The Oliver: 5 new Italian food concepts in one epic Calgary location
The Oliver, an epic five-star apartment experience in Calgary, is also a newly opened central hub for incredible Italian food.
Having opened just last month, this massive space is home to five brand-new food, drink, and market concepts inspired by Italian culture.
There is an Italian market, a lounge, a Prosecco and coffee bar, a pizzeria, and a chic Italian restaurant.
The Oliver building is located right in the heart of Calgary at 524 10th Avenue SW, Calgary.
It’s basically an Italian food hall with a little bit of everything.
Each spot is connected to another, making it easy to hop from place to place if that’s what you feel like doing. It’s one of the best food and drink crawls in the city, and it’s all inside the four walls here.
The culinary program was created by Executive Chef Giuseppe Di Gennaro, who uses Italian cuisine as a significant influence. As for the cocktail program, it has been developed by Tiffanie Hensel, an award-winning mixologist.
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We recently visited this impressive building and tried every food and drink from each unique space. Each one feels entirely its own, with different food and drink options, and also experiences with the changing decor, lighting, music, and more.
Treno Coffee & Prosecco
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With espresso-style coffee and plenty of bubbles, this was the best place to start our visit to The Oliver.
Guests at this exciting new cafe and bar can expect an excellent selection of traditional croissants, paninis, pastries, and more, but created with a modern Italian influence.
We tried a croissan’wich, stuffed with bacon, spinach, and taleggio. It was fantastic, and super enjoyable on this lower level, with high ceilings, marble floors and walls, and comfortable seating. It felt cozy but luxurious.
Luca Mercato
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After our quick but lovely stop at Treno, we checked out Luca Mercato, a modern and stylish Italian market space.
There were everyday essentials and in-store pre-packaged meals to go and select wines for sale here. Imported olive oils, pasta, snacks, Italian sodas, pre-made food, and so much more were found on the shelves and inside the fridges.
There is also a butcher counter and deli for fresh baked goods, premium produce, high-quality Italian meats, and dairy products, and that’s exactly where we headed.
We ordered a classic Italian sandwich with mortadella cut fresh to order, and topped with fresh veggies. It was a great on-the-go meal if you’re in a hurry or simply want to treat yourself during a quick shop.
Luca Restaurant
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Luca Restaurant is the stylish new Italian restaurant at The Oliver.
The menu is broken up into starters, pasta dishes, salads, meat, and seafood. Every dish has a modern take on a classic, elevating the food to something entirely original.
Everything is made from scratch, the pasta is made fresh every day, and authentic ingredients will be imported straight from Italy. Even more exciting, the kitchen is entirely open concept and in the middle of the room, so every seat feels like it’s a part of the action.
Fleetwood Lounge
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This bar has an entirely welcoming atmosphere that feels elevated in style and relaxed. It’s a great place to unwind at the end of the day. Guests can expect classic and creative new cocktails, an impressive wine list, and a rich, shareable food menu.
Booths and cozy chairs make this spot have a vibe like you are enjoying great food with friends in a beautiful living room at a summer home. We shared charcuterie boards, lamb popsicles, lobster bruschetta, and other tasty food we can’t wait to have again.
The drinks were just as exciting, with cocktails you won’t find anywhere else in Calgary, like the milk punch made from cookies, or the Meta Caesar, built with tomato consommé ice cubes, Worcestershire ice cubes, celery ice balls, housemade clamato juice served on the side, garnished with a house deli meat selection and a lime wedge.
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Pazzi Pizzeria
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Last but not least: pizza.
Pazzi Pizzeria is a Neapolitan-inspired pizza restaurant with scratch-made dough and premium ingredients and toppings, all cooked in a wood-fired oven.
There will be nine unique pizzas on the menu here, which feel like exciting twists on the traditional pies we know and love.
We tried the Northern Exposure pizza with tomato, fresh basil, fior di latte, genoa salame, and basil pesto. It was perfectly cooked with a dough that was wonderfully crispy and chewy.
We also had a four-bite pizza, a smaller and unique by-the-slice-like option that’ll be great for late-night stop-ins from the bar. It was an aglio and olio pizza, a spicy piece made with garlic, olive oil, rosemary, chilies, and grana padano.
The Olive
Address: 524 10th Avenue SW, Calgary
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