Green Olive Restaurant Brings Taste of Italy to Mississippi
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Chef Sarah Labensky wanted changes made to The Green Olive restaurant when she purchased it in 2006. The first order of business: Immediately upgrade the menu and make all the food homemade.
“This is the only Italian restaurant in all of Columbus, and I don’t want my customers eating food that tastes like it just came off a delivery truck,” she says. “For example, if you order homemade lasagna from my restaurant, you will get a generous plate of lasagna that was made fresh today. This is what The Green Olive happens to be.”
Labensky adds that besides good food, the restaurant also offers ambiance. This includes comfortable patio seating in the warm weather months, which is unusual because outdoor dining is a rare amenity for any eatery in Columbus.
“If I may, I’d like to briefly mention a few of our menu items, including dishes such as veal piccata, chicken marsala and pesto shrimp, plus I prepare a spinach chicken artichoke pizza that you aren’t going to find anywhere else,” she says. “And be sure to try our caprese salad, which features layers of mozzarella, tomatoes and fresh basil drizzled with balsamic and olive oil. It is one of the simplest of salads, and oh so good.”
Besides pasta dishes, the restaurant also features steak and fish entrees such as New York strips and grilled salmon.
“Have you ever tasted a pomegranate martini? We also have an excellent upscale martini lounge that is ideal for customers looking for interesting specialty drinks,” Labensky says. “In addition, the restaurant offers homemade desserts like cannolis and crème brûlée, plus we are family friendly. That means we have a small selection of menu items specifically for the kids.”
The Green Olive is located on Wilkins Wise Road just off Highway 45 North and is open Monday-Friday for lunch and Monday-Saturday for dinner. But besides The Green Olive, Labensky also owns the Front Door/Back Door restaurant in the historic downtown district of Columbus.
Front Door offers homemade soups, salads and pastries during the daytime, plus dishes such as meatball subs and Greek shrimp salad. Meanwhile, Back Door features fine Mediterranean dining each evening, with entrees that include seafood pasta and spaghetti alfredo.
By the way, Front Door/Back Door are actually two separate restaurants that are cordoned off from each other in the same building on Main Street, with a separate back entrance on Fourth Street.
“At my restaurants, I like to hire a lot of Culinary Arts Institute students from the Mississippi University for Women, in order to give them good training for their eventual careers,” Labensky says. “In short, the freshest ingredients available, fine cuisine and an excellent staff is what The Green Olive and Front Door/Back Door are all about.”
RECIPES from GREEN OLIVE ITALIAN RESTAURANT
Tiramisu
4 eggs
½ cup sugar
18 oz. mascarpone
1 ½ cups heavy cream
1 ¼ cup chilled coffee
1/3 cup Marsala or brandy
18-24 ladyfingers
3 Tbsp. finely chopped dark chocolate
Cocoa powder
Separate the eggs into two clean bowls. Allow the whites to come to room temperature.
Beat the whites until stiff and set aside. Beat yolks until they turn a light yellow, and slowly whisk in the sugar until well combined. Fold mascarpone into the yolk mixture, and then gently fold in the egg whites.
Beat the cream to stiff peaks, and fold this mixture into the yolk/mascarpone mixture. Refrigerate until ready to use.
Combine the coffee and brandy in a shallow dish. Dip each ladyfinger into this mixture for about 3 seconds. Arrange the lady fingers in a 9-inch square pan. Layer half of the egg mixture on top of the ladyfingers, and sprinkle with finely chopped chocolate. Place another layer of dipped ladyfingers over the egg mixture, and follow with the remainder of the egg mixture. Top with cocoa powder. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight before serving.
Yield: 8 servings
Pomegranate Martini
Combine the following ingredients over ice in a cocktail shaker:
2 ¾ oz. Absolut Mandarin Vodka
1 ¾ oz. POM Pure Pomegranate Juice
¼ oz. Simple Syrup
½ oz. Triple Sec
Shake until frost forms on the sides of the cocktail shaker. Strain into glass and garnish with lemon wheel.
Yield: 1 drink
Story by Kevin Litwin
