Turkuaz

 

It's been a while since I actually went to this Turkish restaurant 'Turkuaz'. I have got to say that I wasn't too hyper or excited going for this. Well, the main reason is that Turkish food somehow relate to the strong smell of 'lamb' meat (which I'm not a big fan of). But as a food enthusiast, it's a sin to reject food in any cause. So, the 7 of us had this for a late Sunday lunch. There weren't much crowd during that time, only around two other tables were occupied. Turkuaz is situated on the Gunawarman Street, just besides Lobbie (the lobster eatery) and thus not a problem to locate it. The decor is plain and very much insipid and dim. What's with the lighting? I think they need more lights everywhere, the lack of it makes the place smaller and somehow 'dirtier'. Wasn't impress with the decor, but what about the food? Let's chat about it !!

Menu : Top Left (Zeytinyagli Hummus), Top Right (Teryagli Cam Fistikli Hummus), Bottom Left (Acili Hummus), Bottom Right (Etli Hummus)

Price : Rp 55.000, Rp 90.000, Rp 60.000, Rp 75.000 ++

Score : An average of 7.0 / 10

>> Gosh, so much hummus dip to begin. I got confused caused it very much all taste the same after a few dips. I'll try to break it down.

- Zeytingali : Pureed chickpeas with tahini with extra virgin olive oil. The most subtle of them all.

- Teryagli Cam Fistikli : Pureed chickpeas with tahini with sauteed butter pine nuts. The most expensive but rather much the same with Zeytingali. Except for the extra crunch.

- Acili : Pureed chickpeas with tahini with sauteed fresh chili, shallots and homemade chili paste. My favourite among all 4. Love those sauteed onions and chili, which gave that sweet taste. Gotta love the slight spicy kick it gave.

- Etli : Pureed chickpeas with tahini with butter sauteed lamb and chili flakes. I gotta admit that they were quite generous with the lamb portion. The smell was there, so not much of a fan of this (being biased, sorry).

Menu : Patlicanli Kuzu Incik Kebabi
Price : Rp 235,000 ++
Score : 6.5 / 10

>> This is the chef's signature lamb shank dishes and the waiter urge us not to miss on this one. The sauce has strong herb and spices smell; infused with the sweetness of tomatoes as the sauce, which was still a liking for me. The lamb meat itself was as predicted tender, slit easily off from the bone and yes strong in lamb odour. Not my favorite but definitely popular amongst the lamb shank fans. Forgive me for my biased opinion on lamb meat, but hey by all means try this menu!

Menu : Left (Icli Pilav), Middle (Burgul Pilavi), Right (Sehriyeli Pilav)
Price : Rp 28.000, Rp 28.000, Rp 20.000 ++
Score : 7.5 /10 ,  7.0 /10 ,  6.0 /10

>> The photo look like a single dish? Well it's actually 3 different menu that we ordered. The chef  helped to save the table space and thus put all 3 into a single to share plate.
- Icli : Slow cooked rice with almonds, pine nuts, raisin and Turkish spice. Love the sweetness from the raisins and the crunchiness from the pine nuts. My favorite among three.
- Burgul : The texture of the rice is somehow similar to couscous. It has that brittle and sand like effect on the tongue. The spices was fragrant and I thought it was pretty tasty overall.
- Sehriyeli : The cheapest among three and the most bland. It's basically a slow cooked vermicelli with rice. It didn't make too much sense to me. Vermicelli with rice? Ummm...wasn't a hit for me.

Menu : Sis Kebab Beef, Sis Kebab Chicken, Karides Guvec,
Price : Rp 210.000 , Rp 85.000 , Rp 205.000 ++
Score : 7.0 / 10

>> Again, the photo looked like one single dish but in fact 3 separate dishes. All three meat ; beef, chicken and jumbo shrimp were marinated and char grilled. I'm not a chef but I definitely think all three are in fact marinated with the same spices and sauce. They tasted the same. Well, they all taste good don't get me wrong ! I like the beef best, they were cut into cubes and thus a good size to bite and chew on. It was tender and definitely not overcooked. An important issue would be the portion versus the pricing. This plate cost exactly Rp 500.000 ++ and giving a better portion to the customer is very much advised. I don't think 4 shrimps should cost Rp 205.000 ?? But overall base on taste, it's a 7 pointer for me.

The final question of 'will I come back again'? Hmmm....I think I might, but there is a big BUT ... I probably come back in a long period of time. Nothing in the near future and I'm not sure either hahaha !!

Turkuaz
Jl. Gunawarman No 32, Kebayoran Baru. Jakarta Selatan
Phone : +62 21 72795853

Tapas Movida

Last Sunday, I had a super late lunch with a bunch of pretty interesting people, interesting meaning in a positive way of course! Hahaha..anyways I was introduced to this Spanish Restaurant that had opened in 2011 in Cipete Raya, South Jakarta. I was all excited and pumped about it and I must be honest that I'm a virgin with Spanish food. The only time I tried was at Moya and way back to remember anything about tapas, paella nor sangria. So this place called 'Tapas Movida' was a great welcome, differentiating itself from all the fusion food that Jakarta is flooded with !

As mentioned in their website; 'Tapas' refers to the authentic and original Spanish appetizers and 'Movida' refers to the post Franco-era eruption of entertainment and artistic freedom enjoyed in Spain which they celebrate with their emphasis on enjoying yourself. To add on, besides the great food and a pleasant service they do try and set an ambiance that resembles true Spain setting. I've never been to Spain but upon entering the door, it's obvious that their presentation of Flamenco themed indoor and Gaudi inspired outdoor areas was nailed!

Menu : Montadito de ternera con queso azul y cebolla caramelizada
Price : Rp 30,000 ++
Score : 9.0 / 10

>> This was the first tapas that was served and I was blown. Presentation is simple and straight to the point as  a 'tapas'. This is basically beef tenderloin, blue cheese and caramelized onion stacked on top of each other with a piece of cut bread on the bottom. One bite and I smiled ! Today's meal is going to be really good! The flavor was packed full and gotta loveeeeeee the caramelized onion. Sweet, salty and a the combination with blue cheese was surprisingly a good marriage!

Menu : Pintxo de pollo moruno con salsa de yogur y queso
Price : Rp 17, 500 ++
Score : 8.0 / 10

>> Look like your ordinary satay? Well, it's chicken skewers with much much better cooking herbs and condiment at the side. The sauce inside the shot glass is actually yogurt with cheese and it's gooooddd. The chicken was cooked well, and the herbs infused into the meat was surprisingly has this familiar taste with 'satay'. Must be the 'smokey taste' effect from the grilling process. Nevertheless, gotta try this too !

Menu :  Champinones rellenos
Price : Rp 25,000 ++
Score : 7.5 / 10

>> This is a good breakfast or a brunch menu but because it taste great, it's very much quite alright to have it in the afternoon. Mushroom cooked in garlic butter fill with ham, mozzarella cheese topped with fried egg. Well apology for my photography skill, thus you can't figure out much about the layers but all you need to understand is that, this is delicious! Ever heard the phrase 'breakfast for the champions'...champinones, champions..resembles right? Hehehehe...silly ^_^

Menu : Cordero al horno
Price : Rp 195,000 ++
Score : 8.5 / 10

>> If you are a loyal reader, then you'll know probably by now that I'm not a big fan of lamb but this might be a game changer. This roasted lamb shank with sauteed potatoes, pan fried asparagus and lamb juice is not only NOT heavy with lamb 'smell' (which is the main reason as to why, I'm not a fan of the meat), the meat flakes so easily off the bone and the tenderness of the meat just screams 'cooking to perfection'. This is the menu to try if you are a lamb shank lover.

Menu : Panceta Asada
Price : Rp 70,000 ++
Score : 9.5 / 10

>> Holly Molly, damn it was a blessed Sunday afernoon and look what I got to eat !! It's roast pork belly with red wine juice reduction on the side. Look at the glistening layer of pork belly fat that is just shining and calling out your name! Hahahaha, disregard my 'drama' writing but this dish deserves all thumbs up. The crispy layer of the pork is crunchy, still manage to keep the layers of belly fat intact and gooey! Pour the beautiful red wine juice, swirl the pork belly to get every angle covered and pop it into your mouth. Boom! Foodgasm is guarantee! This is definitely worth you ignoring your cholesterol level.

Menu : Esparragos trigueros con huevos pasados por agua
Price : Rp 30,000 ++
Score : 7.0 / 10

>> For ladies that are keeping a crazy eye on their waist, try this and you'll still able to enjoy your meal. This appetizer dish is pan fried green asparagus wrapped in Spanish ham, served with a 4 minute boiled egg. I love the presentation, it's pretty and aren't you curious what does a 4 minute boiled egg look like? You got to come, order and take the top off the egg! I have to recommend that the Spanish ham is drop dead good ! It's different from Panchetta or your average bacon, it is actually called 'Jamon Serrano' or more commonly known as 'Serrano Ham'. This taste better than your morning fried bacon by miles.

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

>> Another yumm, another smile, another dancing tastebuds! This is a dish of Spanish style meatballs, cooked in red wine and caramelized onion sauce. Gosh, anything Tapas Movida does with caramelized onion, it's goooood !

Look, the meatballs itself were alright, good bite size pieces, quite a handful of meatballs too for the portion. But the beauty is in the sauce ! Thick consistency, with chunks of onions happily submerged in the soup of red wine sauce. Rip the bread and dip it deep until it is soaked, put it your mouth and yeaaa! I bet you'll having dancing tastebuds, or at least, I did ^_^.

Menu : Gambas al ajillo
Price : Rp 55,000 ++
Score : 8.0 / 10

>> I know alot of the pictures in this review involves a bowl of something with sauce and chunks of bread at the side. Well, I realized that but it just further explains that the sauce is damn good ! Again, this traditional Spanish prawns cooked in olive oil, garlic and white sauce is beautiful. The prawns was cooked very well, wasn't chewy and still maintain that firm texture in every bite. The sauce is of course glorious, same style as above; rip the chunks of bread and dip it into the sauce until it is soaked and enjoy it! For those 'vampires' who are scared of garlic stench staying behind in your mouth, don't worry. It is subtle and yet impact-full.







Menu : Paella de Marisco
Price : Rp 330,000 ++
Score : 9.5 / 10

>> Wohooo !! I found the best paella in town and I mean it ! I love this yellow rice and could never find a good restaurant selling a decent paella. Find no more yulian, because Tapas Movida is here ^_^ hahaha. This chicken & seafood Spanish yellow rice is so big that I'm pretty sure it's enough for at least 5 adults, especially with all the additional tapas, you'll go home a happy happy man with additional 2 kilos on the scale. The rice is beautifully done, it has that uniform yellow color from the saffron and love the rather 'sticky' effect this rice got. I'm not sure whether it is a special kind of rice or a special cooking method but let the Spanish chef do the working and us do the eating.

Menu : Sangria (Traditional)
Price : Rp 295,000 ++
Score : 8.5 / 10

>> Hahahaha, okay I first didn't record down the pricing on this drink but  a friend helped out and hence much details now. There is two types of Sangria served here, the traditional and the deluxe (Rp 395,000 ++). The difference is this traditional sangria is not too strong on the alcohol. Well, it definitely involves wine and a good splash of sprite, with all the fruit juices and fresh fruits inside the mixture. A very refreshing and complimentary to  the food served. Trust me, you won't be thrown away by the alcohol if you're not much of a drinker. While the deluxe is slightly more pricy but with a good mixture of 14 spirits of alcohol. So, depending on your mood and your alcohol tolerance level, the sangria is definitely one of the 'must try' among the menu list !





Overall, I know the title of the dishes are a bit tricky, but bookmark my page on your phone and just show it to the waitress when you're there. No big fuss right? Bottom line, like ambiance, like the price tag, loooooove the food. Which comes down to 'Yes, I'll definitely come back' and you all should all try it for yourself. I bet you'll come back as a regular !!


Tapas Movida
Jl. Cipete Raya No 66, Jakarta Selatan.
Phone : 021 - 7510851

Angke

There's no single Chinese Indonesian that I know that hasn't ate at Angke. A complete nobody, everyone of my acquaintance knows Angke and nearly everyone likes it. What is there not to like? Well I love it, I might be biased because I'm a Hakka and Angke serves Hakka traditional food which reminds me of all the food that my grandmother used to cook back when she was healthier. So every time when I missed a good Chinese meal, Angke pops up into my head and luckily I got to visit there 2 weekends ago with a bunch of friends. It was a crowd of 10 and that equates to many dishes...nyummmm!!

Menu : Lindung Cah Fumak
Price : Rp 155,000 ++ (Large)
Score : 8.0 / 10

>> Damn ! What to say about Lindung Cah Fumak. It's probably my favorite Hakka dish, a must have on the table. I'm not a big fan of eel to be honest but when it's deep fried and sauteed together with Chinese red dates and Fumak veges...geeezzz... goodness is all painted all over my smiling chewing face. As a matter of fact, Angke cooks one of the best dish, perfect crunchy texture, together with the sweetness and the saltiness of the veges. A must have !

Menu : Udang Rebus Yamha
Price : Rp 160,000 ++ (Large)
Score : 8.0 / 10

>> A plate full of fresh steamed prawns with a generous amount of ginger, garlic and a touch of soy sauce just to balance everything. Loveee this one! Beware of the cholesterol though, might be troublesome for some of you guys but a hand full of these beauties on rare occasion shouldn't be a problem. This taste reminds me with the dish below; " Ayam Rebus ".

Menu : Ayam Rebus
Price : Rp 140,000 ++ (Large)
Score : 8.5 / 10

>> For the taste, I'll give a 8.0 over 10 but an extra half point goes to the small amount of bones in it. There wasn't much bones around the chicken meat and thus better value and more importantly easier to eat. You just need to pick it and chew it whole. The condiments poured all over is pretty much the same with Udang Yamha (Above) which are : lots of ginger, lots of garlic and a good drizzle of oil to glisten and moist everything up. Another must have dish in the heart of Hakka tradition !! *Note : There is another dish on the menu called "Ayam Garam", don't get mixed up.

Menu : Angsio Bakut
Price : Rp 180,000 ++ (Large)
Score : 7.0 / 10

>> This is basically pork ribs deep fried and sauteed with sweet and sour sauce. The size of each cut might look huge but bearing in mind the thick bones that are inside....not so big after all. The sauce was balanced, not as sweet as I thought or compared to "Babi Kuluyuk" (below). A better dish than Babi Kuluyuk I suppose.

Menu : Babi Kuluyuk
Price : Rp 100,000 ++ (Medium)
Score : 6.75 / 10

>> No bones in comparison to Angsio Bakut. But on general, the taste is pretty much similar. A good hit of sweetness coming from the tomato condiment and a kick of sour coming presumably from lemon or pineapple juice. I'm not a big fan of Babi kuluyuk but a lot of people are in fact.

Menu : Cingkong Kepiting Goreng
Price : Rp 108,000 ++ (Small)
Score : 6.0 / 10

>> Some of my friends looove this dish (you know who you are haha) but isn't the same case for me. It's just a seafood ball deep fried with a sweet and sour sauce on the side for dipping. Well it taste pretty much like a decent fish cake, but with a good amount of crab added to it. It's well made and definitely a good appetizer but when compared to the other dishes Angke got in store, I'll pass on this and leave more stomach room for the other dishes !

Menu : Bakmi Goreng Ulang Tahun
Price : RP 90,000 ++ (Medium)
Score : 6.0 / 10

>> Well...I like their 'bihun' much much more. But in the first place, I'm not a huge fan of fried noodles therefore I might be biased. Don't get me wrong, a lot of people love this dish and as a matter of fact I finished my bowl but just felt that their fried bihun is much tastier. I'd probably won't order this if it wasn't for my buddies' choice. But in general a good solid noodle dish.




Angke Restaurant
Jl. Zaenal Arifin (Ketapang Raya)
Komplek Ketapang Indah Jakarta Barat 14440
Phone : 021 - 634 3030

Manega Seafood - Jimbaran, Bali (Lebaran 2012)

I always put aside one dinner slot schedule for about eight out of ten trips to Bali, especially for this restaurant. There were some renovation made to the place, better decor all around but one thing for sure, their food is as good as ever! I made a point to come there sharp at 5.30 pm, just managing to catch a good glimpse of the Jimbaran sunset while waiting for the dishes to be cooked.

If you reach here at their peak period (per say 7 to 9pm) you will need all the patience you can find inside you to wait for seats and chasing the waitresses for to deliver your food out of their super chaotic kitchen. Therefore, I seriously suggest for you all to reach no later than 5.30 pm. Rather early for a dinner but the time they get your food onto your the table it's 6.30 pm! Perfect timing isn't it?

Menu : Sate Cumi (Squid Satay)
Price : Rp 75,000++ (For 15 sticks)
Score : To Be Advised

>> If you don't know, I don't eat squid unless maybe fried calamari rings (not a fan either). I didn't try any of these but hearing from FW, he loved it. There is something about the texture and the chewy pat of the squid meat that I just don't like any bit.

Menu : Tiger Prawn

Price : Rp 70,000++ (For 4 pieces)

Score : 6.5 / 10

>> Very well cooked, exactly how a prawn should be grilled. It's well done, but still retains it's 'springy' texture when you bite and chew into it. The smoke grilled taste is infused into the dish and when dipped with 'kecap manis' (sweet soy sauce) and cut chili with sambal matah, you'll probably order another dozen of these!

Menu : Kerang (Shellfish)

Price : Rp 40,000++ (For about 12 pieces)

Score : 9.0 / 10

>> This dish is not only the cheaper among the menu but also simply the best tasting one! The shape of the shell retains all the sauce that was smeared all across it instead of dripping down the grilling stove. The sauce is simply yummeh!! It's their specialty I suppose, it's buttery, able to taste the smoked effect from the grill, strong in garlic and has a slight BBQ tang ! Hmmm....delightful :)

Menega Cafe

Jl. Four Seasons Muaya Beach, Jimbaran Bali

Phone : +62 (361) - 705888

Gita Gili Seafood - Gili Air (Lebaran'12)

I was astounded upon seeing the fresh seafood paraded on the tables, just right by the walking pathway. All of the seafood were caught daily and the eaters were allowed to choose themselves on the selection. Well of course due to the nature of the sea, the variety will depend on the daily catch, therefore each seafood cafe's menu selection will also vary from one another. I wanted to try the busiest seafood resto there 'Wiwi Cafe' but due to the queue, I went to 'Gita Gili' instead. It was a dinner for 2 person and thus we ordered 2 dishes, 6 large prawns & a good sized salt water fish!

Menu: Grilled Fish & Grilled Large Prawns
Price : RP 150,000 (for 2 person)
Score : 8.0 / 10

>> Can you imagine the freshness of the seafood I had at Gita Gili? When the raw seafood were paraded on the display tables, there were no stench whatsoever! Superbly fresh and literally smell of fresh salt water. I love the idea of eating fresh ingredients and somehow imagine myself being instantly 'healthier'. The way they grilled was pretty much the normal way, no special BBQ skills applied. It was the ingredient itself that gave this dish an 8 pointer. Nothing beats damn good ingredients! In addition, every person was given a choice of baked potato or steam rice with complimentary stir fry vegetables at the side.
Gita Gili
Gili Air, Lombok Indonesia