Oliver's Naturals

 

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Jesse C.

Wynantskill, NY

3/14/2008 1 photo

Skye and I kind of fell into a dinner at this new vegetarian, organic, hippy, crunchy restaurant in downtown Troy last weekend. If you know the place or take the time to google them you'll find that this is pretty unusual seeing that they don't SERVE dinner. What they ARE doing, however, is opening up to reservations for after hours private dining experiences.

We happened by pure luck to be the first one they'd ever done. I emailed the restaurant at oliversnaturals@hotmai... and requested a reservation. Adam responded after a bit to let me know that we'd be their trial run and gave us the menu choices and let us know what it was going to cost. We responded and set up a time. Easy as that.

Here's how it went: We arrived outside the restaurant to find curtains over the door and windows. When we knocked on the door a playful voice from inside asked "Who is it?" Upon correctly identifying ourselves we were admitted by the chef and owner, Adam Shelmerdyne. To describe Adam briefly...a young, bearded, sunny kid who knows where he's going. Just the kind of man you'd want preparing your food if you intended to feel good after you ate it. I mean...you all believe on some subconscious, superstitious level that the attitude (or energy if you prefer) of a cook goes into the food and thusly into you, right?

Adam had set up a table in the middle of the room with appropriately but not intimidatingly beautiful furnishings and the whole scene was quite cozy with the curtains on the windows. He presented us with an amazing loaf of bread right out of the oven as we sat down. There was a plate full of individual whipped butter portions arranged decoratively next to the rose in a vase on the table to accompany this. As we chewed on the bread we wandered around the restaurant and chatted with Adam about the history of the place and the man himself. The place has a lot of charm and some neat little decorative items you wouldn't find unless you're looking for them.

To start us off Adam brought over a pair each of crispy vegetarian egg rolls and gave us each a cup of his brown tamari sauce to dip them in. They were a smart, snappy way to begin things with their crispy texture and the pleasing bite from the sauce. And really...since when do vegetarians ever get to eat egg rolls? They're more often than not a pork-filled creation at the Asian restaurants they appear in.

Next to arrive were the salads. We had a choice between "The Salad" a regular menu item from the lunch menu and a pear and gorgonzola salad over fresh organic baby spinach. "The Salad" was a light and sunny spread made the moreso by the creamy lemon vinaigrette that was applied to it, a house specialty. The pear/gorgonzola was a direct contrast. It was a subtle and creamy plate with a much more relaxed feel due to the softer textures of the ingredients. Both could be a meal on their own if accompanied by that bread he was serving, but we were just warming up.

The dinners arrived with their own little food-feng-shui arrangements on the plate looking like little pieces of art. At this point, with Adam's demonstrated attention to detail it was no more than we expected. It's nice to be spoiled. ; )

We had the veggie lasagna, perfect in every way from the creamy texture of the cheese (and plenty of it) to the overall consistency (firm and tender) to the portion size (enough for lunch the next day). We also had the portabella steaks smothered in grilled onions with fresh sage on top. Now I've cooked some portabella mushrooms in my time living with a vegetarian wife, but I cannot say just what they did to those mushrooms to give them their pleasing texture and their savory deliciousness. You'll be happy to know that we adequately sampled both these dishes using the old married couple trick: we swapped plates halfway through.

We had been eating lightly and trying not to go too crazy on the bread 'till this point as Adam had told us to save room for dessert, referencing some surprise he had for us. I'm not sure how much I should give away in case he intends to surprise others with it, but it was thoughtful, well presented, delicious, fresh and totally organic from top to bottom.

So there's the scoop on what's going on behind closed doors at Oliver's Naturals in downtown Troy. Oliver's has taken its place on the growing list of awesome restaurants to find in downtown Troy these days.  So head over and make sure he stays there!

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Jess X.

Albany, NY

1/31/2009

I'd probably really like this place. However, every time I have tried to go here during the hours they are allegedly open, I find it mysteriously closed. I suppose I should bring their number with me the next time I am in Troy, but honestly...irregular hours kind of piss me off. That's a little too laid-back for my tastes.

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Daniel B.

Albany, NY

1/19/2008 2 photos

Years ago, when my hippie friends were amazed, they would say something that sounded like "HO - lee".

Now, i am no hippie.  Nor am I a vegetarian.  So to give a vegetarian restaurant, that contains steal-your-face iconography, Jerry Garcia action figures and samples of organic hemp seeds (you eat them?) a glowing review, is an amazing thing indeed.  But this place is fantastic.

It's a cozy (small) space with eclectic seating and art from local artists on the walls.  It has a warm, if *very* laid back attitude.  And when we first came, it seemed to be a one man operation.  

Coffee was served in a giant french press.  Awesome.  And it came with a creamer that was shaped like a cow.  Tip it and the milk comes out of its mouth.  Cute.  

Juices were not just freshly squeezed, but freshly squeezed to order.  Which is awesome.  And infinitely customizable.  Our party had one orange-grapefruit and one pineapple.  Fresh pineapple juice is amazing.

The menu was unbelievably reasonable.  There were breakfast options for $3, $4 and $5.  I was relieved to see that the place had actual real eggs, and not just Tofu scrambles.  

And everything was solid.  The kiddo had grilled cheese.  That was solid.  It came on bread that actually had nutritional content too (as opposed to the grilled cheese you would get at a diner).  The spicy egg and cheese burrito was great.  I asked for avocado to be added, which made it even better.  The egg and cheese sandwiches looked good.  And the salad looked incredibly crisp and fresh.

Inexpensive, healthful food, with good coffee in a laid back setting is awesome.  One more reason to love Troy.  And until it gets too crowded, will be a must before the Troy Winter Market.

Just remember, get the coffee first, and relax.  If you get uptight about service, you probably need to mellow out.  But, it's all good.

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