Olympia Pizza & Pasta Restaurant(Denman st) Vancouver — Restaurant in Vancouver

The pizzas are superb. My favourite as always, Never disappoints. I'm hungry now. Service is perfunctory with moments of personality all evident in one transaction. Recommend the food.

Update: January 13, 2025

I am deeply disappointed with my interaction with Olympia tonight. I have been a loyal customer and advocate for years. As recently as January 6, 2025, I ordered my usual medium-sized Ham, Mushroom, and Cheese pizza, which I picked up as I was apartment sitting for friends who were on vacation (west of denman). Tonight, I ordered the same pizza along with a pasta dish through Uber Eats (I live in Strathcona and chose Olympia over closer pizza places). However, the pizza delivered appeared smaller than a medium, as indicated on the delivery receipt. Also, I immediately noticed that the pizza I received tonight was smaller than the one I had on January 6.

I called Olympia to clarify the size difference, seeking only an explanation—not a confrontation. I approached the situation calmly and without entitlement. Unfortunately, the response I received from the staff member, Shaun (sic), was far from professional or courteous. Shaun was dismissive and abrupt” and their tone was condescending, which was deeply upsetting.

Shaun claimed they were not responsible for any errors and placed the blame on Uber Eats. While that might be the case, the message was delivered in such a rude manner that it tarnished my perception of Olympia. The hallmark of good customer service is addressing issues with empathy and professionalism, especially when there is a difference in expectations and outcomes.

I wasn’t seeking compensation—just clarity about pizza sizing (especially since upgrading from a small to a medium costs an additional $5.25). This was not a critical issue, but paying for something I didn’t receive is still a matter of principle. The way I was treated tonight was unacceptable and has left me questioning my continued patronage of this establishment, which is a shame as I still would...

I wanted to like this place so much, as I had fond memories at the location in Kits decades ago and the steak was excellent there (now I'm not sure if they are the same franchised restaurant). So I had out-of-town family visiting and staying on Denman during the fireworks/Pride weekend. In search of a place that is kid-friendly flavor- and budget-wise, we decided to give Olympia a try. A heads-up that the restaurant does not have AC and the fans are not very strong. We were promptly served by a server who had difficulty communicating in English (kudos to him for staying positive and trying his best!). We ordered a shrimp salad, 3 pastas, and a Greek pizza. Out of all dishes, the pizza was the best. Tragically, the greens in the salad was the inexpensive kind, and the shrimps appeared to be the tiny frozen ones. In an attempt to mask the odor of the shrimp, my family asked for "french" dressing, but received "ranch". My chicken fettuccine alfredo had no salt (but creamy), and I had to remind our server that the pasta dishes come with a slice of garlic bread (decent). We tried to eat as quickly as we could and packed up the rest since we were all soaking in our sweat. All in all, it breaks my heart to write this, as I understand how hard it is to find good service staff (any service staff), and how expensive food prices have gone up, both for consumers and restaurant owners. If you have sophisticated palate, I would recommend somewhere else, or stick with their pizze, which...

The previous time I went to this place was about 5 years ago, and I wasn't impressed then, especially as compared to either Greek restaurant in the Davie Village. Unfortunately, tonight wasn't any better.

We (2 of us) arrived about 8:30pm - AFTER the typical supper rush. Many of the tables had people & many of those had food, and there were a few empty tables - so there shouldn't have been too much strain on the kitchen.

Our 1st waitress stopped only long enough to ASK if we wanted water (just deliver it by default!), and tell us since she was new, she'd get another waitress. The 2nd waitress was also new and wasn't yet familiar with the menu, but took our order - and disappeared. There was no bread sticks or other offering, or follow-up by anyone during the wait.

An HOUR later (I shouldn't have waited so long) I finally told a 3rd waitress to tell the kitchen we'd waited long enough. 5 minutes later, the food arrived. A few minutes after that, our 2nd waitress appeared to ask how it tasted - completely clueless about the duration between her appearances. She had only 4 other tables to deal with during that time, and they just wanted to pay and leave. I think 1 finally just left.

The ONLY saving grace was that once the food arrived, it was tasty & filling (which we NEEDED by that time), although maybe a little over-priced. I had the shrimp & scallop fettechini, my son had the chicken soulvaki plate. We paid and left.

I don't plan to...