Yoogane (유가네)

Yoogane is an authentic Korean restaurant, brought directly from Seoul.. Since 1981, Yoogane has delivered the best quality of dakgalbi (닭갈비).. Dakgalbi is popular Korean dish, made by stir-frying diced chicken in a special chili sauce (gochujang), mixed with fresh vegetables.. In Jakarta, Yoogane has opened its branch in Citywalk.. The eatery was not too spacious, but quite comfortable.. Basic wooden furniture with Korean graffiti on the wall.. On each table, a stove for live cooking is available..

colorful graffiti 

I went there with my office mates during lunch hour as Citywalk is within reach from my office.. The eatery was empty when we arrived.. After looking at the menu and asking for recommendation from the waiter, we decided to have dakgalbi fried rice 79k, bulgogi (불고기) fried udon 128k and tteokbokki (떡볶이) 46k..

First to come is kimchi (김치), traditional Korean fermented veggies, served as banchan (반찬).. In my opinion, kimchi served here was a bit tasteless compare to other Korean restaurant.. I wish more sourness and spiciness in the sauce.. Then came the tteokbokki, a popular Korean snack made from soft rice cake in a sweet red chili sauce.. I have tasted some tteokbokki available in other Korean restaurant, and Yoogane's is definitely one of the best.. The rice cake was soft and chewy, the sauce was tasty, spicy and just addictive..

The fried rice and fried udon should have been cooked live in front of us, but due to the empty restaurant, the waiter cooked our orders in separate table.. I think they did not want to ruin our hair and clothes with the smell of smoke from cooking.. Once ready, both dishes were served in a huge pot in front of us.. Both smelled really good and looked very appetizing.. Lunch time!

Dakgalbi fried rice was supposed to be spicy, due to the gochujang sauce.. However, this one was mildly spicy, so you, chili haters, should not be afraid to try.. The fried rice was very fragrant and tasty.. I love the texture, the mild-spicy sauce and the tender chicken.. Bulgogi is another Korean cuisine hits, made from thin slices of beef prime cuts, marinated to enhanced its flavor and tenderness.. The bulgogi then stir-fried with udon and vegetables.. It tasted sweet and salty.. I prefer the fried rice, but my other friend fancied the fried udon..

Overall, it was a hearty lunch at Yoogane.. Delicious food, good service and comfortable eatery.. Not to mention the short distance from my office, I am lucky to get another option of good Korean eatery..

Yoogane

Citywalk Sudirman 1st Flor Unit 25

Jl. KH Mas Mansyur Kav. 121

Central Jakarta

Ph.: 6221 2991 8977
www.yoogane.co.id

Brunch at BonChon Chicken

if the Chinese are famous for their la mien and the Japanese gone crazy with their ramen, then the Koreans are proud for their myun! as a food-chain selling Korean dishes, BonChon Chicken brought the famous myun right to Jakarta, fellas! a few weeks ago, I had the privilege to try their new menu in a nice and warm food tasting.. now, let's get your tongue and tummy ready.. 

let's start with something sweet to quench your thirst first, perhaps after a long day at work or a crazy traffic.. I actually love their cup design :)

don't rush yourself, start slowly with something good to get your palate ready.. something like kimchi soup.. spicy and sour soup generously filled with Korean kimchi, tofu and scallions.. the soup was warm and nice with a generous fillings.. a strong sour taste usually found in Korean dishes.. if you are not a fan of sour dishes, then try something more Indonesian like the chicken soup.. a clear soup filled with chicken cubes, tofu, veggies and scallions.. by the way, thanks my fun food diary for your helping hands :)

or simply be safe and have their BonChon bites, available in original or spicy flavor.. personally, I prefer the spicy bites.. it was nicely drenched in spicy sauce in the perfect size for snack.. one cup would never be enough, trust me.. now if you want to have a healthier start, try fresh salad.. lettuce and carrot drenched in lemony sauce then topped with some crunch similar to Indonesian kremesan.. I didn't try this but some said the sauce was a bit lemony sour..

done with your appetizer, then here comes the myun which was available in the options of classic myun or spicy myun.. since I'm a huge fan of chili and all things spicy, I went with the spicy myun.. the myun was thick, made from buckwheat flour.. the main difference between spicy and classic was in the sauce.. the spicy myun came with a hot red sauce with cuts of scallion on top, while the classic one came in a milder red sauce.. taste wise, the sauce was actually good.. it was not too spicy for me, pardon my spicy tongue.. some complained it was too spicy, but I did enjoy the meal.. the chicken cutlet accompanying the myun, however, tasted a bit bland.. when confirmed to the chef, it was purposely made bland to balance the spicy sauce when eaten together.. I didn't try the classic one, but some fellow non-spicy lover foodies said it tasted a little sweet and still too spicy for their tongue and wished it was milder.. 

spicy myun | classic myun

after finishing the hot meal, spoil yourself with something sweet.. BonChon has two options of snowflakes (blueberry, strawberry or mocha) and mochi (vanilla, strawberry or mocha).. I had mixed mochi and as always, loved it.. one portion was never enough for me.. the snowflakes however, was not my favorite.. layers of ice shavings, red beans, cuts of mochi and your choice of sauce sounded quite good.. but somehow, the mix was not my kind of dessert.. their mochi were to die for, though..

and we were allowed to went home with these.. thanks a lot BonChon.. :)

BonChon Chicken
City Walk Sudirman, Ground Floor
Jl. K.H. Mas Mansyur No. 121, Jakarta
Ph.: 6221 5422 0116

Bonchon Chicken

it was another fast food-chain selling Korean style of chicken, Bonchon Chicken.. with the tagline "it's not just a chicken, it's Bonchon Chicken", the restaurant claimed to offer not only crunchy but also healthy chicken.. why is so? the chicken is double fried using special soy garlic sauce to make it free of trans fat and oil but still offers delicious crunchy chicken.. 

curious about their chicken, I decided to visit their Citywalk branch during lunch hour, since its location which was quite near from my office.. the restaurant was really packed, perhaps because the strategic location.. I remember the queue was long and while queuing, we were asked about our orders in a little piece of paper  by a waiter.. so once we reach the counter, we only need to hand over the paper without repeating our orders..

I decided to try their chicken box (Rp29,545) and added with their power packet (Rp10,000).. the chicken box is the restaurant specialty, consisted of chicken, available with choices of wings, drums, thigh, strips and mix and regular or spicy sauce; rice/fries and drinks.. I picked the chicken wings, with spicy sauce and fries.. the power packet consisted of Bonchon bites and 2 pieces of mochi, I picked the mocha flavor.. 

while the cashier repeated my order, I noticed that she did not mention that I want fries, instead of rice, so I reminded her.. turned out that the waiter who wrote down my orders forgot to write that I want fries.. looking quite upset, the cashier directly blame the waiter right in front of me and asked her supervisor to void the previous order inputted.. not quite a good impression there.. after finishing the payment at the cashier, I received a table number then wait for the orders to be delivered to my table.. 

not long after I was seated, a waiter delivered my chicken wing box.. he then wanted to take my table number, which I directly object since my power packet had not arrived.. he noticed and asked whether I wanted it right away or after meal and I told him I want it right away.. so, the chicken wings surely looked appetizing.. the golden brown-ish crunchy chicken wings and fat french fries were pleasing in my eyes.. however, I found their chicken wings was not as rich in taste as it looked.. it was crunchy outside and tender inside, as expected.. but I didn't feel any kick in my tongue while eating..

I almost finish my chicken wings but my power packet had not arrived.. while all of my lunch-mates' orders had arrived.. it took me three times to ask where my power packet and received the similar answer of "please wait for a sec".. the power packet still had not arrived until a waiter asked me my receipt, ensuring that I had actually bought the power packet.. he intended to take it and showed his supervisor but I refused, saying that I need that receipt as a proof that I have bought the power packet in case another waiter asked for it.. only after that, my power packet finally arrived.. 

the Bonchon bites was hot, so I assumed that it was newly fried.. taste-wise, they were quite good, but my mood seemed to be ruined already that I did not enjoy my meal.. luckily, the mochi was good.. it was ice-cream wrapped in mochi and tasted really yummy.. a good dessert indeed..

overall, I had a not-so-pleasing eating experience at Bonchon Chicken.. the food actually was quite good, but the service had definitely turn down any option of coming back.. I do hope that Bonchon Chicken can improve their service to prevent repeats of anything like my experience..

Bonchon Chicken
Citiwalk Sudirman, Ground Floor
Jl. K.h Mas Mansyur 121

Jakarta 10220

Ph.: 6221 255 56620

www.bonchonid.com

Pizza Marzano

my teammates at office are such a food addict.. we have all the reason just to go out and eat then named it team-meeting haha.. a few weeks ago, a temporary employee who has helped our team for the past three months decided to end her contract.. that's another reason for us to treat her lunch, as a good bye.. it was Pizza Marzano when we finally set our choice.. mostly because they offered a 50% discount for BNI Credit Card holder.. such a great deal.. I love discounts.. 

clock-wise: Grand Chicken Caesar Salad - Maccheroni Al Forno Alla Bolognese - Fettucinni Con Funghi - Iced Cappucinno

for appetizer, we decided to share Grand Chicken Caesar Salad (Rp67,000) consisted of chicken, anchovies, grana padano, cos lettuce, croutons, Caesar dressing, served with bread sticks.. it tasted good.. I'm such a fan for Caesar salad, so I'm not being objective I supposed.. the dressing was good with a hint of sour.. it was refreshing and a good appetizer for me..

a friend of mine ordered Maccheroni Al Forno Alla Bolognese (Rp65,000).. it was baked macaroni with bechamel sauce, bolognese sauce, mozzarella and grana padano.. it was one of the new menu there and it tasted really good.. I regret that I didn't order that.. the macaroni was al dente, went really well with the bolognese sauce and baked cheese.. I loved it..

I, on the other hand, picked the classical Fettucinni Con Funghi (Rp60,000).. the classic creamy fettucinni with mushrooms.. it was just okay, unfortunately.. I had better.. the pasta was good but the sauce was too creamy that I ended not finishing my whole plate.. sorry :( I also ordered Iced Cappucinno (around Rp20,000, I forgot) for my companion since I remembered that Italians have great coffee.. it was also good, but not special..

Choco Fudge Cake

off to dessert, we're actually planning to order a piece of tiramisu cake as it was really appetizing.. but unfortunately, they run out of it.. so our choice went to Choco Fudge Cake (Rp40,000).. and it's not disappointing at all.. the cake was moist and tasted bittersweet.. it was served warm and combined with the vanilla ice cream, it was just perfect.. I almost forgot the diet I'm on eating this haha.. such a great way to end your lunch :)

Pizza Marzano
Citywalk Ground Floor

Jl. KH. Mas Mansyur No. 121, Karet

Central Jakarta

Ph.: 6221 2555 6696

Sate Khas Senayan

it's been a while since I had this lunch with teammates.. I haven't had the chance to post it here and since it was a treat, so I don't know the prices of below dishes.. sorry :( but it was a good lunch.. this lunch treat occurred after our yearly bonus, a friend of mine mentioned that his bonus is beyond his expectation so he decided to share it with us.. a nice guy, he is :) we wanted to have lunch near our office, so we headed to Citywalk in Sudirman.. we actually meant to eat at Warung Leko, however, when we arrived it was really crowded and there were 8 of us so it's kind hard to get a table soon.. we turned our head and spotted Sate Khas Senayan, so we changed our plan..

it turned out that Sate Khas Senayan was also quite crowded that the eight of us have to sit in a table for six haha.. it doesn't matter though.. Sate Khas Senayan was founded in 1974, firstly located in Kebayoran Baru area.. the purpose of this restaurant is to bring satay, which used to be a hawker food into a new concept of restaurant.. it was founded by the name of Satay House Senayan and changed its name to a 'more-Indonesia' name of Sate Khas Senayan in 1982 and continues using that name until now.. Sate Khas Senayan offers variety of satays and other Indonesian food and drinks.. with the tagline of A Savory Cuisine of Timeless Tradition, it brings you the joy of nostalgic cuisine.. 

as this was a treat, it took us not long to brutally order our food.. we were quite hungry back then.. I remember saw the face of my friend treating us became rather pale haha.. we decided to order several menus to share.. oh, and since it was a treat, I don't know the price of below dishes.. sorry :( but I think it was averagely around Rp30k for the main courses :)

first to come is tahu telor (crusty deep-fried bean curd coated in egg batter and drenched in sweet soy sauce, served with cabbage and bean sprout).. I have to say that this is delicious.. just about five minutes after the dish arrived, it was completely finished.. that's how good it is... or how hungry we were haha.. anyway, the bean curd was crispy, just the way I like it.. a nice appetizer to boost your taste buds..

then comes Pecel which was a mix of vegetables with peanut sauce.. however, Sate Khas Senaya's pecel sauce was rather different.. it was dark black, I think they put some petis (fermented shrimp paste) in it.. 

next another vegetables, stirred-fried kangkung.. which I like so much.. I always order this veggie in every restaurant putting it as a menu haha.. well, this one is not special, just ordinary.. but still it didn't fail me :)

our Soto Betawi is the star of the lunch.. it was delicious, though the fillings were not much, that I only got the soup.. sad.. but the soup alone is just delicious.. 

now it's the restaurant's special chicken satay.. consisted of ten skewers served with their special peanut sauce on top of a hot fire.. a unique way to serve satay.. the chicken fillet was very tender.. I think they used peanut sauce rather than crushed peanut.. it gives a whole new experience.. nicely done :)

my friends also ordered mutton satay.. which I didn't try.. it was served not with peanut sauce, but with sweet soy sauce and chopped onion.. I heard that the meat was very tender and nice.. 

lastly come grilled squid.. we actually wanted to order fried gurame, but it was sold out.. our grilled squid consisted of only two pieces per portion.. we didn't expect it to be such a small portion since I remember it was quite pricey.. it tasted just okay.. nothing special..

overall, I had a great lunch with a few of great food and other ordinary food.. the best part was we had a nice chat and mingle together.. sharing joy with your friends felt really good :)

Sate Khas Senayan

Citywalk Sudirman Ground Floor No. 19 – 20

Jl. KH. Mas Mansyur No. 121, Karet

Central Jakarta

Ph.: 6221 2555 6671

Tamani Kafe Grill

in life, people should work to earn some money to eat; and should eat to earn some energy to work.. a continuous circle of life.. I have to say that I love working.. though tiring sometimes, it still brings joy to me.. at least, I have something I could do to make some money.. as stated in my profile, I'm a banker, which means, of course, I work in a bank; in a foreign bank, to be specific.. I have just worked here for a little more than a year.. a newbie, you can say.. working for a foreign bank could be really stressful.. 

I am working in Finance-Regulatory Reporting, which brings more pressure and burdens.. it's one package I think.. my job description was actually fulfilling all of Bank Indonesia's requests and regulations.. but that could be pretty hard sometimes.. each month, our team will have at least four days of overtime.. other than that, the central bank still got other special requests which should be delivered on timely basis.. 

okay, enough with the job.. I wanted to share that though working could be hard, it helps a lot when you got a nice and healthy working environment.. well, lucky for me, I got a great team.. during our overtime, we would cheer ourselves by buying good food for dinner, sharing our jokes and laughters.. sometimes, sing along together.. it really reduced the stress level.. one of our fun time would be a lunch treat by our manager.. so here's the story of a lunch treat at Tamani Kafe at Citywalk, Sudirman..

I decided to pick grilled salmon with mashed potato and black-pepper sauce (Rp78,500) and thai iced tea (Rp14,900).. my grilled salmon was beautifully set on the plate.. it started with mixed vegetables, then 140gr grilled salmon and topped with mashed potato.. the black-pepper sauce was used as garnish and separately served in a pot.. the salmon tasted great.. it was tender and well cooked.. it went well with the black-pepper sauce as I was looking for something spicy.. the mashed potato was creamy and it tasted nice.. my thai iced tea was magnificent, as always.. I think Tamani Kafe was quite famous for their thai iced tea and it's true.. 

overall, I'm satisfied with the food and drinks I had.. especially when it's a treat :) one thing I have to complain is the service, it takes almost one hour to prepare our meal.. it was quite crowded at that time, as it was a lunch time.. but I suppose preparing our meals should not take such a long time..

Tamani Kafe Grill

Citywalk, Ground Floor #15-16

K.H. Mas Mansyur No. 121

Tanah Abang, Central Jakarta

Ph.: 6221-2555 6673

Nanny's Pavillion, the Living Room

I have read reviews about this place all over the food blogs and I'm so willing to try it.. located in Citywalk, which was very very near to my office makes me a little reluctant to visit.. you know, the bad feeling u get when u visit somewhere near your office on weekends.. haha.. well, anyway, me and bf finally came there and give it a try..

first impression.. I love the decor.. it's white and country-like.. feels warm.. wooden chairs and tables are ready for you.. then you have talenan (I dunno the english word for that) as your table mat.. I just love it.. they also put some artificial small plants and flowers which adds a sweet touch to the whole restaurant..

okay.. to the food.. Nanny's Pavillion serves pancakes (both sweet and sour), pastas, sandwiches and steak.. wel, we chose to have one portion of pasta and one portion of pancake..

Mom's Green Spaghetty (Rp34) - pasta saute with pesto base, garlic, shallot and smoked beef.. Blueberry Cheese Roll Pancake (Rp29) - one piece roll cream cheese pancake served with blueberry sauce and ice cream..

the verdict.. I love the Mom's Green Spaghetty.. well, I love pesto base pasta, anyway haha.. the pasta taste just right, and they're quite generous with the smoked beef.. the blueberry cheese roll  pancake was fluffy and warm when they serve it to us.. the cream cheese and blueberry sauce completes each other.. I think the pancake is quite fulfilling that you better share it with your company..

overall, we had our tummy full with good food and our eyes was spoiled with nice decor.. gonna come back somewhere near around the future :)

Nanny's Pavilion
Citywalk Sudirman Ground Floor Unit 21
Jl. KH. Mas Mansyur No.121, Karet
Central Jakarta
Phone: (+62)21 255 56779