Olivera — Restaurant in Brisbane City

I’m quite surprised to read these early reviews as our experience was quite different. 4 stars only because I didn’t want give a lower review to a brand new local restaurant, but wanted to provide hopefully helpful feedback. I’m not a fan of the renovation in general - a bit generic and sterile looking, and this is my subjective opinion, but the bright lights and poor acoustics negatively affected our experience. The food itself was good, but the proportions were very small, in particular the large and small plates, given the price and also given our waitress suggested 2 large and 2 small plates for our party of 4. This was not nearly enough food and made for a bit of an awkward situation. Quite a long time for the food to come out so we didn’t order more. The Skordalia, that our waitress described as “garlic potatoes” (after asking the kitchen), was a toddler sized bowl of mashed potatoes, giving us a tablespoon each. The seasonal greens was 2 pieces of broccolini and beans, which also was a comical situation trying to share. We expected a few hiccups on opening night, but at the very least the teenaged staff could have been trained on their menu. A bit of guidance with ordering would have improved the experience immensely. Drink service was very slow especially given we were only ordering the same bottle of wine. We ended up cancelling the second bottle because we all had finished our meals and it still hadn’t arrived. The manager in stretch pants, the waitress in leopard print leggings and dirty shoes, and the dirty alleyway toilets with broken soap dispenser didn’t help the experience. The chairs were comfy, and the menus were elegant, so I can name a few good things. But, so far Olivera doesn’t hold a candle to the service, ambiance and overall experience of...

As a local I held off dining here due to the mixed reviews but thought I should give it a go. We came in with the family and the quality of the ingredients was the highlight. Great quality ingredients and decor was excellent. There was several food items that were the best we had ever eaten. The focaccia was mind blowing we ordered more, and the cacio Pepe and pork cutlet was sensational. The only food downside was the fritto misto where the batter was not a light flour typical of Italian fritto mistos, but a very thick batter similar to what you find in a local fish and chip shop. Half the dish was batter.

Negatives, phenomenal price tag for what you got. Some perch sitting in a bed of chickpeas and feta, while delicious, was exorbitant at $65 for ingredients not that expensive. $36 for a cacio pepe also insane due to its simplicity despite how wonderful it was. It’s charging prices like it actually has a great view of the harbour when it doesn’t. Places in inner city Brisbane are dishing up food similar to this for a cheaper price tag. Secondly, the wait time on the mains was far too long. We sat down at 6:20pm and we didn’t get our mains until 8pm. This was incredibly tough considering we had toddlers and frankly ruined our experience because by the time the mains got to us, we just had to eat them so quickly so we could get the kids home before they had a meltdown. This was a Thursday too with only two smaller tables who were there before us. Not particularly child friendly.

The waitresses were wonderful though and you could tell they felt bad and apologised multiple times to us for the wait time. They need to sort out the wait time and price points for us to return again. Has a lot of...

I just dined at Olivera with my parents for a simple lunch, and unfortunately, the experience was a mix of highs and lows. The customer service was shockingly poor, starting from the moment we arrived. We were met with reluctance and hesitation when we asked for a table for three, and it felt like they didn't want to accommodate us at all. Throughout the meal, our table was consistently ignored, and the staff seemed uninterested in engaging with us. We were never asked about the quality of the service or our satisfaction with the meal. It was disheartening to witness other tables receiving attentive and friendly service, while we were met with rude and dismissive behavior. To make matters worse, after requesting the bill, the staff said they would bring the machine, but after waiting over 10 minutes, I realized the payment had already been processed without informing me. On a positive note, the food was amazing and absolutely up to standard. The ingredients were fresh, and the pork from the large plate was a definite highlight – succulent, juicy, and maintaining the right temperature. The experience concluded with no farewell, just a continuation of the horrible customer service we had endured throughout the meal. While the food was excellent, the lack of basic courtesy made for an unpleasant atmosphere, and I sincerely hope the restaurant addresses these service issues to ensure a more welcoming and respectful dining experience for...