Fig & Olive --Back again!

My friend Jenezuela was back in town mid-April for her final wedding dress fitting. I managed to carve out some time to meet her at the store, which just happened to be 2 doors down from Fig & Olive. I'd been wanting to go back there ever since ABF & I went there during Restaurant Week, so when Jen complained of being famished after her fitting, I was only too happy to suggest this spot.

It was closer to dinnertime than lunchtime, so there were plenty of seats available. We sat down in the front of the restaurant and started poring over the menu. I knew I was going to have those chicken samosas again, but I let Jen peruse at her own pace to see what she felt like eating. She was game for the samosas, and also suggested a cheese plate (yay!) and some jamon. Now we were cooking!

While we waited for our food, Jen & I ordered the "Skinny Mojito," which was a mojito made with simple syrup made from Splenda sweetener, and the addition of the 'fruit of the day,' which was muddled fresh blackberries. I wish I'd realized the blackberry part before the server left, because I don't normally like to mess with the regular mojito, but oh well. This drink was good but not great. I liked how tart it was, but the mint was nowhere near powerful or present enough. I would try it again, though, minus the berries.

Our samosas came out first, and I was hoping they'd be just as delicious as when ABF & I tried them. They were! Jenezuela was quite happy with these as well. The flavors work SO well together. Nothing gets lost--even the saffron threads are a lovely touch. YUUUUUM. Oh my goodness. The last bite is almost sad, because you don't want it to be over yet! Never mind that we had 2 other plates o' food ahead of us--these samosas definitely steal the spotlight at first.

But there's no time to mope when a cheese plate awaits...our server seemed a little flustered that day and we never found out which cheeses we had on our plates. I only know they were yummy and tangy and oh so good with the different spreads, from their tongue-tingling olive tapenade (and black olives are usually just so-so to me!) to their cravetastic fig jam. Holy tastebud explosion. The fresh figs were equally scrumptious!

I mean seriously. This tapenade. Dang.

I wasn't particularly excited about the plate of serrano ham, but when it arrived, I definitely changed my mind. It was surrounded by sultry swirls of olive oil, dotted with bright green chives, and accented by soft slices of a mild, creamy goat cheese. Yes, please, thanks. I wrapped a slice of the chewy, satsifying ham around a wedge of cheese and I swear my tastebuds damn near wept.

So we ate and ate and caught up on a lot and then ate a little bit more, but we had juuuuust enough room for dessert. Jenezuela put her trust in me when I ordered the unassuming dessert crostini. Sure, it sounds mild: mascarpone cheese, amarena cherries, shortbread. I stared at her while she took her first bite, and then reveled in the spark I saw as soon as the delicious combo of flavors (sweetly) smacked her in the mouth!

I can't stress their awesomeness enough. If you have time to order only ONE thing at Fig & Olive, it should be these dessert crostini. A-may-ZING. I ate one and let Jen finish the other two because I'd already experienced the awesomeness before. I'm a sharer, I am. And she was definitely glad of that. ORDER THESE!

Fig & Olive
10 East 52nd Street
New York, NY 10022
(212) 319-2002