Olivia Restaurant and Lounge Lunch

I first stumbled across Olivia Restaurant & Lounge when a friend and I took a slow stroll along Keong Saik Road. We wanted to see what new restaurants had popped up since our last visit to the area (which seemed like eons ago). I was also excited because the staff is made up of the former crew from now-defunct Catalunya, while the co-owner is ex-El Bulli chef, Alain Devahive.

I’m always looking for a few things - regulars . The camaraderie between the servers, maître d and clients is always a good sign. It also means these patrons have been regulars; ie consistency is there.

Olivia - named after the Chef’s daughter - also tugged at my heartstrings. The food was definitely above average. Keong Saik is not an easy place to survive in and this has been an icon for years (since 2018).

The lazy omelette was a silent hit for my daughter and I. It’s not easy to cook a good egg, and this has everything I like - runny, done perfectly with sun dried tomatoes, asparagus on top. Delectable. The lazy omelette is 7.25/10

The octopus was done well but the sauce was a tad heavy for me - tasted great though. The bechamel had depth and body and texture alright but I still prefer octopus (esp Galician) grilled on its own. There’s chunk of nicely roasted pork belly swimming (submerged) in the White Sea of sauce as well! I’d rate this 6.5/10

The gambas was pure class. Whole Carabineros prawns (red?) soaked in garlicky goodness. Lapped it all up with bread on the side. This was closest to FOC’s (28 Hong Kong St) from the early 2010s that I could recall. Easily 7.5/10 for this dish.

The eggplant was a superior dish too. Complex beyond its looks - the depth and richness of flavours also had me guessing there was some flambé or rum infused in it. Perfectly cooked this was. The skin was crisp and fragrant - with the creamy morsels enclosed. This was 7/10

My daughter prefers Olivia vs Tinto (sorry Chef Chavez!) - that’s how good this place is.