First look at Chef Chris Ponte’s Olivia restaurant coming to downtown St. Pete
By Breanne Williams
Tampa Bay Business Journal
Published: Aug 1, 2023

Chef Chris Ponte’s Olivia restaurant is anticipated to open in downtown St. Petersburg in spring 2024, and new design details have been shared.

Following the success of the modern Italian restaurant Olivia in South Tampa, the Ponte Group announced in March it will expand the concept across the bridge to a storefront on the ground floor of Ascent St. Petersburg.

The Ponte Group has partnered with Tampa-based api(+) as the project's architect; api(+) shared an exclusive first look at the restaurant with the Tampa Bay Business Journal.

The St. Pete restaurant will feature an “urban interpretation” of the Tampa location and will include charcoal brick and white stucco detailing. The outside patio will have a 180-degree view of the dining room.

The restaurant will include a dough room with breads and pastries, a wine vault and a full bar. Ponte previously told the Business Journal that the construction budget could range from $1.8 million to $2.5 million.

The restaurant will occupy a 5,550-square-foot space and will seat 180 diners.

Olivia’s menu emphasizes pasta and pizza, including items like short rib agnolotti, chicken Milanese, cacio e pepe, and the soppressata pizza.

The Ponte Group includes the chef, his wife, Michelle, and sons Andy and JT. The group recently opened Ponte Modern American in Midtown Tampa — an updated version of Café Ponte in Largo, where the chef was named a semifinalist for a James Beard Foundation Award. Café Ponte closed in May 2020.

The 36-story Ascent St. Petersburg features a mix of apartments and a 172-key hotel and lies across the street from Jannus Live and the Sundial Parking Garage.