Olivia is Norway’s largest Italian restaurant group with presence in several Norwegian cities as well as in Sweden. Thanks to Olivia Italian restaurants, you can now experience a touch of Italy all year round. Learn more about the authentic Italian experience in Norway.
Olivia opened its first restaurant at Aker Brygge, Oslo, in 2006, bringing a little piece of Italy in Oslo. Three years later, another Olivia restaurant in Hegdehaugsveien, Oslo west, opened, closely followed by a third restaurant at Tjubholmen, next to Aker Brygge, in 2011.
Later, Olivia have opened several new restaurants all over Norway and two in Sweden, Gothenburg and Stockholm respectively.
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The restaurants serve high quality Italian pizza and pasta as well as other traditional Italian food at affordable prices. Read more at: www.oliviarestauranter.no
Each restaurant offers a different experience but they all have one thing in common: authentic Italian food served in a lively warm atmosphere. They all have large outdoor seating areas where guests can wrap up with blankets and heat lamps among olive trees during those colder winter months.
We particularly recommend visiting the restaurant in Aker Brygge, which is inspired by Naples, while every single restaurant from this chain, although the interior is mostly similar from one to another, is inspired by a different Italian town.
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“We like to think that Olivia is not a chain, despite all restaurants having the same name and similar menus,” said CEO Tone Wicklund once in an interview. “We put a lot of attention and effort into creating each restaurant, making it a little different with its own individual touch.”
The authentic Italian kitchen, as well as the fireplaces, lights, candles, the pleasant atmosphere, comfort and the overall laid-back effect will give you the unique chance to experience Italy whichever restaurant you chose. The true Napoli feel has been preserved in the Aker Brygge, with the chance to sit and dine, sipping a nice glass of Italian wine on the balcony overlooking the pier, the sea, the fjord, as well as the Akershus Fortress, a true experience to remember.
Olivia is famous and much loved by locals, for its authentic Italian pizzas, pasta and antipasta, all made from fresh Italian ingredients. The pizza baker and his oven are always placed in a prominent position within the restaurants creating a lively atmospjere. Guests can book private parties and those interested in Italian cooking can learn the fundamentals of the cuisine from the in-house chef.
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The menu at Olivia consists of appetizers and many dishes intended to be enjoyed as mains, a wide variety of pizzas, pastas, risottos and salads among other specialties. You might opt for one of the best pizzas in Norway, characteristic for its thin, crispy crust, baked in a wood-fired oven.
Olivia Hegdehaugsveien is inspired by Rome and has a large outside seating area full of olive trees and fairy lights. The restaurant is famous for its wine bar serving glasses of wonderful Italian wines which are difficult to find elsewhere.
The Venice-themed Olivia Tjuvholmen has adjacent to the restaurant a small deli which sells Olivia’s homemade focaccia, aioli and cheese as well as a number of other Italian products. They also have the most delicious ‘al taglio’ pizza, which is Italy’s answer to takeaway pizza.
“Olivia very quickly became a very popular place to be because of the warm and welcoming atmosphere. You never feel alone here and that makes people want to come back again and again,” says Wicklund-Hansen.
Benvenuti!
Authentic Italian Experience in Norway, written by Tor Kjolberg
Feature image (on top): Olivia Aker Brygge
All images © Olivia