Ola Restaurant

This place is awesome! Went for Valentine’s day. First upon entrance you are warmly greeted by the hostess. The staff all seem very happy to be there (unlike some places where staff avoids customers). They were very accommodating. The place has a great «at home» feel to it. It was the perfect ambiance for a romantic dinner.
THE FOOD — presentation was remarkable more like a work of art. I kept looking at the plate trying to figure out if it should be eaten or simply viewed. Even the flower was edible. We both ordered the churraso with sides of Platanos Maduros as well the Yucca Fritas. We ended with a delicious cheesecake and since it was my loves birthday, they made it extra special.
The drinks were also perfect. Not to strong nor weak. The sangria is delicious.
The price matched the service as I believe you get what you pay for.
Overall, highly recommended and the next time in town for a concert, revisit guaranteed.

Come here for happy hour. The drinks are phenomenal. I love mojitos and they have an extensive list. I ordered a coconut mojito I haven’t stopped thinking about it. The food is just okay which is why I’ve given it three stars. I had a seafood entrée that lacked flavor like a year ago. I had some empanadas that were very good. Stay away from the chicken wings. They’re usually fatty and not very good.

The place is packed from the minute it opens. There is a small parking lot and on street parking. It is right on the Fairfield line. The hostess is very accommodating and truly runs the operations of the restaurant. The female bartender is on point, quick and professional. The male bartender should really be a bar back and keep his mouth closed. He is slow, ignores customers, forgets to bring the bread and loudly argues with customers trying to use Unilocal and Groupons. I personally witnessed this as we sat at the bar for 2 hours. The chef himself even came out to apologize about a missing item for a couple and the bartender continued to argue with the same people about a Unilocal gift certificate after the chef went back to the kitchen.
The food is presented beautifully and we had no complaints. We tried multiple apps and a couple entrees. It would be nice if there was a deep fried whole red snapper. The dipping sauce for bread is excellent! We did not leave room for dessert but the cocktails are fabulous. It should be noted the same drink is made differently by different bartenders and that should not be happening. It should be consistent. I would return but if the male bartender is there I would probably walk out and go somewhere else.

Good food, but expensive. Been there a few times, everything tasted great.

AMAZING PLACE!!! As soon as you walk in you feel welcomed the staff super attentive. Although they messed up on my drink & on my side order for my ribs the waiter noticed right away & fixed it I was impressed I’ll be back here very soon

Always good, Ola is a gem in an otherwise dreary neighborhood. First it is a very nice looking place with a diverse crowd. The guacamole is prepared table side with plenty of fresh chips. The ceviche is delicious as are the ribs, chicken and most dishes. We don’t love the paella but it is more than serviceable. The drinks are killer and the people are so nice. Fairly pricey but well worth it

Favorite restaurant in the area. Went there with a large party and everybody fell in love with their food. Everything is plated so well and beautiful. You won’t be disappointed with anything on the menu. It’s a small place with a tropic décor feel and a overall welcoming atmosphere. COCONUT TRES LECHES is the equivalent to crack! pure deliciousness!

For now this is a placeholder for a fuller review. I have to say I had an excellent meal here. I had the chicken dish. Very good. The highlight of my experience however was the flan. PERFECT consistency covered in wine dipped figs. Amazing! The flan itself is five stars. I’m spoiled on home made flan so I’m hyper critical of restaurant flan. Most are mediocre. This one not only passes muster but I’ll go ahead and say it’s the best restaurant flan I’ve ever had by far!

Apologies for this late post. My friend kept on raving about this place, so I went with her in late August armed with her Groupon. Initial impressions were cozy, cramped & crowded… then lively with its décor and background music, immediately welcomed by warm & friendly staff which they seem to have an abundance of (for an tiny restaurant). The square footage was the only thing small in this place. Everything else was BIG on flavor and portions. We started with classic caipirinha cocktails, I like the little sliver of raw sugar cane. It’s a nice touch that makes me feel like I’m on the islands. The menu looks so appetizing, we both ended up ordering «Paella de mariscos con azafran» which was a seafood extravaganza of scallops, shrimps, mussels, clams, tilapia and chorizo, corn, saffron, braised tomato, roasted garlic ($ 28). After a reasonable wait time, they brought out this beautiful plate of art! (Please see attached photo). I hated to break off the elongated dehydrated plantain to dig into my paella. Lol :) I like that the assorted seafoods was cooked just right, not one tasted rubbery nor undercooked. Spiced just right & was so scrumptious. We were already stuffed halfway thru our entrée but couldn’t resist a nice piece of dulce de leche. It was sweeter than expected. Or maybe my refills on caipirinha was getting the best of my taste buds. Lol: D Overall, a delightful meal and the feast of our senses plus the sweet caipirinhas guaranteed a great time!

Cant go wrong with this place. The food was great and so was the service. Will return for desert and happy hour. Nothing to complain about. The fact they have guava paste on ribs is outrageous. Tastes so good.

Ola at the corner of brooklawn and capital, good food great hospitality, foods a bit on the cold side. I will definitely be back without? Until next time Ola oh steak for dinner and for app I had the crab cake

Amazing drinks !!! Food fresh light delicious !!! Service 5 star !!! Very cute restaurant

— Nice ambiance, pleasant waiters and great food I ordered the Bahia and it was really grand. I usually have to travel far for a nice restaurant so it was nice to have such a nice restaurant close to home. I will definitely be back soon

We’ve been to Ola in Bridgeport twice in the past 2 months and happy to report two top notch experiences from head to toe.
On our most recent visit we tried the Ahi tuna taco app with a corn salsa wrapped in a flour tortilla. The raw tuna and salsa paired so well we commented that this could very well be close to a Big «O» of the taste buds.
The guacamole– hand made at the table with a variety of colorful, crisp vegetable chips. You simply cannot pass this up.
With the apps we simply had to ask for more bread just so we could get a second ramekin of their delicious dipping sauce.
For entrees — the Bahia — tender jumbo shrimp around a centerpiece of black bean mashed potatoes and corn. Delightful.
And also the paella — a stunning presentation of clams, mussels, jumbo shrimp, sea scallops and tilapia with a corn rice mixture that was heavenly.
We ended with a shared piece of coconut con leche cake — a coconut lovers dream and enjoyed also by the one of us who does not favor coconut.
The mixed drinks are impressive. Elegantly sinful Martinis and spiked sangrias not to mention the alcohol infused Guatemalan coffee.
Ola is pricey but it’s one of the few restaurants in Fairfield county that can deliver an experience worth every dollar.
It’s amusing to see all the Fairfield clans stopping off at each other’s tables to congratulate each other for venturing into Bridgeport — which to be fair is a stones throw away from the Fairfield line.
Bravo Ola. Your restaurant gets top marks across the board. Keep up the good work — after all, that is the challenge isn’t it — staying consistently awesome.

Came here after work last Friday to try out their happy hour. My friend and I had been there once before when they first opened and had a good time.
We parked in the parking lot, and moseyed on in. Happy hour is only at the bar and the bar was packed. They have some bar stools along a wall that divides the bar and dining area so we sat there. We weren’t really sure how it worked. Did we go up to the bar to get service or did they come to us? Either way, we did a mixture of both. My friend ordered the Peruvian Iced Tea, which we had to return since it was spicy. Turns out the bartender had given her the wrong drink. I had the Mojito de Maracuya which was good, and I’m not a mojito person.
Happy hour (3 – 6 M-​F) food is limited to about 4 or 5 dishes. We ordered the fried mozzarella and two orders of wings. 15 percent off the regular menu also!
Then the food came out. The fried cheese was good and the sauce it came with was a nice touch. But the wings were less than appealing. At first glance they look good, covered in a sweet chipotle glaze. But then you bite in and it’s cold straight to the bone. It’s as if they tossed frozen wings in their special sauce and heated them in the microwave for 2 minutes instead of fully cooking them.
Unhappy with our meal, we decided to cross this happy hour off our list.

Great authentic food!
My husband and I went here for one of our date nights and the food was really good as well as the customer service.
The crown was move build was casual which is good.

Amazing drinks. Amazing Food. Amazing Service. Ola is definitely an unknown gem of Connecticut.
Drinks — ¹⁰⁄₁₀
They have one full page filled with mojito drinks options — can you say one happy girl! Being that I absolutely love mojitos, I literally could not decide on a particular type for about five minutes. I ended up choosing the coconut mojito which was one of the best I’ve ever had and I’ve had many!
Food — ¹⁰⁄₁₀
For appetizers we ordered the arepas which consist of cornmeal fritter base, pulled pork, and a mango salad top — so good! I choose the Cana dish which is the salmon over a bed of quinoa; let’s just say I was highly satisfied with my choice. The salmon fell off my fork and was seasoned to perfection. I highly recommend this entrée for a healthy, tasty option!
For desert, I ordered the Tres Leche — OMG! It was absolutely mouthwatering — totally against my diet, but I could not resist. Definitely a must try.
Service — ¹⁰⁄₁₀
Upon arrival, we were seated promptly. Our drinks and food were brought out in a timely fashion. The waitress was attentive and overall a great experience at Ola. I will be returning soon!

Brought my mother here for her birthday dinner on a Saturday night. We did not have reservations and they were quite busy but we did get a table after about a five minute wait. Awesome!
We ordered guacamole to start which came with different types of chips but it all tasted the same to me no differentiation. Guacamole was ok nothing special.
My mom had the ribs which was excellent with yucca fries that I loved!
I had the skirt steak that I ordered medium rare but came out very well done :(
Ordered the tres leche coconut cake for dessert. Nice big slice and very tasty. Don’t order if you don’t like really very sweet cake.
Besides that the portions were good and I would come back here with a Groupon deal. It is pricey for what it is but it’s great to have a nicer option in Bridgeport.
PROS
Great service
Food was presented very nicely
Great portion sizes
CONS
Very loud and cramped
The water jug and cutlery are kept uncovered on a shelf near the front door which is very unhygienic. We ordered sparkling bottled water instead.

Dined here for dinner Friday ²⁄₆^th. My 4^th visit, and I am still giving them 5 stars! The service is always on par, and I want to kiss the chef every time! Drinks have also been consistent on every visit.
I was craving my usual «Tapado de Mariscos». I checked the website before making dinner reservations to ensure the dish was listed — and it was; however upon arriving and looking at the menu, I noticed it wasn’t listed on the menu. I asked our waiter if the Chef would be able to make it; within 5 – 7 minutes he came back and said «no problem»! This time I decided to order a side of yucca fries as well, delish!
Cheers again Ola! I am now a regular patron.

Great place in the middle of a residential neighborhood! Authentic cuisine, friend staff, great atmosphere.
I’ve been there 2 times so far, and both have been great. They have a location in Orange (?), which we didn’t find as friendly.
I’ve always gotten a seafood dish and an order of guacamole when I go. The ceviche is fresh, and full of ingredients, not just tomatoes. The guac is hit or miss, but the fresh plantain and corn chips ate always amazing.
Tonight I had yellowfin tuna tacos. It’s listed as an appetizer, but there’s plenty for a meal. The tuna was so fresh (sushi grade), and had fresh mango salsa and guac.
I also had a blackberry margarita (get the sugar on the rim. Yum!) It had fresh muddled blackberries and lime at the bottom.
Def a place to go if you want great food and a relatively quiet atmosphere.