White Hunter & Han Gang

2 weekends ago FW and I had our Sunday lunch at Emporium Pluit Mall and I was responsible for choosing this restaurant (not going to be a good review). White Hunter, Han Gang and Incognito is situated very close to the main lobby, just right next to Fish & Co and Starbucks Coffee. In here, you are presented with 3 menus from all 3 restaurants and you can cross choose, mix and match your preferences. White Hunter serves Western food, Han Gang represents the Korean dishes and Incognito holds the Italian flag.

HAN GANG

I remembered my previous trips to Han Gang at their branch in Grand Indonesia wasn't bad but this time in Emporium Pluit was not the same. I'm not sure whether it's under the same or a different management (I think it's different) but food was disappointing in many ways.

Menu : Side Dish

Price : Free

Score : 2.0 / 10

>> The minute the side dishes is placed on your table you'll probably start to pick up your chopsticks and hit the nearest kimchi. This Han Gang only serves me 4 selection (other Korean restaurants usually they offer you more than 10) and the taste is wrong. The Kimchi and egg roll were bland, the green vege is soggy and as for the shellfish, I didn't bother to try --___-- "

Menu : Sundubu Kimchi

Price : RP 48,000 ++
Score : 4.0 / 10

>> Temperature of the soup was right, size for price that I can accept, amount of fillings inside were reasonable, but they failed at seasoning. This lacks the sour of the kimchi, the kick from the chili and even failed at the basic skill of salt seasoning. A big wake up call for the owners! Customers are running away by the minute.

Menu : Dolsot Djingeo
Price : RP 48,000 ++
Score : 3.0 / 10

>> This is basically a seafood bibimbap. They uses freshly cooked steam rice which was already a wrong move, As a result, soggy!!! It's like eating baby food and to make things worst, the super hot stone continues cooking the rice. Seasoning needs help too :'(

WHITE HUNTER

Both FW and I wasn't interested in having any more food but due to the "bargain"; a 20% off with BNI Credit Card, a minimum charge of RP 200,000 on food only, before tax that we need to add more dishes. The two main course above only accumulate 50% of the bill and thus here are the additional dishes we added to our bad lunch.

Menu : Wild Maki Salmon

Price : RP 58,000 ++

Score : 3.0 / 10

>> O MY LORD ! The price is more expensive than the sundubu kimchi soup and yet it's worse. The salmon fillings were extremely dried out, it's like it had been sitting in the freezer for 3 months and defrosted again and again until it reaches my table. A bad dish, please do not order!

Menu : Spring Enoki

Price : RP 29,000 ++
Score : 3.5 / 10

>> The only one thing that I can positively say about this dish is the fact it's big for an appetizer. 70% of it is because of the tempura / flour batter. The taste is lousy and just not ever going to order this again.

Menu : Chocolate Melt

Price : RP 35,000 ++
Score : 5.5 / 10

>> I put this picture slightly bigger than the rest of the picture is for a reason! This scores a 5.5 pointer, the only dish that passes my tongue. I'm not going to say this is good but definitely acceptable compared to the rest of the dishes we ordered. The chocolate did melt and oozes out of the sponge cake. Pricing and size was reasonable and most importantly it taste right, not superbly good but wasn't yucky at all !!

White Hunter, Han Gang, Incognito

Emporium Pluit Mall, Ground Floor

Ikkudo Ichi

Finally! I had my share of the new ramen in PIK; Ikkudo Ichi. Some of you guys might already have tried this before I did. I hear quite a good buzz about this new eatery and before I start to blab, I'd just like to mention one point that I like about Ikkudo that we are allowed to cuztomized our ramen to our tongue and liking. Three choice for each categories; noodle firmness, flavour strength, richness (the amount of oil filtered from the soup). My favourite combination is three B's (normal for all three categories). I think it has the best balance for all taste.

Buta Signature (RP 39,800++) Score : 8.5 / 10

Ikkudo's Buta Kara (RP 39,800++) Score 8.5 / 10

Seasoned with cut chili, chili paste & garlic (Score : 9.0 / 10)

Buta Signature Soup - Before Seasoned

If you noticed the two picture at the top, there is a price difference of Rp 4,800 and that lies in the what they claim to be their ' special red sauce '. After tasting both bowl, I have to be honest that I cannot differentiate anything and that both taste equally GOOD ! Note : Order Buta Signature (it's cheaper hahaha).

I have agree with the crowd, that they serve good ramen. Better than Sengoku, even better than Santouka, rather similar to Ikkousha's but I have to revisit Ikkousha to confirm who won the battle at the end of the day. I  like their full set of condiments on the table. The unlimited cloves of garlic, fresh cut red chilis, and also grounded chili paste that when I mixed and poured in abundant into my bowl of ramen (bottom right), I knew I will be coming back to revisit this place!!

The only factor that Ikkudo need to work on is their 'slice pork' or better known as 'Chasu'. Their cut is overly thin and has no bite into it. I had a difficult time finding the meager slice of pork somewhere in my soup. Give the customers a decent cut of good pork and that will certainly win the heart of pork lovers. In addition to the ramen, I noticed their specially designed plastic spoon, love it! It has a certain angle cut at the neck of the spoon thus helping it to be attached to the rim of the bowl.

Menu : Mini Chasu Don

Price : RP 10,800 ++
Score : 7.0 / 10

>> You cannot order this on its own. You can if you have already ordered a bowl of ramen and add this as an additional combo. Good pricing for the rather medium sized bowl. If you're not feeling too hungry, have this instead. Well seasoned minced pork chasu on top of steam white rice. Have it with spring onions, cut chilis and chili paste together and your mood will definitely be lightened up :)

 

Menu : Pork Chasu Curry

Price : RP 49,500 ++
Score : 6.0 / 10

>> I don't like their Chasu, tasteless, soggy and too thinly cut. They serve 5 slices on top the steam rice but quantity cannot compensate for quality. Their curry sauce was rather fine but brings back the memory that I had with regards to that famous instant curry paste that can be bought from up scale supermarket. The taste was exactly like this! So bottom line, this didn't taste bad in any way but just simply too ordinary. I like the mini chasu don (top) better than this and it cost only one third of the price. So...go figure!

Menu : Yaki Buta Gyoza Ebi Iri

Price : RP 35,000 ++ (Same for grill and fried)

Score : 9.0 / 10

>> My favourite Gyoza in town and I mean it. I prayed that Ikkudo will never change the kitchen staff that are behind this dish. I love every bit of this and here are why :

1. The skin is thin, not chewy at all. 

2. Filling is generous

3. Love the crunchy bit inside (not sure what, but I don't care)

4. Pork is good, pork and prawn combination is even better

5. Love the spicy condiments that goes well together with all noodle, rice and gyoza!!

6. A big possibility that their gyoza are better than their ramen...hmmmm

Overall, a must try for those ramen lovers! Stay the same and just fix those chasu meat (a constructive advice to the owners) Cheers!

Ramen Ikkudo Ichi
Rukan Crown Golf Blok D No 2 - 3 Pantai Indah Kapuk
Phone : 021 - 966 28677

Chandara

I decided on a Thai night of feasting and chose the Chandara in Plaza Senayan initially. Due to booking numbers and space issue, I cancelled on that branch and switched to their second branch that just opened in Plaza Indonesia. I had so much food ordered that I couldn't keep track of everything. Unfortunately I had several dishes slipped away, not having them taken picture or tasted. So a revisit is confirmed.

I would say for a busy weekend dinner time, their service were surprisingly quick. I didn't expect food to flow out of the kitchen that fast and that everything tasted pretty awesome. I wouldn't the best of everything but on a scale of one to ten base on overall experience. A good solid 7.5. Rather pricey but a splurge every now and then is definitely a must. It makes the economy goes around.

Menu : Pomelo Salad

Price : RP 55,000 ++
Score : 6.5 / 10

>> I usually have the normal Thai Mango Salad or Papaya Salad, but Chandara serves additional different selection. 'Jeruk Bali' or known as 'Pomelo' became the base of this dish. Just imagine shredded pomelo bits mixed together with lime, chili, small dried shrimp. I think what was missing was the balance of sweetness. This dish has potential if only the pomelo fruit was ripe and sweet enough.

Menu : Gai Takrai

Price : RP 40,000 ++
Score : 5.5 /10

>> This is basically a fried chicken. Good flavorings, but the issue here is the chicken was too dry. A good fried chicken should still able to maintain the moisture and juiciness of the meat. This is a small portion and thus omit on this one if you're super hungry.

Menu : Olive Fried Rice

Price : RP 60,000 ++
Score : 7.0 / 10

>> Even though I can't taste any olive inside, I love this dish. Good portion, great seasoning, generous fillings, has a combination of texture; crunch from the nuts, well cooked rice. I like the kick of cut red and green chili, red onions and the sourness of the lime when you catch them by surprise while chewing. 

Menu : Thai Beef Basil
Price : RP 65,000 ++
Score : 7.0 / 10

>> You all might think I'm bullshi*ing but I made quite a few times of this dish back during my Melbourne Uni days and I would say mine was better than this. Not that this tasted wrong in anyway, I gave this a 7 pointer but just that mine was simply better, hahahahahaha !!!!!

Menu : Chicken Green Curry
Price : RP 65,000 ++
Score : To Be Advised

>> I am truly sorry. I took a picture of this but then realised I didn't get a bite. None of my friend said this was bad and thus I assume, an average green curry dish. Next time, I'll pay more attention and write a revisit post.

Menu : Phad Thay
Price : RP 60,000 ++
Score : 7.0 / 10

>> One of my favorite dish of the night. When this plate came, I pour the entirely small bowl of sweet and sour dipping and properly mixed it with the beansprout, chili and peanuts and gave a good squeeze of lime given at the side. I end up with a yummehhh phad thay! Good portion too ^_^ PS : Chandara serves a choice of Vermicelli Phad Thay or Rice Noodle Phad Thay.

Menu : Mad Ke Yao Pad La

Price : RP 45,000 ++
Score : 2.0 / 10

>> Okay, to begin with I don't like egg plant at all and this was specially ordered by FW. Well, I did put it into my mouth and gave a quick chew and swallow it with a gulp of tea. Bottom line, an egg plant will always taste and look like an egg plant regardless how the chef would cook it in any way. After this dish, I'm still not a fan in anyway and might not ever will. I don't like mushy texture, just yucky in all way when chewing inside my mouth.

Menu : Neua Yang

Price : RP 86,000 ++
Score : 8.0 / 10

>> My favorite beef dish in almost all Thai restaurant. A good cut of tenderized beef, perfectly grilled to well done (not chewy at all), comes with a sour and slightly smokey dipping condiment. This is not spicy at all and thus those afraid of chili will love this as they can't eat much variety in a Thai restaurant. Almost all the dish under a Thai menu involves chili in one way or another.

Menu : Poh Piah Tod

Price : RP 30,000 ++
Score : 6.5 / 10

>> Minced chicken mixed with vegetables wrapped inside a spring roll paper skin, then deep fried to absolute crisp. Like the crispiness but rather lacking in flavor on its own. The sweet and sour Thai Sweet Chili Sauce was a savior to this,  a good combination. Take out the dipping and the score would dropped to a 5.0 / 10.

18 pax and the bill comes down to RP 2,850,000. Around RP 160,000 for one person and remembering the amount of food and the free flow of drinks, I personally think the price tag rather make sense :)

Chandara
Plaza Indonesia 1st Floor # E.18
Phone : 021 - 299 23775

First Love Patisserie - Blueberry Flavor

I had a dinner with my friends, celebrating my 27th birthday!! Or I should say nine days post my birthday date dinner. They brought me cake and guess what!! First Love Patisseries' Thousand Layer Cake in blueberry flavor! I never had their blueberry one, well I never had any other bakeries' blueberry ones. I did tried the original and oreo but blueberry was certainly new.

Somehow I can still fit in 2 big slices of it into my super tight tummy at the end of a huge dinner. Very very satisfying but yet guilty feeling crept in and fear strikes when I thought about my weighing scale at home, hahahaha...oh well...diet can always start tomorrow :p

Bottom line with regards to the blueberry flavor; I like it ! Original flavor is less sweet than this one but a good change to what may be perceived as 'boring' flavor. Regardless of any flavor, I should say that till date "First Love Patisserie" serves the best thousand layer cake!  

PS : I'm not paid to advertise nor free cakes were sponsored to me, but certainly welcome :)

First Love Patisserie

Plaza Indonesia Level 3 #E 01 - i

Phone : 021 - 3623 2828 (call / sms)

Mobile : 0818 08843 888

Blackberry Pin : 22687290

Nannini

                      









I had a lot of good Aglio Olios at Nannini in Plaza Indonesia but a virgin with their branch in Plaza Senayan. With that saying, their first branch was actually Plaza Senayan and the second was Plaza Indonesia. After a good twenty minutes debating on what to have, what not to have for dinner, where and where not to eat, FW and I landed ourselves here. I must say for a Thursday dinner crowd, their tables were around 90% seated but then again it's the Muslims' fasting season and when comes dinner time people swarm cafes and restaurants. The taste becomes secondary and instead to have their empty tummy filled is a primary thing! So beware of this season, crowded restaurants during peak hour may not equate to good tasting dish!

Menu : Caesar Salad with additional Salmon

Price : Rp 50,000 ++ (Additional salmon Rp 20,000++)

Score : 6.0 / 10

>> Okay, I have to admit that I screamed 'overpriceeee' for the small bowl of Caesar salad. I mean if you want to price your salad the same with your main course then please serve a main course size instead of an appetizer portion. Their portion is a fail for me but the taste is somehow satisfying. If only their portioning is correct...if only...

Menu : Roasted Chicken

Price : Rp 75,000 ++
Score : 7.5 / 10

>> This time the portion is amazingly correct, I was disappointed with the salad's but I forgave them on this. Good size portion with steam vegetables and mashed potatoes on the side. I like the ginger garlic rub and herbs infused into the chicken. I must say it's a little bit dry on the 'breast' side but still chewable. The BBQ sauce served together was a good combination too. Tangy, sweet and sour BBQ sauce is exactly what a roasted chicken need. FW made a good choice of menu on this.

Menu : Fettucine Carbonara

Price : Rp 63,000 ++
Score : 6.0 / 10

>> From the first bite, I knew I should've stick with their Aglio Olio instead. First, let's talk about the portion; good size just enough for me. Second, seasoning; too bland for me, I added some extra salt, pepper and a ton lot of chili flakes on my plate. Third, the fillings; pretty generous and thus always a good thing. Fourth, pasta and sauce; a little bit too dry, a drizzle of olive oil at the end might be a good thing to do here. Fifth, presentation; I'm not a big fan of it. Overall, wasn't too bad, but definitely having Aglio Olio next time !

There is a promotion for BNI credit card holders, a good cut of 25% from the food only. The total bill came down to Rp 240,818 for two person, around Rp 120,000 per person.

Nannini

Plaza Senayan, 3rd Level No 317 A

Phone : 021 - 572 5411

Bangi Kopitiam

The rate of new cafes and restaurants opening up in Pantai Indah Kapuk is almost too damn fast to be true. Bangi Kopitiam is a newbie in PIK area and situated near the entrance of Tol PIK, exactly across Hops n' Malt. I had a quick bite with a girlfriend, catching up and stuffs like that on a wednesday afternoon. The traffic wasn't that bad, there were quite a few tables on a down time but remains the same until peak dinner time. Maybe words of mouth hasn't spread too wide about this particular 'kopitiam'.

However overall, I quite like the food they served, I pretty enjoyed my bowl of tom yum and tasted my friend's bowl of curry laksa. But the service and the way the waitresses were trained was rather irritating. They were blur as hell, clueless, slow and ignorance when comes to serving and taking orders. Maybe the fact that the place had just opened and thus the flow wasn't yet smooth sailing as they should be.

Menu : Tom Yam Mee Hoon Soup

Price : RP 37,000 ++

Score : 7.0 / 10

>> They served me raw vegetables, not even blanched in any way. That point was rather a turn off, it shows ignorance in the kitchen. However that was compensated by the tom yam soup itself. They fillings and the add-ons were all very ordinary but the soup really brought the dish alive. A good balance of sour, sweet and spicy. Ask for their 'sambal' too, they serve 2 kinds (besides cabe rawit); sambal bilis & sambal udang. I prefer sambal bilis to be added into this dish. You can have a choice of 'bihun' or 'bakmie' to go with this menu.

Menu : Ipoh Noodle Curry Laksa Soup

Price : RP 32,000 ++
Score : 7.25 / 10

>> I'm not trying to be stingy by giving quarter of ratings but that is what I felt. Just a quarter fraction better than the above tom yum soup. The fillings were again ordinary, just what any other curry laksa would have and once again their soup saved the day! Good kick of heat! Add bird's eye chili and sambal bilis into this and your tongue will go 'gaga' over the hot sun :) Spicy hot I mean and thus beware :p Bottom line, I wasn't disappointed by neither of the dish and will come back in the near future.

Bangi Kopitiam

Ruko Crown, Pantai Indah Kapuk (Close to TOL PIK entrance / Across Hops n' Malt)

Restaurant Mandala - Revisited

Do cross read my post on 15th July 2012 for my first experience with Restaurant Mandala. Thus, making this post my second trip and on this trip FW and I ordered a different course of menu. The two of us had 3 dish as follows :

Menu : Sup Kepiting Asparagus

Price : RP 75,000 ++

Score : 8.0 / 10

>> On this trip, FW and I realized that there's a 'half portion' bowl available. The previous trip we came (go to post 15 July 2012) we had the full portion of Sup Mun Tahu and we were over bloated by the end of the meal. This 1/2 portion order was definitely a smart move made. I'm not sure which one is better, Sup Mun Tahu or this, both are good but this one is definitely more pricey; twice the price. But I guess it's value for money, because I can notice the chunks of crab meat and asparagus floating and swimming all around.

Coming back to the taste, good seasoning, viscosity is just right, quite generous on the fillings inside.  Overall, it is a good big bowl of soup. Half portion is enough for 2 to 3 people to share.

Menu : Bistik Sapi

Price : RP 77,000 ++
Score : 7.5 / 10

>> The same menu we ordered with 'Bistik Ayam' on post dated 15th July 2012. But instead of chicken, we had beef this time. I would say this taste better. The meat is tender and neither chewy or overcooked. It also comes on a sizzling hot plate, served with potato wedges at the side.

After all the sizzling effect is gone, there will be a layer of sticky sauce lying at the bottom of the hot plate, that is all the goodness!! Combine it with the potato wedges or simply scoop it and have it with steam rice !

Menu : Nasi Goreng Seafood
Price : Rp 46,000 ++
Score : 6.5 / 10

>> The portion was actually slightly smaller that I had anticipated. I expect it to be a 'porsi kuli' dish but instead a decent portion. For a quite pricey fried rice, I expect a lot of meat fillings and they lived up to it. Chunks of crab prawns, fish bits, squids are thrown into quite generously.

As for the taste, it was good but rather ordinary, my taste buds surely did not scream "TO DIE FOR". I might order the 'Nasi Goreng Ikan Asin' the next time I'm here but as for the time being, I have no complains whatsoever. A happy customer :)

Restaurant Mandala

Jl. Woltermonginsidi No 80 Blok Q Jakarta Selatan

Phone : 021 - 9389 9597

Seribu Rasa

 

I gathered some of my friends on Saturday and had a birthday dinner at 'Seribu Rasa', which means literally "Thousand Flavor". It is an establishment in Menteng area (right behind Deutsch Bank) that serves posh Indonesian food. The ambiance of the place was alright, just ordinarily pleasant; dim lighting, parquet flooring, high ceiling, spacious dining area, separate smoking and non-smoking area available. The only 2 big thing that turned me off were; a lot of mosquitoes and only one female toilet !!!!!! It took a long time just to take a piss ---__--- geezz !

Anyways, back to the focus attention; FOOD. It wasn't my first time there, but on this occasion I made sure I ordered the dishes that I haven't tried before (except for the dendeng balado). I liked the dishes on a general scale, it came out on a pretty decent lead time, the service was pleasant and quick too. Bottom line, I'm not too fussy about anything (which is a positive note).

Menu : Kerabu Mangga Melayu
Price : RP 35,000 ++
Score : 6.5 / 10

>> This mango salad dish is slightly different from the normal ones. This has an extra kick of spiciness which I very very much welcome. Sweetness from the sugar, sourness from the green mango and the spicy punch from the chili..hmmm...yummmm !!! Reminds me of Thai food actually.

Menu : Chicken Satay

Price : Rp 35,000 ++
Score : 6.5 / 10

>> Like the chicken, like the complete condiments, like the temperature when the food came out. Like it, all except the portion :( Tooooo little, toooo small, simply not enough :'( A mere five sticks for a portion and the meat are just too skinny and small !

Menu : Dendeng Balado

Price : Rp 85,000 ++
Score : 7.5 / 10

>> This is a spicy beef dish, sliced into medallions. Well it's not spicy for me at all but hey...my threshold for chili is above ordinary and so this was child's play for me hahaha :p There's two types of chili, green and red chili paste. I like the green one better due to the fact it has this slight more fragrance to it. The meat was tender and not chewy with a little bit of veins to it. For those who can't handle chili, just simply scrape it off to the side and pass it to you 'hot' friend.

Menu : Pineapple Fried Rice

Price : Rp 56,000 ++
Score : 5.5 / 10

>> The presentation was good, it has this half sliced mini pineapple on the plate, but the taste was ordinary. Nothing too special about it, taste the way it was supposed to taste. One of the turn off point was the squid were very much overcooked, chewy like hell !

Menu : Nanking Beef

Price : Rp 85.000 ++

Score : 7.0 / 10

>> Portion is an issue here again -__- gosh, why are restaurants trying to earn sooo much profit?? I like the flavor though, slightly too sweet but when eaten with steam rice it is compatible ! The beef was cooked well, tender and juicy.

Menu : Fried Chicken with Mango Sauce

Price : RP 63,000 ++
Score : 7.0 / 10

>> Wasn't a disappointment. Even though the chicken was fried, it maintained it's juiciness, tenderness and flavorings was on the spot! I can taste the sweet and sour taste of what the name of the dish had promised to me.

Menu : Ko Samui Red Beef Curry

Price : RP 85,000 ++
Score : 7.5 / 10

>> My favorite dish of the night. It has this coconut pungent curry base paste and yet didn't overpower the meat. The beef was cooked well, the temperature was right. It wasn't chewy or tough in anyway. The bread containing all the goodness was heavenly too. It was slightly thick but has this crispy crunch to it. Hmmm...good stuff :) Don't miss out on this when you're ordering your dish here.

Menu : Kangkung Balachan

Price : RP 45,000 ++

Score : 6.0 / 10

>> This was alright, no mistakes whatsoever. Didn't leave me a memorable taste though. This just came out and taste like what other proper Indonesian restaurants can provide, except with a higher price tag!

Menu : Ketan Durian Malaka

Price : RP 33,000 ++
Score : 7.5 / 10

>> I looooove this one! The 'ketan' is sticky enough but not too sticky or tough that you cannot chew. The durian is definitely noticeable, it tastes super ripe and sweet. And lastly the brown sugar sauce was on the spot !! Love the balance of the texture and the sweetness. Yummmyy !!!

Seribu Rasa

Jl. H. Agus Salim 128 Menteng Jakarta

Phone : 021 - 392 8892