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A bistro for the family set
The bruschetta sundae with artisan bread, marinatedtomatoes, olive oil, balsamic glaze, garlic, basil and asiagocheese is the most popular appetizer at Oliveto ItalianBistro. TOM GILBERT / Tulsa World
By SCOTT CHERRY
Published: 10/23/2008 2:01 AM
Last Modified: 10/23/2008 2:04 AM
See a video interview with Mazzio’s/
Oliveto president and CEO Greg Lippert.
Straight-forward, ribsticking
food served in
generous portions at moderate
prices seems to be a
reasonable model for success
in today’s economy, and in a
nutshell, that’s what you get
at the new Oliveto Italian
Bistro.
The latest concept for the
Tulsa-based Mazzio Corp.
features a streamlined menu
— 15 entrees, nine pizzas,
four desserts, four sandwiches,
seven salads — but
covers the traditional Italian
landscape well and includes
a few edgy selections, such
as caliente chicken, a dish
jazzed up with jalapeno
bacon, jalapenos and a spicy
cream sauce.
We were a bit more conservative,
going for the basic
spaghetti and meatballs ($8),
chicken scallopine ($9.75)
and three-meat skillet al
forno ($10.75) as our entrees.
Skillet-baked dishes
always conjure up visions of
good food in simpler times,
and the three-meat al forno
was no exception, arriving
piping hot with the cast-iron
skillet sitting on a wood
platter.
It included two almost
tennis ball-sized meatballs
and impressive portions
of Italian sausage slices
and grilled chicken slices,
flavored with balsamic peppers,
onions, and marinara
sauce, all held together with
thick melted cheeses and
thin spaghetti. The contrasting
flavors, especially the
fennel-laced sausage, melded
nicely in this dish.
The spaghetti and meatballs
with meat sauce likely
was the most bland item on
the menu, but it was fine
for what it was. It included
three of the huge meatballs,
which had a good texture
and little seasoning.
Chicken scallopine, on
the other hand, was a more
flavorful dish, with a chicken
breast sitting snugly under a
canopy of sliced mushrooms,
thin spaghetti, spinach in
lemon cream sauce and a
topping of diced tomatoes.
Each dish came with a
bread stick, and each was
ample enough for all of us to
take something home for a
bite of lunch the next day.
We also tried one of the
brick-oven pizzas, a traditional
Margherita ($7.50).
This 9-inch pizza was covered
in mozzarella cheese,
olive oil, sliced tomatoes,
roasted garlic and fresh basil
over a thin, crispy crust. It
was enough for one person
for dinner, or to share with
perhaps salads or an appetizer.
The garlic in ours
could have been roasted a bit
longer.
General manager Michael
Day andMazzio’s Corp.
president and CEO Greg
Lippert later told us that
specials will be added to the
menu, rotating about every
six weeks.
A simple wedge salad
served in a chilled bowl was
a good choice to go with the
sauces and cheeses of the
heavier dishes. It came with
thin, crispy slices of pepperoni,
tomatoes and red
onions.
The person who ordered
the salad asked that the pepperoni
slices be omitted, but
they showed up anyway, so
I took them o1 her hands.
They tasted like small pieces
of well-done, slightly spicy
bacon.
Table condiments included
bottles of pomaceolive
oil. Although generally
considered a low-grade oil,
this had some infused chilies,
a nice flavor and helped
pep up some of the dishes.
For dessert we shared a
vanilla gelato ($3), which
had the flavor of a frozen
yogurt but a more icy texture,
and a rather pedestrian
tiramisu ($3.25).
The beverage menu
included 20 wines (all $25
or less a bottle and all available
by the glass) and a like
number of beers. None of
the wine choices was exactly
stunning, but they paired
well with the menu and the
pours were generous.
Oliveto has a clean, modern
bistro look with stained
concrete floors, dark wood
tables, large wall mirrors,
olive-themed pictures, warm
drum light fixtures, green
pendant lights and a slateand-
granite bar. The dining
room is a mixture of tables,
booths and wall banquettes,
with the 4,200 square feet
partitioned into cozy areas.
Three televisions are in
the bar area and one over the
open kitchen. The only other
decorating touch is rows
and rows of wine bottles on
drop-down shelves from the
ceiling around half the room.
A packed crowd on a recent
Sunday night included a
mix of couples and families.
Extra seating was available
on the comfortable front
patio.
Pizza, if you please
When Ken Selby opened
The Pizza Parlor in November
1961 at 3024 E. 11th St., many
Tulsans had only a vague idea
what pizza was, if they had any
idea at all.
The 24-year-old Selby
would work the next four years
teaching science at Lowell
Junior High during the school
term and cooking pizza 4 p.m.
to midnight 365 days a year.
As pizza gained a foothold
with local diners, Selby’s
magical touch began to unfold
the next year when he opened
a second restaurant, Ken’s
Pizza, which grew into a chain
of successful pizzerias.
Most Tulsans know the story
from there. Mazzio’s opened
in 1979, and Mazzio’s Corp. now
operates more than 170 franchises scattered over 12 states.
Since ‘79, Mazzio’s also has launched Scooters, Pasta City
and the all-you-can-eat Pizzetti’s Pizza, all now closed, plus
Zio’s Italian Kitchen, which was sold to a Texas outfit last
December.
Scooters was significant in that it put Selby on the ground
floor of the now-mammoth home delivery business. He also
developed the one-number system, so customers could dial
one number for delivery anywhere in the area.
Now comes Oliveto Italian Bistro, featuring modestly priced
food in a pleasant setting.
“About two years ago we decided to explore a smaller
concept (than Zio’s) and oeer a bistro experience with a full
beverage bar, open kitchen, a nice but not overdone decor and
flavorful food at aeordable prices,” said Greg Lippert, Mazzio’s
president and CEO. “Everything in the business changed after
Hurricane Katrina. Commodities went up, labor costs went up,
building costs went up, and we decided we had to develop a
more egcient restaurant concept.”
OLIVETO ITALIAN
BISTRO
8922 S. Memorial Drive 994-
7000
Food: Italian
Price: $6.75 (caprese panini) to
$13.75 (cedar plank salmon)
Credit cards: All major
Hours: 10:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Sunday-Thursday, 10:30 a.m.
to 11 p.m. Friday-Saturday
Food: ** 1/2
Atmosphere: ** 1/2
Service: **
(One is fair, two good, three
very good and four excellent.)
By SCOTT CHERRY
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