Olivia @ Tanjong Pagar

In an era where the world of haute-cuisine has become extremely sophisticated, there has been a revival of traditional and humble dishes.

Named after the chef’s daughter, Olivia Restaurant & Lounge is a dynamic restaurant and cocktail bar for every occasion. It is a modern twist on home-style cooking, striking a balance between molecular gastronomy and play on textures, while still remaining approachable and unpretentious..

Multi-award-winning chef and co-founder, Alain Devahive has over a decade of experience in Michelin starred restaurants, including 10 year in the unrivalled elBulli Restaurant, and held coveted roles as Executive Chef for Catalunya Hong Kong and Singapore.

Olivia Restaurant & Lounge is designed by the renowned Barcelona based Lázaro Rosa-Violán, with music curated by in house DJ Null, to take diners seamlessly from day to night.

Spherical Olives

Spherical olives tribute to elBulli Restaurant

The amuse bouche was the olive sphere first popularised by Ferran Adria, now pretty much a main stay in places where chefs combine the culinary skills with some science thrown in.

‘Jamón Ibérico De Bellota’

Spanish ‘Ibérico’ ham cured 48 months

This ham is from free-range Iberico pigs that roam oak forests (called dehesas) along the border between Spain and Portugal and eat only acorns (bellota) during this last period before they are slaughtered and made into ham. These legs of ham are hand carved and has a smooth texture, rich, savory taste, and regular marbling. Eat them on their own, or put them on the next course.

Bread With Tomato

Toasted sourdough bread with tomato and EVOO

I fell in love with this when I ate it for the first time in Barcelona. It’s made with just five easy ingredients — toasted bread, raw garlic, fresh tomatoes, olive oil and sea salt — and it always just tastes so light and fresh and flavourful. ‘Pa amb tomaquet’ roots lie in Catalonia. It is said that the first written reference is from 1884. The recipe would have been created in the Catalan farmhouses during an abundant tomato harvest.

Mushroom & Truffle Croquettes

Ceps mushrooms and black truffle melty croquettes

A typically Spanish snack,  these crisp, golden brown bites have a creamy mushroom filling topped with truffle mayonnaise.

‘Padrón’ Peppers

Fried ‘Padrón’ peppers with flower salt

I love these Padrón peppers. As the Galician saying goes: ”pimientos del Padrón, unos pican e outros non” (Padrón peppers, some are hot some are not). The gambling part is that it’s pretty much impossible to know until you actually put one in your mouth. Statistically, 1 in 10 will be hot.

Burrata & Heirloom Tomatoes Salad

Burrata cheese salad, heirloom tomatoes and balsamic

A classic Italian salad made with simple ingredients but packed some great flavours and textures. The heirloom tomatoes were fruity and delicious with the creamy, soft burrata cheese. The julienned basil leaves added some fragrance to the mix.

‘Gambas Al Ajillo’

Spanish blue shrimps with chilli and garlic sauce

Gamba rosada when cooked are a deep red. Fresh gambas rosadas from the southern Mediterranean coast are some of the best shrimp in Spain and they were in season from October through December when we ordered this. The shrimps were super sweet and the prawn heads were something to forget about the cholesterol problem for the time being.

Ibérico Suckling Pig

Spanish suckling pig ‘Segovia’ style with roasted pineapple

Cochinillo asado or roast suckling pig is a traditional dish of Castille, Spain, especially famous when made in the city of Segovia. The pig should not be heavier than five kilograms nor older than three weeks, and they are traditionally roasted in large, open-faced brick ovens.

Local chefs in Segovia take pride in the tenderness of their roast pigs and prove how delicate and off the bone the meat is by cutting the pig with a plate instead of a knife. And this picture showed the aftermath when the waiter chopped our piglet into pieces with a porcelain plate and proceeded to smash it on the floor. Theatrical.

Served with a side of roasted pineapples to cut the greasiness, if any, from the suckling pig. The pineapples were flavoured with cinnamon and glazed with honey.

Iberico is the wagyu of pork. These were milk fed Iberico piglets. The result was the most tender and delicious suckling pigs available. Skin was thin and crispy with little fats between meat and skin. And unlike Chinese roast suckling pigs, these were simply seasoned with salt and pepper.

Chef Alain opened a sister shop to Olivia down the block to offer cheesecakes and other sweets. So we had to order a few of their sweets, especially their signature gooey cheesecake.

Spanish ‘Torrija’ with Ice Cream

Homemade vanilla brioche, yoghurt crumble, kumquat confit, mandarin gel, milk paper and smoked ice cream

Torrija is a Spanish toast dessert similar to French toast. It came with a vanilla ice cream and a pretty sugar-based decoration on top. In the Middle Ages, it became common to eat torrijas during Lent and especially the Holy Week, or ‘Semana Santa’ just before Easter. It’s believed it compensated the absence of meat from the diet during Lent.

Olivia’s Creamy Homemade Cheesecake

Cream and blue cheese with almond sable

This cheesecake is an exquisite blend of blue cheese and cream cheese, delivering a unique and delightful flavour unlike any other cheesecake. Its tantalizing taste journey begins with sweetness and culminates in a subtle hint of saltiness from the blue cheese, harmoniously balanced to avoid overpowering the senses. This remarkable cheesecake is a true culinary masterpiece.

Rum Citrus Baba

Homemade baba with aged rum, yuzu-orange marmalade and Chantilly

The name means ‘old woman’ or ‘grandmother’ in most Slavic languages; babka is a diminutive of baba. The modern baba au rhum (rum baba), with dried fruit and soaked in rum, was invented in the rue Montorgueil in Paris, France, in 1835 or before. Served on a bed of citrusy marmalade, and topped with a quenelle of light and fluffy Chantilly cream.

Turron Cheesecake

Crispy biscuit base, cheese nougat and raspberry jelly

Seasonal cake for the Christmas period, this Turron Cheesecake was complimentary from the Asst Manager Pankaj, who was promoting their sister cheesecake shop QUEIC just a couple of shops down the street. I loved the raspberry jelly on top. It was the perfect petite delight to relish after indulging in a myriad of desserts.

The dinner was pretty spectacular. It’s not so much about the techniques themselves – not like we haven’t seen emulsification or spherification before, or even the ingredients, which by now we were quite familiar with given the influx of Spanish restaurants, but Chef Alain truly understood what each of those components do and combine those techniques and ingredients into something that challenged your taste buds, which something we all enjoyed and appreciated. 

If the meal came after an evening of drinking and munching on snacks and tapas – as people in Spain would have – then the portion was fine, but for us expecting a complete dinner it came a bit too light. Impeccable service, and Pankaj tried to keep imbibing us with shots of alcohol.

And when you add up the different things we ordered, the meal came up to be quite substantial, the bill I mean. Come with a reservation.

Olivia Restaurant & Lounge
55 Keong Saik Road #01-03 Singapore 089158
Tel : +65 6221 0522

Visited Dec 2023

Michelin Singapore Guide Recommends 2022-23

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