Here’s a short roundup of news tidbits from the neighborhood.

Polly-Glots (a Phinney Ridge-based business offering foreign language classes for children) is offering free summertime French and Spanish story times at Childish Things, 10002 Holman Road NW. Story times are from 10-10:30 a.m.: French – Tuesday, July 5 and Tuesday, Aug. 2; Spanish – Wednesday, July 13, and Wednesday, Aug. 10.

“Spoke & Food – an evening of dining & biking” is coming up again on Tuesday, June 28. Bike to a designated restaurant (including Stumbling Goat Bistro at 6722 Greenwood Ave. N.) from 5-10 p.m. and the restaurant will donate 20 percent of the proceeds to the children’s garden education program at Seattle Tilth.

The Olive and Grape at 8516 Greenwood Ave. N. is now offering some of its signature dishes for customers to take home and grill themselves.

Take home your favorites for dad or any outdoor event!

Choose from the favorites–Adana Kabab, Chicken or Beef Shish, Kofte meatballs, Lamb Cop Sis–and we’ll prep them especially for you. Then, fire up your grill and wow your guests.

Give us a call for more information: (206) 724-0272.

Fatty’s Corner Pizzeria, at the corner of Greenwood Avenue North and North 105th Street, has closed. According to Fatty’s website, the restaurant closed on May 14.

To Fatty’s customers and friends,

It is with regret that we must inform you of our closing. Our last day in operation was this past Saturday, May 14th. We appreciate your patronage and support over the past year and we thank you for making it a memorable experience for us. If you happen to find some real NY style pizza in the Seattle area, let us know and we’ll join you for a slice.

Much love,
The Fatty’s Crew

The Olive and Grape, which is taking over the spot at 8516 Greenwood Ave. N. from Olive You, plans to open just in time for next Friday’s Artwalk on Sept. 10. Owner Paola Corsini says she’ll open the doors at 4 p.m. and plans olive oil tastings for the evening.

I popped in today and they were still getting everything ready.

Corsini will have a soft opening next Wednesday or Thursday for invited guests to test out the kitchen and wait staff. She says everything will be made fresh in-house, even the bread. Her head chef, Garbis Husikyan ( nicknamed “Captain G”), is an Armenian from Turkey, so she says their Mediterranean food will be completely authentic.

“He knows a lot. He’s going to make different dishes every week and it’s going to be very fun,” Corsini said. ”He’s going to be a great asset; he’s going to bring a lot of color to this restaurant.”

The restaurant’s head waiter, Andrea Onetti, is from Rome and also a chef, and he’ll be bringing authentic Italian foods to the table, including fresh-made pasta.

The Olive and Grape’s phone number is 206-724-0272, but it won’t be hooked up until later today. You can sign up for The Olive and Grape’s newsletter online, and see lunch and dinner menus.

Local artist Chrystine Westphal was working on the wall murals inside today.

Westphal also created 12 paintings for Tarah Jade, which opened at 6801 Greenwood Ave. N. in June, and tomorrow she’ll be hanging 10 of her paintings at Scent of Youth day spa at 6826 Greenwood Ave. N.

Paola Corsini is buying the former Olive You and changing its name to The Olive and Grape. Olive You, 8516 Greenwood Ave. N., has been closed since it was heavily damaged by arson last Nov. 9.

Today, new owner Paola Corsini tells us she is buying the restaurant from her good friend, Timur Leno, who will help her with the menu. It will have an extensive menu of olive oils, and a wine bar.

She says Leno is like family, which is why he will help influence her menu. “We decided that everybody liked Olive You’s food, but we’re going to have our own concept,” she says. “It’s my plan, when you enter that place, you feel like you’re in Italy or France, with all of the garlic and olive oil and people smiling.”

Corsini is Italian but was raised in Turkey. She says she speaks five languages and is steeped in three cultures, which will heavily influence the new restaurant’s aesthetic and menu. She plans plenty of olive oil and wine tasting events, regular live music and guest artists.

“We’re going to try to bring the Mediterranean in there,” says, adding that butter will be very rare in the kitchen, only healthier olive oil. “I’m fighting with my cook, no butter in my kitchen! I almost fired him the other day,” she said jokingly.

The Olive and Grape hopes to open in about two or three weeks, however, it will open temporarily Friday night for the monthly Artwalk and Summer Streets program. The restaurant will feature photography by Eryyn Rose and drawings by Greenwood artist Janet Baker. They’ll also have live music and balloons for the kids, hors d’oeuvres, and olive oil tastings.