Olive BBQ Chicken

Look here.You ever ate somethin' so dang good, that a song played in your head? If yo' answer is no--lemme get a moment of silence for your poor, elementary, dead tongue...of taste.I feel bad for you if you haven't had that kind of experience with food. Ummm...yeah one could say: "well, your greedy an...an a bit 'fluffy in weight. So of course you'd hear music. You would hear music while violently licking a torn Twinkie wrapper"??!!!Then I would say, "There is no need to get all disrespectful. Besides--I find a private corner and I lick them when no one is lookin'. AND...at LEAST my tongue tasters are well balanced & they have discriminate taste to all that the good LORD allows me to partake of culinary wise and HE blesses for me to eat".Anyway, I ordered two kinds: Honey Garlic and Secret Sauced Chicken. My sweet Baby Cow (as I dare not use my LORDS name in vain) I tried the Secret Sauced and...First my fellow 'Yelpers', I heard the violins of the song and then--Annie Lennox of The Eurythmics comes in with that determined voice:"Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)"....Yes Sir. Yes Ma'am.I dedicate THAT song...to this here Chicken at 'Olives'.This stuff here is what sweet dreams are made of. One thing to note. The Korean style fried chicken (and this is most) is 'hacked' into pieces leaving only the drumstick and wings intact. I think this is genius and serves three purposes. 1.) Presentation 2.) Marination & 3.) Faster cooking.I point this out because you might find yourself snacking on bits of rib bone or back bone if that kind of thing disgust you. Don't bother me none. I lick the remaining 'cake' off the torn 'Twinkie' wrappers (remember) but whatever you do--DON'T aka DO NOT pass this treat up. You playin' yo'self if you do. I promise you.The Korean BBQ capitalizes beautifully on something we ALL desire in fried Chicken and that is CRUNCH!This place emphasizes tasty, flavor-packed crunchy bits that does not succumb to the sauce by becoming soggy.The Honey Garlic was nice & balanced with a good garlic flavor and again...that awesome almost 'Post Grape Nut Cereal' (yep you know it...) CRUNCH.The nice young lady name 'Luna' was masked but you could hear in her voice & see in her eyes a genuine welcoming into the establishment. I told her I wanted something spicy but not 'hot' and she therefore recommended the 'Secret Sauce Chicken'. It is this beautifully red, sticky, sweet-spicy, sauce that the crunchy chicken is slathered with. Awesome. The Honey Garlic is not as saucy but sticky nevertheless and yes...Awesome.On South Tacoma Way, 'Olives' is tucked over in a corner on the opposite end of 'Shin Shin' (a store) behind Jack in Box. You won't see the name 'Olives' however, you will see a round white sign wit a Chicken on it and then the words "BBQ Chicken & Pub".Interior is that typical cement flooring look...dark ambiance. Though empty, it appeared to be a really clean space. I ordered to go however. Yes...."Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This),Who am I to disagree..."I cannot & I will DEFINITELY--be back.

Picked this up to take out. Got a few different flavors and kimchi fried rice. Even after the drive, the chicken was still nice and crispy. A few pieces were a little dry- but the flavor and crispy delicious skin made up for it. Original is classically delicious. My favorite was the honey garlic- writing this review the next day at 6 something am craving a whole box-it was that good. We also had a mildly spicy one - also lovely. Anyone who lives any reasonable distance from Lakewood should make this a go to spot. Add it to your favorites. Seriously so so good. Just please do not expect the chicken pieces to be cut the North American way, as this is a Korean fried chicken spot, and it is cooked the Korean way. Broaden your foodie

Oh how i have missed Korean town! This chicken shop is just amazing! The flavors of the different chicken is stunning on the palate! The sides are delicious and the staff was so gracious getting us more of the delicious chicken we wanted!

Crispy, flavorful and everything you want in Korean fried chicken. The special sauce is particularly tasty.

Finally!! Seems like I've been waiting years for this place to open. If you are not familiar with Olive Chicken, you probably don't watch Korean dramas. Kdramas are the epitome of product placement and Olive chicken is featured quite a bit in the shows The King: Eternal Monarch and Guardian: The Lonely and Great God (Goblin). Korean chicken is fabulous - super crunchy on the outside, most and juicy on the inside with a myriad of different flavors. I prefer the traditional non-sauced variety (Olive Golden Fried Chicken is SUPER GOOD), but you can get your fill of sweet and savory flavors - secret sauced, soy garlic, hot and spicy, etc. I've tried a number here at Olive and their honey garlic is really good. The entire menu isn't available quite yet as they just literally opened a couple weeks ago. The layout of the restaurant and bar is quite stylish. The wait staff was super friendly and attentive. Looking forward to when the are 100% up and running and the covid plague is open. Currently they are open for dine-in obviously with a limited capacity for social distancing. I'll update my review once they're completely up and running. Definitely stop by though and grab some chicken here. It's bomb.

If you love fried chicken and that yummy Korean flavor, you'll love this place! Their kimchi fried rice and soy garlic chicken is absolutely delicious and cooked to perfection! They have quite a selection and I can't wait to try all the flavors. Stop in and give it a try... it's so yummy!

It's a average Korean chicken spot nothing special it's definitely not the number 1 chicken joint not by far

Don't come here 45 minutes before closing. You will be told that they will not seat you and only have to go as an option. For the record, we ordered it take out and ate it in my car. We were done before the clock even hit 10PM (9:55PM). This is purely poor customer service. As for the food? We got the golden fried and honey garlic and both very crisp and delicious. The fries on the other hand are you typical frozen food crinkle cut fries. Skip the fries they are not worth it. Now excuse me while I go vacuum chicken crumbs out of my car...

Hidden little gem! Great atmosphere, friendly staff. Amazing wine and beer selection! The low star reviews seem a bit petty, it appears this place is new and just settling in to Tacoma south. The food was perfectly cooked. My chicken was superior tender, and moist. Everything was crisp and fresh from the fryer. Flavors were so balanced between sweet and spicy, even though we ordered some of the spiciest chicken on the menus. The rice ball appetizer was a savory yet slightly sweet treat, we were so hungry from all the amazing smells we almost forgot to take a picture! Our new favorite chicken spot. We will be back for sure!

Best chicken I've ever had! It's juicy not dry, crunchy not soggy and the sauce is submerged not just drizzled on. That's how you get the perfect chicken.