Naka Nakaya

Shame on me :( It's been quite a while since my last post. I was completely drowned in my work and personal life, too busy to write, too ignorant to make time. Apologies... But that doesn't mean I stopped eating. Well, I think I recently lost a little bit of weight due to those excuses I gave above but nevertheless my taste buds are still very much in tune.

Recently I went to Naka Nakaya and within the same week, I came back twice! Naka Nakaya is still under the same management with Sumiya and thus their standard is pretty much above there. The food served are more casual, with more variety of yakitori, a good selection of ramen & soba (which Sumiya doesn't offer) present in a more casual manner. The place is apparently popular among Japanese themselves and thus I assume the taste agrees with the origins.

I gotta love the front entrance. It has that hidden alley / entrance without a real door. Dark wooden fixings combined with dark cold panel slab gave a rather warm ambiance. It isn't as 'dark and dim' as Sumiya, but certainly a little more life and opened space.

Menu : Tan Tan Ramen
Price : Rp 55,000 ++
Score : 8.5 / 10

>> I love this upon the first sip. The broth has a strong resemblance to our local traditional food 'Soto Ayam' and thus it felt strangely familiar on the tongue. I was kind of confused, I don't know whether the cook over fusion the dish to adjust to the Indonesian people but however, the Japanese ordered this dish the most. This is one of the popular ramen dish in the restaurant. The noodles itself is on point, they didn't overcooked it nor raw tasting. Portion was good, the fillings inside were simple though; slices of chicken and beansprouts. But the star of the dish will have to be the broth! It's like a super good soto ayam that has additional magic ingredients inside. Definitely much stronger in the spice department. A superbly yummy bowl of goodness.

Menu : Chicken Negima
Price : Rp 26,000 ++
Score : 7.0 / 10

>> It's what I do all the time when I come for Japanese dining. I always order a few sticks of yakitori. It's pretty much like our local satay (but without the peanut sauce), you can have a choice of parts of the chicken; whether it's the meat, skin, gizzard, liver or even intestines -__-. Well, I don't eat organs so I always stick to the boring part; meat itself. 

I had 5 sticks of Chicken Negima for Rp 26,000 and I thought it was a super good deal because even 'Old Chang Kee' is selling at a higher price for one stick hahahaha. But price aside, I quite enjoyed it. It wasn't over the top good but chicken was cooked well, and the leek gave it a crunchy side to the bite. The teriyaki sauce smeared all over combined everything and sealed it together.

Menu : Gyoza
Price : Rp 38,000 ++
Score : 7.75 / 10

>> Dumplings! I lovee dumplings, who don't? It is easy to eat with no hassle; just pop them into your mouth. But what makes a good dumpling? Are you thinking the obvious answer...well what about besides the taste of the fillings inside? My thoughts would be 'the ratio of the skin to the filling'. I hateee those thick doughy tasteless plain skin with teeny meeny amount of fillings. And I don't like an 'ugly' dumpling, too much fillings that burst out of the skin. I had a lot of bad ones and of course a handful of good ones but Naka Nakaya would fall under the 'good ones' Hurrrayy !! The skin is neither too thick nor it's too thin, just the perfect thickness and the amount of fillings compliments it. A good sear on the bottom makes it a little bit crunchy but not dry and a vinegar sauce on the side makes it all better.

Menu : Chicken Namban

Price : Rp 53,000 ++
Score : 6.0 / 10

>> Sadly, I am not a fan of this dish. The portion is enough for 2 to 3 adults to share and I only took a small piece from the plate. The fried chicken itself is tasty, crisp and not overcooked. The mayonnaise with onion sauce is also tasty. But when they poured the entire sauce onto the fried chicken, I didn't quite agree with it. It turns the chicken a little bit soggy and there was too much mayonnaise all over. Basically, you can't control on how much mayo cream that you wanna have. If you guys are gonna order this dish, I recommend you all to get the kitchen to separate the chicken from the sauce. I bet it will be much better.

Menu : Fried Garlic Clove

Price : Rp 35,000 ++
Score : 7.0 / 10

>> Wondering what is this? The title of the menu explains it all. It is literally fried garlic clove. Even though I love garlic, I was a little hesitated to order this in the first place. The waitress assured me that it's pleasant without the over strong bitter taste. I did have it and I quite like it. It's healthy because it's garlic clove but at the same time it's fried. Hahahaha so it's a little bit of cheating. It wasn't bitter and wasn't pungent at all. And surprisingly, it didn't leave a nasty breath. A good simple, healthy and slightly oily appetizer (does it make sense?) hahahaha.

Menu : Black Sesame Mousse

Price : Complimentary

Score : 7.8 / 10

>> I like this thing!! Besides the obvious 'free of charge' reason, it's delish ! It is more lighter than your usual chocolate mousse. It is super airy and light. The black sesame as the main ingredient gave it a more authentic Japanese dessert kind of feeling. The airy mousse is not sweet but the little dollop of sweet cream on the top was perfect ! I liked this so much that I asked for a second serving. Beware : this free beauty comes in small portion.

Naka Nakaya

Senayan Trade Centre, Ground Floor.

Phone : +6221 - 57931751

Tapas Movida - Cilandak Town Square

I did a review on Tapas Movida way back in 3rd June 2013, which opened my taste buds to what local Spanish cuisine really taste like. Since then, I've drop by quite a few times to their headquarter in Cipete and a second branch had just opened in Cilandak Town Square. I guess hitting the malls can definitely reach out to the people better. Anyways, I was there with a bunch of other foodies and had so much fun. Food was without a doubt; terrific! And what made it even better was the vibe between us all !

The decor of the restaurant wasn't 100% done, they still have a bunch of other things to fix here and there. A couple more weeks and I'm sure it'll turn out great. Tapas wasn't going for any specific theme, they are presenting themselves as 'casual spanish good food', no specific Spanish decor or theme. A little bit difficult to guess what type of food served from the outside, however the bull logo design can be a easy giveaway. Even though they're just newly opened, but their kitchen was running full gear, they have everything listed on the menu and here I go with the food comments ... ^^

Menu : Pincho de Bonito
Price : Rp 15,000 ++ / each
Score : 8.5 / 10

>> Not a big fan of olives but this is definitely one of my favourites! Freshly made bread on the bottom, with a layer of candied tomatoes (which was yummm!) and a generous amount of tuna fish on top. There is this sweetness from the candied tomatoes that was just brilliant. It is still a savory dish even with the contribution of the tomatoes. It's one of those food that gives you an outburst of flavors in your mouth. I couldn't explain myself any better. One bite and you'll understand me.

Menu : Patatas Chorizo

Price : Rp 65,000 ++
Score : 7.5 / 10

>> I adore simple dish. This is going back to basic, potatoes with spanish sausage! Both ingredients shine and grilled (or fried) to perfection. I was expecting crazily salty taste from the bite, and well the kitchen definitely know how to hold themselves with sodium. Chorizo itself has a high salt level and with the herb seasoned potatoes it was comfort food for me. I loooove to just have this over and over and over for breakfast every single day for this week. Slightly on a pricey side for potatoes and sausage but hey, it's imported from Spain, got to give more sometimes. Adore !!!

Menu : Mejillones 

Price : Rp 45,000 ++
Score : 9.0 / 10

>> Oh my! Mussels in white wine cream sauce. I had like 20 of these I think? I made sure the bowl was place very closely to me. First dish that I would definitely order again during my next trip here would be this. The mussels were not the gigantic ones, but more of the normal sized. But that actually work better for me. The seafood were definitely scrubbed clean, there wasn't any sand of dirt complains and the white wine cream sauce was balanced so well. More over, Rp 45, 000 ???? So worth the price that I think it is actually under priced. I wouldn't mind paying at Rp 80,000.

Menu : Albondigas

Price : Rp 45,000 ++
Score : 8.5 / 10

>> Give me some boiled spaghetti drenched with Albondigas and a good movie on my favourite couch , I would die a happy woman (hyperbolic!) hahaha. Albondigas is basically just beef meatballs with spicy tomato sauce. It is different from your day to day boring tomato base pasta. It is not Italian, this is Spanish and aren't you curious what Spanish Tomato sauce taste like? You should and beware that you'll get hooked for life. Cause I am ... 

Menu : Mini Hamburgers

Price : Rp 15,000 / each

Score : 7. 0 / 10

>> Beautiful cute edible little babies. These are so easy to eat, and perfect for appetizers. Meat patties were made of good quality beef and just the freshness of each of the elements really shines through. I believe there is cheese inside and however, not you ordinary cheddar cheese. Really yummy and really adorable !

Menu : Gambas Ajillo

Price : Rp 60,000 ++
Score : 8.0 / 10

>> Garlic Prawns with white wine butter sauce  and boiled pasta will definitely go very well! I know I keep on mixing Spanish food with the Italians, but I don't think white rice will go well? What can go better than pasta, right? Anyways, off the pasta topic. The garlic was cooked perfectly but the sauce is definitely the star of the dish. There is a subtle garlic rhythm, harmoniously balanced with butter sauce. Oh lala...you'll be grinning from ear to ear.

 

Menu : Paella de Mixta

Price : Rp 85,000 ++

Score : 8.5 / 10

>> I had this in the Cipete branch and now the one in Citos is just as good ^_^. This has a generous amount chicken, seafood, tomatoes and parpika inside. The portion is huge and definitely enough for 3 people. The menu recommends for 2 pax but 3 should fit just right. The saffron infused spanish rice was so delicious, it's soaked with all the goodness of the spices and flavours. Simply DELISH ! If you'd like just with seafood (Rp 175,000), just ask for it !

Did you know that Tapas Movida was voted the best Spanish Restaurant in Jakarta by "Now Jakarta" 2013. And make sure to vote them again this year, go online to Now Jakarta website and click away !! I did vote personally and really hope they'll get the trophy again this year. Mind blowing, addictive food !

Tapas Movida

Cilandak Town Square Ground Floor # 043 - 045

Jl. TB Simatupang Kav 17. Jakarta Selatan

Phone : 021 - 29042818

Taal

I work pretty close to Karawaci area but I usually hit the mall for a quick bite and rarely the outdoor section of Benton Junction. Anyways, without any plan I was there with 2 mates and we were wanting to have a light Indian meal. 

Indian?? I know it's super random to have a crave for Indian food. I noticed that there was a Indian restaurant (small and rather unpleasant looking) which I have never tried. We entered and I was all wrong with the image in my head. I thought the food is going to be below standard and that I'm just going for a small bite of the Roti and sip on my ice tea. Don't judge a restaurant by it's look works this time !!

Menu : Cheese Naan

Price : To be advise 

Score : 7.0 / 10

>> I have to say that this is not the best roti or naan that I had ever tasted but...I was expecting worse, much worse than this. I am sorry for being superficial in the first place, I am ashamed of myself actually. Hehehehe...

Fluffy and came at the right temperature were all checked by this dish. Love the slight burn parts all over and if I may slightly comment is that, I hope for slightly more salty cheese fillings inside :) On the bright side again, there's condiments on the side. There's a selection of Indian dips which goes beautifully even with plain naan. So...no complains :)

Menu : Lamb Briyani
Price : To be advise
Score : 7.5 / 10

>> I do not like lamb and still don't like it. I give in to my friends and ordered this anyway. Like the rice a lot even without having a bit on the meat. The rice were separated and cooked to perfection. The herbs and spices were all fresh and wasn't boring at all !! It actually reminds me of our comfort food Nasi Goreng and if I am an Indian, this will be my ultimate comfort food of all time. Delish !

By the way, notice that all the price has a 'to be advise' typing on the side, well sorry for that. I didn't took notice of the pricing (which I always do). Apologies guys :p

Menu : Butter Chicken

Price : To be advise

Score : 8.0 / 10

>> Hellllloooo yummmmm !!! Butterish sauce with loads of Indian herbs and spices with a slight kick of chili cooked with onions, potatoes and of course chicken !! Chicken were all still very juicy and without a doubt my favorite dish out of the three. It's very very lovely and a definite recommend for the first time goers.

A very surprising visit (in a good way of course), Taal had all the Indian ingredients however, slightly tweaked to suit our Indonesia palate. Not only the food was great their pricing were reasonable! Come on, their target market are the University school kids :). And last but most importantly, I felt the love that is put into the dishes. The owner is an Indonesian lady who marries an Indian man and they together open up this place. Husband as the chef and wife in front behind the cashier machine. Great team, passionate people equates to happy customers. So will I come back? Definite YES ! Suddenly India isn't that far away isn't it? 

Taal

Benton Junction No 18. Karawaci Tangerang

Phone : 021 - 5467285

Sop Buntut Ibu Henny

Look, I am not a big fan of Sop Buntut or if I may translate it in English ; Oxtail Soup. I don't even crave for the famous Sop Buntut Hotel Borobudur; if you want to know. But this one over here, is a definite definite Must Try !!! I know the original store is in Sunter, close to Kelapa Gading. I haven't tried the original store but the branch in Emporium Pluit Mall, food court is heavenly enough for me!

I had this menu above for a mere Rp 55,000. It comes with no rice but with additional a few thousand rupiah, it shouldn't be any problem. Loveee the buntut bakar !! Sweet, spicy and smokey aroma is definitely strong in the oxtail. The soup is also super duper good. Very dense in beef broth and even though I know the MSG they put in is massive, I couldn't stop scooping the soup until the last bit of drop. Bloody good but bad for cholesterol. As always, balance is key :)

Sop Buntut Ibu Henny
Emporium Pluit Mall, 4th Floor
Food Court Area

Le Quartier

I am sooo two thousand and late !! Everyone has came to this place and yet it is only now that I manage to post about it. Yes yes yes... BOOOOOO me ---____---"". I knew and passed by it a few multiple times, not sure why I didn't urge to try it, but anyways a bunch of friend gathered and they choose Le Quartier for Sunday dinner and here I am writing about it 2 months later hahahahaha...lazy me :p My apologies readers ...

The setting was comfortable and spacious, leaning slightly to romantic (not too romantic though) and also 'posh'? They have all the dim warm lightings and the beautiful chandelier hanging, making the ambiance feels like slightly out of Jakarta. I am gonna give the place a seven for decor I suppose? Nothing out of the extraordinary but definitely fits in the 'Senopati & Gunawarman' pricey district.

The choice of food basically covers a variety, from the "French" steak, to the "Italian" pizza. Their soups were beautiful and not to mention their duck confit was super yummy !! Pricing would be on the heavier side of the scale (We spent Rp 1,900,000 for a crowd of 6) but I mean the location is the CBD area, so what can you expect right? Right price for the right demographic of customers I suppose. Will I come back again? Ohh, yess I might. On some future occasions is a definite! And I sincerely believe, this place is gonna stick around for quite sometime anyways :)

Le Quartier

Jl. Gunawarman No. 34 

Kebayoran Baru, Jakarta Selatan

Phone : 021 - 72788001

The Holy Crab

I know it's probably 3 months since my last post? Well I only got the usual classic excuse, too busy for anything, not enough time everything. Sadly my blog became the victim of my 'busy-ness'. Well to put all that aside. I got a connection inside this eatery opened in June 2014 hence, manage to get a super super good reservation. Meaning, I get to cut all the queue and slip myself to a seat !! Blessed thy heart !! Or else, you gotta queue for at least an hour to get some seats, this place is pretty 'hot' in town.

The setting of the place is pretty much catered to family, it's those places that you go with your mom and dad, grandparents and grandchildren. Suitable for a casual dinner with a bunch of friends but definitely not the place you go for a romantic anniversary celebration. Unless it's your 20th or 35th hehehe...

The menu itself is also very straight forward to the point. The Holy Crab basically just sells CRAB, nothing else major but crabs. Well you get to order some fries or fish fingers at the side but all that is not the purpose. The food will definitely bring back memories all those people educated in Seattle. Why?? Cause all the sauce felt like 'Jambalaya' hot spicy with onion punch kind of sauce >> you people get the connection right?

The other special unique the restaurant bring is the style! You're given a table with plastic lined paper on top as table mat. Then, some mallet and shell crusher with your order placed directly on the table. Off you go! Smashing through can be a way to unleash a little bit of your stress built up from your bad working weekdays!! Apart from that, it's a good moral teaching to the kids too; you need to fight and squeeze through all those tricky shells before you get the super good part!

We got myself the 'dungeoness crab & king crab legs'. Love the king crab legs by a hundred mile. Easier to peel in order to get to the beautiful meat. Sauce was great tasting but after halfway there, it taste basically all the same and by the end of the dinner, you promise not to eat crab till the end of year. Hahahaha, the crab itself was the star but too much of crab goodness gives you this unavoidable term called 'cholesterol' hahaha. Bottom line, 'holy crab' is something you definitely must try but may think twice for the second trip.

Oooh! I forget to mention, price is definitely on a high end of the scale. A solid heavy dinner for 3 people would cover Rp 3,000,000 ; 1 dungeoness crab, 1 king crab legs, fries and sweet potato as side dish, refillable sodas for all. Heavy on the pocket and on your cholesterol too :p haha !!

The Holy Crab
Jl. Gunawarman No 55. Kebayoran Baru
Jakarta Selatan 12110
Phone : 021 - 29236155

Lyon

Do you know the city Lyon is famous for it's culinary standard? There have to be a reason why French are snobbish, well besides their taste for fashion and architecture, food is an addition to the column in their resume 'things to brag about'. Anyways, thousands of kilometers away from France, I was celebrating a special day and decided to head to Lyon in Mandarin Oriental Hotel situated at the heart of the Bundaran Hotel Indonesia. It was a dinner on a weekday and thus I wasn't expecting a large crowd. The concept of the place was pretty much straight forward; French fine dining. Price tag is definitely on the heavier side of the scale but I believe in you get what you pay for.

The decor of the place screams 'clean, spotless and professional'. It has elegant and subtle colors of ivory and wood tones. I wouldn't suggest you taking your kids to a lunch or dinner there. It's more for couples and corporate people who wants good food and doesn't mind paying. The service was spot on, attentive yet not bothersome. As for the most important part; the food, two of us tried a few of their dishes and how did my verdict turns out?

Menu : Fresh Bread

Price : Complimentary

Score : 6.0 / 10

>> I supposed this is an 'Artisan bread'. Good thick solid crust with a soft inner part. Resembles a smaller version of a sourdough. The bread itself is good, nothing wrong with it. But I would like a garlic or truffle spread to go with it. Besides the normal unsalted butter, garlic or truffle butter would definitely been much much better.

Menu : Escargots

Price : Rp 108,000 ++
Score : 8.0 / 10

>> Delish !! I would love to a full dozen of these all by myself. The escargots weren't over cooked. Juicy, chewable and definitely not 'gummy'. The abundance of olive oil and the ever good garlic and other herbs was totally infused into the escargots. Love the generosity of the herbs and garlic in the dish. I took the complimentary bread and soaked it into the olive and garlic concoction just to make sure I finished every bit there is left. Good stuff !!!

Menu : Tomato Soup

Price : Rp 78,000 ++

Score : 9.0 / 10

>> The best tomato soup I had ever have. I loveeeee everything the Chef put into this. The texture was spot on, flavor was wonderful, the viscosity was perfect and even the orange color was beautiful. What can I ask for more? Well maybe besides another huge bowl of this beauty. This tomato soup has a creamy side that is not overpowering, it is subtle trying to lift the soup as a more 'fuller' dish. Imagine a watery soup and I bet you'll won't be fanatic about it. By the way, the small looking pastry bread at the side was delish. It's a garlic and herb pastry bread; definitely needed to go along with the tomato soup. Yummm and I bet you'll love it too.

Menu : Seared Duck Foie Gras on Risotto

Price : Rp 288,000 ++
Score : 7.0 / 10

>> Consider me weird but I don't like foie gras. Whether it was the animal cruelty facts that goes behind the scene or the mushy texture, bottom line I'm not a fan. It would be a little bit biased talking about this dish. I didn't taste the foie gras but the rest of the dish definitely tasted great. When was the last time you had the perfect cooked risotto? It's not an easy job cooking risotto, much more difficult than cooking your ordinary white rice with the comfort of your rice cooker. Their risotto was top notch and I'm not sure what type of cheese they grated on top, but it completely matched the dish. Next time, I'll re-order this but with seafood or red meat instead of foie gras.

Menu : Steak Frites

Price : Rp 258,000 ++

Score : 8.5 / 10

>> A big portioned and a well done steak. I asked for medium and got exactly that (super crucial for me). The steak has the perfect balance of fats and meat, thus making it juicy and at the same time to my liking. I got to compliment on the fries on the side too. It was of course much better than Mc'Donald's hahahaha and just to make things better, the garlic mayonnaise on the side hit it a home run. My tummy was 70% full from the escargot and the tomato soup but did I manage to finish this? Hell yeah I did, but a little bit left over on the french fries.

Will I go back again? Truly yes. Now a taste of France is only 30 kilometers away from my home and I'm a sucker for their addictive tomato soup !!

Lyon

Mandarin Oriental Hotel

Jl. MH Thamrin. Jakarta Pusat 10310.

Phone : +62 21 - 2993 8888

Yo' Panino

So here is a story ... a big pig and a somewhat smaller pig was caught in a dilemma. Two of them had lunch around 2 hours ago and it's still 3 hours to dinner time. Both trying to loose weight, both even skip on dessert after lunch meal, they also managed to not have rice during lunch! But as mentioned, they're pigs! So both of those pigs did what they do best, snack up and eat. Well, that smaller pig is me :p hahaha. We're waiting for dinner time in Plaza Indonesia and after much contemplation, we gave up to ourselves and surrender to Yo' Panino! I must be honest, it was one of the most satisfying sandwich ever !! Felt guilty but who cares ... diet starts tomorrow... or never ... hahahaha ! 

 

So the concept here pretty much simple. You choose on the filling and then craft your own sandwich. There is 21 types to choose from and divided into 4 pricing. Rp 35.000, Rp 43.000, Rp 53.000, Rp 63.000 ++. After deciding your kind of sandwich, you choose your type of bread. A selection of 4 ; Multigrain, Turkish Pide, Brioche, Framhouse White. Next station would be on the extra fillings (extra cost), you can have more chicken, or beef, additional bacon bits or egg and cheese. Then, you may go crazy on the unlimited veggies and toppings. The selection of veggies and toppings is massive and thus be smart when constructing your masterpiece. Don't try to have everything, too much may turn out to be a disaster. And to finish off, choose your sauces! Upon that, go take a sit while they stuff everything in and toast your sandwich to perfection. In around 10 minutes, they'll be serving it to you.

Note : They have vegetarian selection.

BBQ Chicken Club : Rp 53.000 ++ (Score : 8.5 / 10)

 >> As mentioned above, I wasn't experiencing great hunger and thus I was in my choosy and picky mode on food. Anyways, I had the BBQ Chicken Club, which originally consist of hickory smoked chicken, turkey bacon, Monterrey cheese and their very own Yo' Barbie-O sauce (which I'm sure is BBQ sauce).  I opt for the Turkish Pide, had no extra fillings. Then I choose paprika, lettuce, cucumber and onions for the veggies. I had extra spicy sauce slabbed in between too. Nothing too hot about the sauce, everything just seemed right.

It was DELICIOUS !! I didn't expect it to be good at all and honestly this is what people mean by 'do not judge a book by it's cover'. The place has simple decor, the seating area wasn't great either, in fact they're situated below escalator (superstitious Chinese people thinks it's bad luck, because people are trampling over you). But hey, the taste buds never lie. I will definitely be a regular. The pricing was reasonable, the service was pleasant, the ingredients were fresh and the end product was certainly yummy !!

Yo' Panino

Plaza Indonesia Extension, 4th Floor (Replacing Dante Coffee)

Phone : +62 21 2992 4019