Olive Bar & Kitchen turns 15, owner AD Singh relives some memorable moments

Over the years, Mumbai has seen a few watering holes that captured the city's zeitgeist. Fifteen years ago, Olive Bar & Kitchen was one of those places. From celebrities to CEOs, everyone who was anyone would head down to the Bandra restaurant to unwind to jazz music, enjoy brunch or simply hang out. Olive has been witness to some stories, from the famous Shah Rukh Khan/ Salman Khan spat in 2008 to an impromptu Milind Deora jam session. AD Singh, owner of the establishment, gives ETPanache a highlight reel.

After-work business

Ashish Raheja likes to visit Olive on Wednesday nights, during our 'All that Jazz' weekly live jazz nights. Nikesh Arora also frequents the restaurant. Milind Deora has eaten many times at Olive. Once he played the guitar during a jazz night.

The hunk who got dunked

"One of Bollywood's biggest stars was drinking at a bar night at Olive when he noticed a scruffy kid hanging around him, trying to be friendly. This star is known for his bad temper. Eventually, he grabbed the kid and was about to dunk him into the pond. But the bad boy's brother came running and prevented it from happening. The youngster was Ranbir Kapoor. The next day, the star in question met Ranbir's dad to apologise," says Singh.

Friendly rivalry

"There was a time when the media was talking up a rivalry between Shah Rukh Khan and Hrithik Roshan. I remember one Thursday night, Hrithik was seated at a table and SRK walked in. The whole place became electric. All eyes were on them. But they met half way and shared a warm hug."

Rained in

"In 2004, at Olive in Delhi, we experienced some unseasonal showers. It was chaotic. We were trying to shift people out of the rain, reassign tables — it was a mess. Through this all, we noticed one lady at the desk. It was Sonia Gandhi waiting quietly in the rain for her salted fish. She was gracious."

Missed opportunity

"One of the big regrets of my career was when Sachin Tendulkar's manager approached me to open a chain of restaurants with him. Unfortunately, the board didn't clear it at that time."