martini Bar”. Yes, they have a fully stocked bar with lots of choices in wine and bourbon, but they specialize in martinis ( vodka and gin) and even feature the “James Bond”.

They are called Olive Black Lounge and they have two locations. The original is in Richmond Illinois ( almost to the border of Wisconsin where Anderson Candy calls home) and the other in Lakeview at 3032 N. Lincoln Avenue, very close to the Belmont Theater District as  only 6 blocks from The Mercury Theater. While it is called a lounge, meaning you come to unwind and relax, no hurry, they also have a menu of items to choose from. Tapas plates that can be shared as well as a magnificent Charcuterie Board with a great selection of meats and cheese and a jam that will wake you up for the evening.

Jane, Frank Cary and I were on Lincoln Avenue and while the evening began with beautiful weather, the rain did find us, but we were comfy indoors enjoying our cocktails and food. The ladies had special vodka drinks from their menu. They do a flight called “Tooty Frooty” that has three drinks: Pomegrante, Lemon Drop and Just Peach. Frank enjoyed the James Bond ( with gin) and I did the “ya dirty bastard” flight” El Fuego ( a little extra zip), Filthy Dirty and the Dean Martini, All three were on the “dirty” side, but all were well made and flavorful.

We enjoyed a few flatbread” BBQ Chicken/with red onions and mozzarella cheese- delicious!

and Artichoke and cream cheese- a sure winner

From the Tapas menu ( small plates) we had the fabulous BBQ Meatballs soaked in Sweet Baby Ray sauce and the Chere Boulette cheese balls with French bread slices.

The portions, although called small plates were perfect and all of us were completely satisfied with the amount of food. There are many other items to choose from and the beauty of the menu is that as you sit and talk, you can always add another item- they can get it to you in a timely fashion. There are of course TV sets on the walls so sports fans get to watch what they want and they have a game table filled with amazing choices, so your group can bring a game to their table, play, eat, drink and have a delightful evening.

FYI they do have a dessert that will “make your evening”! It is called the Chocolate Lava Explosion- warm chocolate lava cake served with a dollop of whip cream and chocolate syrup. To Die For! Wendy told us they only had the one dessert but that we would love it. She was right on!

The website for this lounge is www.OliveBlackLounge.com

The phone for Lincoln Ave 773-270-6986 and for Richmond, 815-678-7370

Richmond has a party room for private parties but Lincoln Avenue can work with you on that as well.

On those days where you need to relax and unwind, you can feel it happen at Olive Black. I know that I will find myself stopping by Lincoln Avenue on some theater nights and I know I will be in Richmond when I head up to Lake Geneva, or on the way back from dealing with traffic. We had a blast and enjoyed the evening.