When Justin and his dad were out golfing on Thursday, they were paired with two local guys who gave them some restaurant recommendations.  One of the places they suggested was The Fat Hen, a French restaurant on the road between Kiawah Island and Charleston.  We went online and drooled over the menu.  From a link on their website, we saw that the Chef/Owner of The Fat Hen just opened an Italian restaurant this year, Wild Olive, just a few blocks down the road.  The menu also looked remarkable, so we pretty much flipped a coin to decide which one to try.  Wild Olive was the winner.

As we were going to be leaving very early the next morning and needed to get back to the house at a reasonable hour to pack, we decided to take in an early dinner, right when they first opened.  We were among the first people seated in one of the dining rooms, right near the kitchen.  It was a comfortable room, and we enjoyed looking around a bit and watching the action on the line as orders began to come in.

In addition to a couple of glasses of a perfect sweet tea, we started the meal with an order of bruschetta, and were served something we definitely did not expect.  Rather than toast already topped with chopped tomato and herbs, we were served a platter with toasts, oven-roasted tomatoes, house-made mozzarella, white bean spread, grilled escarole, and speck, a smoked ham similar to prosciutto.  We each carefully constructed a piece with each of the components, and then groaned with happiness as the flavors melded and exploded in our mouths.  So delicious.  A perfect start to our meal.

As our entrees, we each decided to choose a full-size order of pasta, rather than have both pasta and an additional entree.  Justin chose a Sweet Potato and Ricotta cheese Gnocchi with Scallops.  This was a wonderful dish.  The sweet potato added an extra depth of flavor to the gnocchi, as well as gave them a bit of extra heft while still being light and tender.  And the scallops were perfectly cooked and married beautifully with the gnocchi.

I chose the pasta special of the evening, a braised veal cheek ravioli covered in a wild mushroom sauce and slivers of pecorino cheese.  This pasta was also phenomenal.  The fresh ravioli pasta was nice and light and thin, not gummy or chewy.  The rich meat filling had a lovely spice to it, that felt familiar and new at the same time.  The mushroom sauce was perfect with it.

Having seen the dessert menu ahead of time, we specifically left room in our tummies to partake of something sweet.  Oh goodness.  We were not disappointed in the least!

Justin chose the dessert special of the evening, a warm Pistachio and Date torte, served with Vanilla Gelato and chopped, toasted Pistachios.

I chose a Strawberry Almond Bowl, which was a warm almond cake, topped with Vanilla Gelato and sweet Balsamic Strawberries.

The desserts, quite simply, were amazing.  There was nothing complicated or simple about them.  The warm cakes were moist, flavorful, and inviting.  The cold, creamy gelato added a perfect balance to the rich cake.  The strawberries and balsamic also added a sweet, fresh component that paired beautifully with the almond.  The bowls got passed back and forth between the two of us several times.  Both of these desserts were among the best we have ever had in a restaurant.  I am already plotting in my head of how to recreate these at home.  We are so thankful to have received the recommendation.  We’re already looking forward to coming to Wild Olive in the future, but also plan to make time for The Fat Hen!