Over the years, Olives has evolved into a place to enjoy a cocktail and listen to music. The dinner menu had become almost an afterthought.

So a few months back, owner Richard Amato hired a chef, Paul Troxell, to become general manager and inject new life into the place as a food destination. How discouraging for Troxell, then, when his friends heard about his new job and said, "Olives serves food?"

That's when he knew he'd have to fashion not only a menu, but a marketing campaign. So Tallulah's Kitschen at Olives was born.

The scene at 108 North Main St. is still dominated by the long bar and music in the air, but the surprise is a fine dinner in a lively, fun place with a party atmosphere. The menu goes well beyond traditional bar fare, with vegetarian options, hearty grilled meats and lovely seafood dishes. The kitschy Kitschen moniker is catchy, but in the end, the food speaks for itself.

TVs and swing dancing

It was a quiet Tuesday night on the Providence streets when I entered into the high-ceilinged space with my husband. Right away, the energy of the place was apparent.

In the front of the restaurant, a half wall has been added to separate dining tables from the wide-open bar space. But on this night, most of them were filled with chatty diners.

We opted to sit at one of the high tables by the bar. This afforded us not only a view of the televisions showing the Red Sox game (my weakness) but also a proximity to the dance floor, where other guests were enjoying Swing Night. Every Tuesday night, there are lessons with a group called Zazou Swing from 7 to 8 p.m., and then there's dancing until 11. The place was hopping with young, sneakered dancers jiving to jazz.

A family with two young children came in and sat just behind us, and those kids enjoyed the place as much as we did, peering at both baseball and dancers.

Our server, Tessel, was moving as fast as the dancers, but her pleasant demeanor made us feel looked after. Though the wine list isn't huge, the bottles of wine were so reasonably priced, most in the $20s, that we decided to order a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. But when they didn't have it, we took it as a sign we were meant to have the martinis that made Olives famous.

There are more than 65 different cocktails under the heading. Only one is the classic with gin and vermouth. The others have a wild assortment of liquor combinations.

My husband enjoyed the colorful Rita-tini ($7), a tequila-based drink blended with Blue Curacao and lime juice, so much that he had two. Being a pretty shade of blue, being served in an iced glass and tasting good made it easy to sip.

For dessert, I enjoyed a Chocolate-tini ($8), perfectly concocted with Stoli Vodka, Bailey's Irish Creme and Creme de Cacao, and chilled to perfection.

Tennessee chop

But what we enjoyed more were several dishes starting with the Tennessee Pork Chop ($18). The 10-ounce chop was frenched to offer the most meat by cutting it away from the bone. It was teamed with braised cabbage, seasoned with pancetta, and roasted red bliss potatoes.

The meat was marinated and moist, but the flavor that burst forth was from an apple-scented Jack Daniels reduction sauce. Troxell, who previously worked at Parkside Rotisserie, is a fan of the whiskey and has integrated it beautifully into his menu.

Troxell also thoughtfully developed our other entree, a vegetable cavatappi ($13). This vegetarian dish, no secret beef or chicken stock added, is a complete meal with pasta; vegetables, including a saute of eggplant, mushrooms, artichoke hearts and spinach; and delectable white beans for protein. This blend of wonderful ingredients is tossed lightly in a pink pomodoro sauce and finished with aged ricotta salata for a contrasting sharp flavor.

An appetizer of mussels and chourico ($12) also burst with fresh flavors, with Prince Edward Island mussels steamed in a seafood broth of mostly clam juice and some tequila. Troxell likes adding shots from his bar into the food with satisfying results. The chourico added loads of spicy flavor, and a wedge of lime provided just the right touch of tartness.

Crab cakes, shrimp martinis, duck and California rolls, calamari rings, Szechuan wings and a cheese board from Farmstead are all among the other tempting appetizers on Tallulah's menu. But I opted instead for a garden salad ($4), chock full of carrots, cucumbers and tomatoes, and served with an orange balsamic vinaigrette.

The busy night left only a death-by-chocolate-cake option for dessert, which seemed too heavy. Next time I'd go for the creme brulee, currently offered in flavors of chocolate and strawberry, or the tirimisu served in the martini glass.

But we hardly felt sad about missing dessert. We left Tallulah's with smiles on our faces thanks to all the fun and the food. We didn't need any kitsch at all.

Tallulah's Kitschen at Olives, 108 North Main St., Providence, (401) 751-1200, www.olivesri.com. Reservations accepted. Street parking and pay lots. Wheelchair accessible. Highchairs. Open Tue-Sun for dinner at 5 p.m. Dinner served until 10, bar open until 1, except Friday and Saturday when open until 2. V, MC, AE, DIS. Appetizers cost $5-$17; entrees range from $13 to $23; desserts $5.95. Wines by the glass, $5.50 to $8; by the bottle $21 to $38. $$.

Dinner for two at Tallulah's might look something like this:

Camelot Sauvignon Blanc ........$5.50

Rita Tini.......................$7

Mussels and chourico............$12

Garden salad....................$4

Tennessee pork chop.............$18

Vegetable cavatappi.............$13

Chocolate-tini..................$8

Creme brulee....................$5.95

Total food and drink............$73.45

Tax.............................$5.87

Tip.............................$15

Total bill......................$94.32

THE MENU

This restaurant's menu:

projo.com/food/menus/