Olivia

OLIVIA is a modern Italian restaurant with locations in Tampa and St. Pete, Florida, combining the authentic flavors of a traditional trattoria with a chef‑inspired contemporary menu that blends northern and southern Italian cooking with creative touches. The restaurant is led by renowned Chef Chris Ponte and his family, and the operating team includes head chef Benjamin Clark. OLIVIA has been recognized in local press and received honors such as a James Beard Foundation nomination for Best Chef of the South (2017) and multiple Golden Spoon Awards. The restaurant offers online catering for pickup, delivery and events through third‑party ordering channels, bringing wood‑fired entrées, hand‑crafted pastas and fresh salads to group occasions. Casual sophistication defines the venue, which features a full open bar and lounge, an on‑display working dough room and a temperature‑controlled wine wall; the St. Pete location presents a modern open floor plan and an inviting dining room. Seating includes dining room and lounge areas suited for relaxed social dining and cocktails. Modern Italian cuisine blends northern and southern trattoria flavors with contemporary, chef‑driven techniques; menu items emphasize hand‑made dough, fresh mozzarella, casarecce and ravioli produced in an on‑display working dough room, wood‑fired entrées and house‑made pastas. Chris Ponte trained at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, apprenticed in Europe, opened Café Ponte and other family restaurants, and has earned honors including Zagat recognition and induction into the Nation’s Restaurant News Hall of Fame. Specialties include hand‑made Margherita pizza, lemon fettuccine with Maine lobster, agnolotti with short rib and truffle‑bone‑marrow sauce, a 14 oz veal Parmesan chop, and house‑made burrata and fresh mozzarella.