Thai Alley

Saturday night and I head down to one of the mall that I 'less visit' in Jakarta; Pacific Place Mall. I like the size of the mall, a huge selection of shopping stores (real expensive ones), a range of restaurants yet to be tried. But hate the parking space, it's just such a squeeze and don't really like the cinema there, not a big fan of 'rocking chair' while glued to the movie screen. Nevertheless, I'm here because of the food and nothing else but that.  I chose 'Thai Alley' and FW went along with me. I had an early dinner, around 5.30 pm and when we were first there, the place was pretty much empty but half way through our meal, the crowd starts to fill in the place.

Menu : Yam Som O, Gai
Price : RP 35,000 ++
Score : 6.5 / 10

>> This appetizer dish is basically a fresh citrus salad, pomelo salad with minced chicken to be exact. The portion is good, enough for 2 person and in addition, I like the texture of the ingredients taking action on this plate. You have the soft popping texture of the pomelo fruits, crunchy peanuts and the juicy meaty minced chicken. The only issue I had was the seasoning, a little bit more of fish sauce and chili would bump the score higher than a 6.5 !

Menu : Somboon Pong Kari, Poo Nim
Price : RP 69,000 ++
Score : 6.0 / 10

>> This is a Thai stir fried yellow curry, egg, onion with soft shell crab. (There is a choice of seafood to go along; squid, shrimp, crab and soft shell crab). We went for the soft shell crab! The sauce is fairly mild and it needed a good punch of additional spice and herbs. I rather like the texture of the soft shell crab, well cooked and still maintained the crispiness of the batter, not too soggy and has a good bite into it. If only the chef can twitch a little bit of the seasonings of the yellow curry, I'll definitely come back for this again!

Menu : Khao Ohb Nam Liab
Price : RP 49,000 ++
Score : 7.5 / 10

>> This dish is basically a fried rice with Chinese black olives and chicken served with fresh chili, lime, shallots and chashew nuts. Nothing went wrong; the portion is right and the seasoning was spot on! What stood out for me was truly the black olives by itself. I was able to smell and taste the olives in the rice, nothing too overpowering but rather a pleasant fragrance instead of the normal 'Thai Fried Rice' that I usually have; definitely a good alternative to try!

Menu : Tom Yam Goong
Price : RP 42,000 ++
Score : 8.0 / 10

>> I never give an easy 'eight' points for any dish but this dish was a genuine surprise! The powerful punch of flavors was a party on my taste buds! The lemon grass was fragrant, the chili was spicy, the sourness was taste-able and the soup's portion was rather generous (even though the ingredients inside was little, at least the soup was enough for 2 person to share). I looooove this and next time I'm here, this will be a must order dish for me (finger crossed nothing will change from the Chef).

Thai Alley

Pacific Place Mall, 5th Floor. Jakarta

Phone : +6221 - 579 73 600

Jittlada

My friend; Caroline came by Jakarta last weekend and we had dinner together. It has been ages since I last saw her. She's getting married this March and that was a much needed get together session! I choose Jittlada for dinner because David was so crankily hungry and Thai food seems very appealing to him at that moment. 

I ate here quite often, has been repeating myself for multiples of time. To describe the decor, it was some how leaning towards 'modern traditional Thailand' and strangely enough there is an odd looking wedding cake stand / shop at the back of the restaurant floor. Even though the ambiance was alright, the service was rather annoying especially they got packed during dinner time. They forgot one of our dishes, it came out like one hour later. Overall, I like the food there on average and will come back repeatedly for future to come.

Menu : Shrimp Cake with Bread
Price : Rp 23,500++
Score : 6.25 / 10

» Slightly too oily for me but the bread was really crispy and the sweet chili dipping goes hand in hand very well. The fillings should be 'richer' Some additional vegetables should be mixed inside instead of just plain prawn fillings.

 Menu : Poh Piah Tod
Price : Rp 23,500++
Score : 5.0 / 10

>> My friend Ratna likes this very much however I don't. The rolls are stuffed with chicken, vegetable, mushrooms, onions, shrimp and glass noodle. But the taste didn't really stood out., it was just bland. Only the sweet chili, I thought it gave a very nice additional kick to the spring rolls!

Menu : Tom Yam Kung
Price : Rp 34,500++
Score : 7.25 / 10

>> Even though for the price, the size was rather miniature, the taste was a perfect balance of sour sweet and hot. I LOVE THIS SOUP. The broth was just delicious but the fillings should have been more creative, instead of 2 pieces of prawns and some mushroom slices floating on top.

Menu  : Green Curry Beef
Price : Rp 45,500++
Score : 6.5 / 10

>> I am not a big fan of dish containing coconut milk. But every time I swing by this restaurant, I'll order this soup. The soup is some how calming in a way the coconut is not too pungent and doesn't give you a feeling of uneasiness in your tummy or throat after dinner.

Menu : House Special Claypot Prawn with Glass Noodle
Price : Rp 65,500++
Score : 2.0 / 10

» Good God! This is atrocious! The food was cold, the glass noodle were all broken into small pieces, the taste was just too plain but the most disgusting thing is the "licorice spice" they mixed all in and over the dish. I hate licorice so damn much and can't ever understand why you'd want it in your food --___--". Will the chef that made this recipe get a grip of his tongue???

Menu : Soft Shell Crab, Garlic Pepper & Salt
Score : 7 / 10

» Jittlada captured my taste for Thai food. This dish is good good good, slightly too salty actually but when ate together with steaming white rice it was party in your mouth.

Menu : Beef Nah Yang
Score : 8.25 / 10

» I love this beef, tastes like bbq beef jerky. It's sweet and tangy with a splash of sourness. The entire table agree this is the best tasting dish of the evening and all of u should try this!

Menu : Soft Shell Crab with Black Pepper
Price : Rp 75,500++
Score : 8.0 / 10

>> This is GOOD stuff! The sauce, the spice and the soft shell crab just mixed together into a dish is simply a God sent.

Menu : Minced Beef with Crispy Basil
Price : Rp 48,500++
Score : 6.5 / 10

>> This dish is quite confusing. Meaning the restaurant cook this inconsistently. Some occasion this can taste really superb and I'll give a 7.5 in a heart beat. But today...not that 'great'. The chef might be having a fight with his Thai girlfriend in Bangkok haha!

Menu : Baby Kailan with Sliced Beef
Price : Rp 37,500++
Score : 6.25 / 10

>> The oyster sauce is good. I don't like sauce that are too thick and they are of the right consistency here. One of the downside here is the portion. It is too small or am I just too greedy ?

Menu : Man Cham
Price : Rp 17,500++
Score : 3.5 / 10

>> Not good. Do not bother to order. They have this watery slime at the bottom of the sweet tapioca. Maybe the food is turning bad? Well I do not think it was that extreme. But definitely not good, however better than the horrifying glass noodle (above) ;p

JITTLADA THAI RESTAURANT

GRAND INDONESIA, EAST MALL FLOOR 3A

King Chef

My head was all cramped with house topics and budget issues. I now understands when previously I heard stories that goes something like: "Omg! Have you heard A & B broken up? They've been dating for 5 years and about to get married, I wonder what happen...". Wondering what may happen? Sooo many freaking issues to talk and compromise about. And when you can't find common ground, that is when the 'cracks' develop!

Anyways back to food topic (sorry I got sidetracked), I went to 'King Chef' on that stressful day and it was my first time. I visited the branch in Emporium Mall Pluit but upon looking on the menu, they do open branches in Mall of Indonesia, Mangga Dua Square & Plaza Semanggi. Some dish took me by surprise; in a good way and overall the dinner was alright. Comparing to it's rival "Maystar & Duck King", this was less pricey. In addition to that, they're having 20% discount on all.

Menu : Pickle

Price : Rp 12,000++

Score : 7.0 / 10

>> I liked it! I know it is pretty much an ordinary looking pickle that the table seldom finishes it. But this is slightly different. The fresh ingredients blend into the vinegar with salt & sugary taste has a different kick on the tongue.

Menu : Steamed Scallop with Minced Garlic

Price : Rp 18,800++ / each

Score : 6.75 / 10

>> I'd give a 6 for the scallop itself, pretty much ordinary. What gave this a higher score was the vermicelli sitting on the bottom. It has so much flavor and sorts of balances the strong garlic shavings on the scallop.

Menu : Broccoli with Spicy Prawns

Price : Rp 40,000++

Score : 7.5 / 10

>> Again took me by surprise! The portion was generous, the broccoli was fresh; not overcooked and thus still has the crunchy texture! The prawns was slightly overcooked but it was forgivable when you taste the sauce. It's like a 'sweet chili' flavor partying on your taste buds. Not bad at all !

Menu : Beef Enoki Roll

Price : Rp 51,800++
Score : 2.0 / 10

>> Worst dish of the night and lost by a big margin! I gave a pathetic 2. The beef was chewy and not tender at all. The Enoki mushrooms were extremely soggy and tasteless (I bet the mushrooms were frozen ones). The oyster sauce on top was a joke and this was such a let down because the rest had my appetite going.

Menu : Soft Shell Crab Fried with Oats

Price : Rp 55,800++
Score : 6.5 / 10

>> Even though this was slightly on a mini portion for the price, nevertheless it was worth it. The crab was crunchy and the oats has a buttery fragrant which I love! Maybe the oats were fried in butter instead of oil. The generous oats were a perfect match with steam rice too.

Menu : Es Shanghai

Price : Rp 16,900++
Score : 3.0 / 10

>> I don't like this. The green bean was undercooked, thus slightly crunchy. The rest of the ingredients were just typical then picking and throwing it into the bowl. Nothing great about this. But because I need to have a desert for every meal, I finished it anyway :p

KING CHEF
EMPORIUM MALL PLUIT, 4th FLOOR (Next to Solaria)

Din Tai Fung

Today I signed up for my first tax accounting tutor class at Mall of Indonesia and I decided to hit the mall for lunch. I entered from 'Lobby 4' and the first restaurant I saw on the left was 'Din Tai Fung' It has been ages since I had dim sum and looking from the half - packed restaurant floor I made up my choice of lunch for today!

The food was beautiful and seriously didn't let me down one single bit!! I want to eat there more often and try all the dishes in the menu. When I realize they have several branches all over Jakarta, I was relieved I wouldn't have to always come back to Mall of Indonesia.

The price was reasonable and the service was quick and smooth. I love every single menu I had today, even though some was much better than the others but the overall lunch experience left me with a good image. The only sad part was that, their desert selection was not complete, I ordered for a mango pudding desert (mango covers 60% of their desert selection) but the waitress said they ran out of mangoes -__- ....

Menu : Chicken's Feet
Price : Rp 15,000++
Score : 8.5 / 10

>> The best chicken feet I had ever eaten in my entire life! The chicken feet was tender, light, very very tasty, the skin and meat slip off easily off from the bones. The sauce was gorgeous and made me want to pour it all over steam white rice. One small serving of this is not enough!

Menu : Soft Shell Crab with Beef Floss
Price : Rp 40,000++
Score : 6.5 / 10

>> Very crispy but not too oily. The dish was pleasantly seasoned and actually surprised me that beef floss actually goes well with soft shell crab. Even though the crab was rather small, I enjoyed it very much when eaten together with their home made chili oil. Remember to put a generous amount of it :)

Menu : Shrim & Chicken Won Ton Tossed with Spicy Sauce
Price : Rp 28,000++ (6 pieces)
Score : 8.0 / 10

>> Very very yummy!! I want to keep on eating this with their great tasting home made noodles! The vinegar sauce blew me away, the sourness, the tartness, the spiciness were combined together at the right portion and made this a scoring dish. The won ton skin were thin and nearly translucent, thus concentrating on the meat fillings inside.

Menu : Tom Yum Seafood Noodle Soup
Price : Rp 52,000++
Score : 7.8 / 10

>> Omg! Lovee this! The soup is just simply delicious, the spiciness and the sourness is not overpowering. The coconut milk was very well balanced, not too strong. The noodle was very very smooth and delicate, great texture!! The fillings inside was little but the soup and the noodle made me forget those factors! I will come back for more, definitely!

DIN TAI FUNG

BRANCHES : 

                    - Pondok Indah Mall 2

                    - Plaza Senayan Arcadia

                    - Plaza Indonesia 

                    - Pacific Place

                    - Mall of Indonesia (Ground Floor, in front of lobby 4)