Each year when the earth spins on its axis to the date of 16th November, I get stressed because it's dear's birthday, which is also the birthday of two of my other close friends.
So on the days leading up to November 16th, I start wrecking my brains to think of the dinner venue, whether or not a cake is included, what kind of presents to buy, should I invite friends etc..
I tell you, the stress piles up when he doesn't have anything he wants or needs for a birthday present, and especially when his birthday is right smack in the period of my exam preparation! GOOD JOLLY!
Anyhow, I decided to throw him a 'surprise' birthday dinner celebration by gathering the help of our mutual biker friends. But I still had to scratch my head to think of the dinner venue, so after turning some stones on google, I decided on Aerin's. Unfortunately, as dear's birthday falls on Tuesday, which so happens to be the eve of a public holiday, reservations are not allowed at Aerin's.
Falling back to square one, I did my research and decided to have dinner at Casa Verde, which I really liked because it serves Italian food (something different from the Western food dear and I like), and it is nestled amongst the lush greenery of Botanical Gardens. So I sent a birthday invite to dear (as per the picture above) and heaved a sigh of relief that things are more or less settled and I could focus on my exam preparations.
But when the afternoon of 16th November finally arrived, what seemed like a sunny and pleasant day evolved into a day of rain and unfortunate events. SIGH!
Because it was raining heavily, and the rain was those that gave the gut feeling that it won't end anytime soon, my friend dropped me a SMS about the weather, which I inferred that I should probably start thinking of a contingency plan. BUT DEAR SAW THAT SMS, and that pretty much let the cat out of the bag even though he didn't say anything.
Anyhow, I continued my search for another dinner venue that is convenient for all of us and finally made reservations at Olio Cafe located at Marina Square.
Dôme Marina Square *New*
6 Raffles Boulevard
#02-100 Singapore 039594
Tel : 6336 5859 / Fax : 6336 5803
10 am to 10 pm (Mon - Thu)
9:30 am to 10:30 pm (Fri - Sun)
9:30 am to 10:30 pm (Eve of PH & PH)
Just before we left the office, dear finally asked me who else was going. That was when I know that HE KNOWS, which means that the surprise had failed.
Overwhelmed with stress, disappointment and feelings of failure, I became teary eyed. In the end, the birthday guy had to comfort me with hugs of appreciation and gratitude.
He was thankful for the efforts I've gone through to make this birthday celebration possible. But I was still feeling sad that everything didn't turn out as planned. Bummer!
So anyway, we headed to Olio Cafe at Marina Square where one of friend had already arrived. About half an hour later, our other 2 friends arrived.
For appetizers, we ordered Olio's Club Sandwich ($12.50) which is a communal dish for all to share.
Though I wasn't able to eat much of the fries because of my braces, I tried the Sandwich which I thought was delicious! Dear and my friends shared the sentiments as well. The tuna, together with the egg was a perfect duo which was complimented with the soft tomato, lettuce and the toasted yet soft bread.
As one of my friends is a pasta fan, he ordered Streaky Bacon Aglio ($13.90). I didn't get to try, but he mentioned that the bacon was tasty. Downside was that the portions was pretty small for his appetite. 
Another friend gave the Morocco Mixed Grill Lamb ($16.90) a try. She didn't particularly know how to consume the what seems like yellow rice, because it was too fine to chew and to big to swallow. I thought the yellow rice looked like chopped garlic anyway. Any how, I tried the lamb sausage and thought that it tasted pretty average. But that's just my taste-buds because I very rarely consume lamb so I have no idea how lamb should taste like anyway.
Our third friend ordered Black Pepper Steak ($15.80), which was similar to the Beef and Reef ($19.80) that dear ordered but without the prawns. Beef tasted normal, but dear added that the sauce was tasty. I didn't particular like how inflexible Olio Cafe was when my friend wanted to change the sides to something else. I mean, who charges $2 extra just to change the seasonal vegetables to fries or mash potatoes?
Last but not least, I ordered Persian Light Masala Chicken ($13.90) which I was a little apprehensive about because I can't really take spicy food. But when I had my first bite, I smiled because the curry wasn't too spicy. In fact it was just right for me. The chicken was really tender and juicy too, and I thoroughly enjoyed my dinner.
When we all finished our main courses, I think one of my friend secretly signaled the staff to present a slice of cheese cake (significant of a mini birthday cake) to dear. I was caught by surprise too! Ha ha! So we sang him a birthday song in a soft but audible manner, and he made a wish and cut the cake after which.
We told the staff that our desserts could be served at this point of time. Shortly later, my Olio Sizzling Brownie ($6.50) arrived. With vanilla geleto sandwiched between two warm brownies served on a hot platter with hot fudge and and nuts, I squealed with delight. But honestly, the taste plateaued very quickly after the first few bites. Somehow, I prefer Swensen's Walnut Rocky Road or Tea Cosy's Ebony & Ivory more.
Dear ordered Olio Brownie with Geleto ($5.80), which unfortunately, I didn't get to try. All in all, we agreed that the food in Olio Cafe was average, but dear didn't like their service because they were forgetful and slip shot. There were a few times where their staff served us our main dishes but mixing up the wrong dish name for the various dishes. Simple dining etiquette such as providing essential cutlery was not done properly as well. In the end the waiter had to come to our table a few times just to give us a fork, followed by serviettes.
To be honest, I'd rather head back to Republic of Steak or With A Pinch of Salt for the same amount that I am paying.
Regardless, we ended the night by chilling out at Andersen's where two of our friends ordered a fondue set. As dear and I were totally full, we didn't get to try the different flavors of ice-cream. However, I had a cup of hot English Breakfast Tea for a quick caffeine boost.
As we left for home, my heart still lingered with disappointment, but dear quickly assured me again, that he was very moved by my efforts to even plan for a birthday dinner celebration. Well, I do hope he enjoyed his time. Because, that's all that really matters right?
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