Starbucks Winter Indulgence

now, which one of you do not know the name Starbucks Coffee? it's definitely the most successful and largest coffee chain in the world, bringing coffee to more than 60 countries.. what I love most about Starbucks is the homey feeling I get in every store and the continuous innovation which brought new menus in every three months.. the living proof of never get too satisfied with your current achievement.. at the end of 2013, I was lucky to be invited to a food tasting panel held in the new Starbucks store in MD Place, Kuningan.. this was aimed to introduce Asian Dolce Frappucinno and three new food menu, which will be launched on January 7, 2014 and available until March 3, 2014.. so be sure you dont't miss it..

here's a sneak peak on how the Asian Dolce Frappucinno would look like.. it's a blend of dark roasted coffee, signature espresso, rich sweetness of Dolce sauce, blended together and classically topped with whipped cream.. in my humble opinion, I loved it! I can taste the strong coffee which should be enough to wake me up.. the Asian Dolce is also available in iced and latte.. I usually prefer hot coffee to the cold one since I can taste stronger caffeinne, but the frappuccino was quite strong already.. so the choice is yours ;)

like I mentioned above, Starbucks launches three new food menus.. let's start our journey with Potato Salad with Fruity Kraftkorn 32k.. it's a sandwich made from kraftkorn mix and folded with raisins, apricots and walnuts; layered with potato salad.. alright, let's be honest.. initially, I thought mixing sweet kraftkorn with the savory potato salad was a big mistake.. I mean, combining raisins and salty potato just doesn't seem to make sense to me.. however, I was so wrong.. it was really good! I love the sweet savory combination in one bite.. the potato salad was really delicious!

our second menu is Smoked Chicken and Mushroom Croissant 26.5k.. baked buttery croissant dough, filled with smoked chicken and mushroom then topped with bechamel sauce and cheese.. this has successfully become the highlight of the night.. it was really delicious! I love everything about it.. the croissant was buttery and crunchy, perfectly combined with the generous fillings.. you should not miss this one..

lastly, came the only sweet dish of the night, Rhubarb and Apple Crumble 30k, sweet buttery almond dough filled with tangy rhubarb, combined with fresh apples and topped with almond crumble.. it looked very pleasing in the eyes.. the beautiful dessert.. however, I tasted that the dish was too sweet for my tastebuds.. fellow foodies thought the dish would've been more balanced if there were more sourness from the rhubarb.. I like the crumbles though..

Starbucks Coffee
MD Place Kuningan Ground Floor
Jl. Setiabudi Selatan No. 7
South Jakarta

Loewy

it has been a while since my last post here.. I have been missing this blog so much *virtual hug*.. well, I have been really busy lately, so please accept my sincere apology.. hope it's not too late to wish you a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.. may your days be merry and bright :)

anyway, let's get into business.. it is December already and I still can't believe how time flies.. and as always, there was a Christmas dinner shared with my best friends, only to celebrate that our friendship somehow managed to survive another year.. this year, it was Loewy voted as our dinner venue.. yes, we were not that adventurous in trying new restaurants.. the traffic was horrible on 23rd of December.. the table has been reserved previously so we didn't have to queue.. FYI, the table is yours only for two hours.. gosh, I hate restaurants limiting your time for eating.. 

so off to business, let's place our orders.. remembering the horrible traffic before, there sitting six hungry girls which basically can eat anything.. but let's start slow with the quencher as I remebered being really thirsty that night.. I decided to have something warm, as my stomach was not too cooperative.. it was chamomile organic tea 30k which tasted quite ordinary.. I love the teapot, though.. my other friends uniformly picked ice lychee tea 30k..

now, let's continue our journey with the food, stars of the nights.. while waiting for all the girls to arrived, we decided to have the appetizers first.. from the finger food menu, we ordered classic nachos 40k and spicy garlic chicken wings 50k.. the nachos were quite nice.. crispy texture with generous fillings.. the portion was quite small, but then again, it was in the finger food section.. the spicy garlic chicken wings was a bit disappointing.. the chicken was too dry and bland.. the chili and garlic was not helping either.. 

after eating bits of those finger food, off we went serious to the main courses.. the main menu was quite extensive with selection of steak, pasta and Loewy's main specialties.. truffle mac and cheese 95k, seafood a la plancha 145k, dory meunière 115k and chicken wellington 85k were our choices.. 

the truffle mac and cheese arrived first, it was served with gruyère & smoked beef.. to be honest, I underestimated this dish, because I thought mac and cheese is for kids, or you can simply go to nearest supermarket and have the instant ones.. I have never been so wrong as it was the best dish of the night! warm, creamy and really tasty.. I supposed it was the truffle that made the dish so special.. it was told that French gourmand used to call truffles, the diamonds of the kitchen.. the dish was so perfect that we ordered another portion of it! it's too good to be missed, really..

next, we had seafood a la plancha.. a la plancha actually means grilled on a metal plate.. in Loewy, you can find fish, prawns, calamari on top of zucchini & eggplant, served with potato wedges, lemon slice and aioli.. the seafood was fresh but nothing quite special about it.. a bit bland for my palate and overpriced for my wallet..

the second best dish of the night would be dory meunière, served with steamed asparagus and baby potatoes.. now, please take a minute to look at the yellow thing wrapped in white piece of cloth, which was actually lemon.. Loewy was very thoughtful.. the cloth was there to prevent any lemon seeds falling over your food while you're pressing the lemon for its juice.. I was quite impressed.. what's even more impressing was the taste of this dish.. I love everything about it, the fish, the asparagus and the potatoes.. perfect dishes all in a single plate.. now, if you are as curious as I am, according to Wikipedia, meunière is the way of cooking by dredging the fish in seasoned flour then cooking in a hot sauté pan with a small amount of clarified butter; after the fish has been removed, meunière sauce were made by adding fresh butter, parsley and lemon.. and that's just how this beautiful dish was created..

chicken wellington arrived late, as warned by our waiter.. chicken breast rolled in mushroom pâté and wrapped in puff pastry, served with fresh greens and brown sauce.. I am a sucker for puff pastries, and this dish was no difference.. the chicken breast was a bit hard and bland when eaten alone, but the brown sauce came to rescue.. putting it altogether made the dish balanced with no single overpowering taste.. though this tasted quite simple, I loved it..

overall, we had a great night at Loewy.. the dishes were scrumptious and the companions are the best! the thing bothering us was only the no-smile service and two-hour limitation for our table.. I surely will be back in the future, but I will choose to come on not so busy hours.. 

Loewy

Oakwood Premier Cozmo

Jalan Lingkar Mega Kuningan E42 No.1

South Jakarta 12950
Ph.: +62 21 25542378
www.loewyjakarta.com

[Revisit] Bluegrass - Bar & Grill

as I was quite impressed by their food on my first visit, so I decided to come back for some more delicacies offered by Bluegrass.. it was Monday afternoon, I was taking leave and with my mom and brother heading to the Kuningan area.. I didn't know that Jakarta's traffic on Monday afternoon was horrible, it took me more than 1 hour to reach Bluegrass.. tiring journey, indeed.. 

well, as we arrived around 2p.m, the place was quite empty.. I love empty restaurants, it just gave a more comfortable feeling, and the waiters become more attentive.. as we went through the menu, we decided to share two main courses and one appetizer.. our choices were nacho supreme (Rp50,000), pull pork sandwich  (Rp70,000) and steak sampler - veal bratwurst (Rp30,000), pork wienner (Rp30,000), BBQ chicken (Rp20,000) and roasted vegetables (Rp20,000).. for drinks, my mom picked americano coffee (Rp20,000), I picked coffee latte (Rp30,000) while my brother picked the joker (Rp40,000) which is a combination of crushed fresh apples and kiwis, mixed with kiwi and apple syrup and topped with soda water...

coffee latte - the joker - americano

the coffee was good.. my mom's americano smelled good and tasted quite strong.. my coffee latte was a bit milder, with more milk.. I love the presentation so much and the cute glass for my latte is definitely a plus point.. the star of the drinks would be my brother's joker.. it was sour and very refreshing.. especially during one hot day in Jakarta.. it is indeed a genius idea to combine kiwis and green apples.. thumbs up for the joker.. if I got the chance of coming back, that would definitely be my choice :)

nacho supreme

nacho supreme came not long after our drinks arrived.. a good point, I must say that nacho supreme really served as appetizer.. however, I was a bit shocked looking at the serving size, four pieces of two-bite-size nacho for a price of Rp50,000.. it means that each nacho cost us Rp12,500 plus tax and service.. wow, it was one pricey appetizer.. luckily, it was very delicious.. I think one of the best nacho I have ever tasted in Jakarta.. the fillings were generous.. however, the tomato salsa was not outstanding, a bit too sweet for my liking.. 

pull pork sandwich + sweet potato fries

actually the pull pork sandwich was my choice to share with my mom.. the sandwich, or more like a burger to me, came in a huge portion.. the pull pork was served between mayonnaise and coleslaw salad.. it was served with either french fries or sweet potato fries.. my choice was sweet potato fries.. the taste? it was delicious! best dish of the day.. the pull pork was actually shredded pork BBQ which was cooked for hours, making the meat very tender and tasty.. I love how the spices were blended so well with the tender meat.. and the sweet potato fries only made the dish even better.. fat fries with a hint of sweet in the middle was a nice companion :) only if they would add some more fries haha..

steak sampler

so it was my brother's lunch.. the steak sampler consisted of veal bratwurst, pork wienner, BBQ chicken and roasted vegetables.. the meats were served with home-made mayonnaise, which tasted unique and addictive.. the sausages were quite big and crunchy, just the way I would want them.. the BBQ chicken was just okay, and not special at all.. the star of this dish, strangely, was the roasted vegetables.. consisted of mushrooms, carrots, eggplants, zucchini and onions, it definitely exceeded my expectations.. well seasoned and freshly roasted.. healthy and yummy :)


overall, my second visit to Bluegrass was pleasing.. a much better service was provided to me compared to my first visit.. then, combine it with a calm, tranquil eatery.. I would definitely love to come back.. 

Bluegrass - Bar & Grill

Komplek Rasuna Epicentrum

Jl. HR Rasuna Said

South Jakarta 12940

Ph.: 6221 2994 1660

Fax: 6221 2994 1661

Bluegrass - Bar & Grill

another new eatery that everyone's been talking about.. Bluegrass is definitely a new hip place for Jakarta's hungry and demanding community.. located in the heart of Kuningan area, this place has been on my must-visit list for a while.. thank God I finally got the opportunity to visit this eatery with a friend, right after we were run out of red velvet cake at Union.. we were quite blessed as the traffic was quite friendly to us.. 

arriving at Bluegrass around 4.30 p.m, we were asked to be seated in the non-smoking area.. the waiter directly told us that our table is only available until 6p.m.. oh my God, I wonder why almost every restaurant has to limit our seating time these days.. it's actually quite annoying looking at the time we arrived, the restaurant was almost empty.. 

so anyway, since it was late afternoon, we decided to have some light bites.. our main purpose going here was to try their famous rainbow cake (Rp60,000) so it was on top of our list haha.. and as we looked for some savory menu, my friend remembered that the bluegrass wings (Rp55,000) was good.. then, he also remembered that he fell in love with their puff pastry brie (Rp60,000).. looks like it's not just some light bites haha.. to accompany our meals, I went for their coffee selection, cappucinno (Rp30,000) while my friend picked sencha ice (Rp20,000)..

I love the way my cappucinno was presented.. a cute heart shaped foam in a minimalist black cup on a tray.. a glass of plain water was also served.. such a cute presentation.. his sencha ice was rather colorless and tasteless.. I even thought it was iced water on first sight haha..

then our food came! bluegrass wings consisted of 12 pieces of chicken wings with home-made mayonnaise dipping sauce.. those are yummy.. the chicken wings were already grilled with BBQ sauce which was very tasty, and adding their mayonnaise would just make it even better.. puff pasty brie was a cheese filled puff pastry served with blueberry sauce, served hot.. when you cut the puff pasty, the melted cheese directly come out.. so be quick, eat the melted cheese with the pastry and blueberry sauce, it was a heaven on earth! I love everything about this dish.. not a sweet dish, but definitely has won my heart..

lastly to come is our rainbow cake.. a colorful six-stack of sponge cake.. the colors were really bright.. first bite, it was good.. sweet and moist sponge cake with sour lemon cream in between.. but after the first bite, I lost the goodness in the cake.. it was just another sponge cake, only with colors.. too bright colors, I must say.. 

overall, Bluegrass is a nice place.. well decorated with good food.. the service was not excellent but still acceptable for me.. all price stated above is subject to service charge 10% and tax 10%..

Bluegrass - Bar & Grill
Komplek Rasuna Epicentrum
Jl. HR Rasuna Said
South Jakarta 12940
Ph.: 6221 2994 1660
Fax: 6221 2994 1661

Casual Fine Dining with Starbucks

it's been quite a while since I updated this blog.. so sorry, blame it to the work load, as always :P anyway, on February 1, 2012, I was invited by the lovely Corry Tjong to attend Casual Fine Dining with Starbucks Indonesia..  located at Starbucks Tempo Scan Pacific Ground Floor, the Casual Fine Dining  should be started on 7 p.m sharp.. however, due to the terrible traffic of Rasuna Said street, I finally reached on 7.45 p.m.. it's so late that I didn't get the chance to try their new drink.. so sad :(

anyway, Starbucks actually introduced two new drinks, Vanilla Latte and Valencia Macchiato (the picture above was taken from Starbucks' Winter 2012 Media Kit CD).. their Vanilla Latte is described as rich, full-bodied espresso and vanilla syrup with hot milk and topped with a little foam.. while their Valencia Macchiato is a blend of sweet valencia orange with hot milk and foam, poured with espresso and garnished with honey valencia drizzle.. both drinks were surely tempting.. I'm going to nearest Starbucks and try those drinks haha.. 

well, this is the main reason we were invited.. Guatemala Casi Cielo coffee.. casi cielo actually means "almost heaven", it was characterized by rich,  elegant and smooth coffee taste.. this coffee is originated from four coffee plantation in Antigua (a part of Guatemala region) where the best coffee come from.. to be honest, I don't drink black coffee, but I made an exception for this one.. it smelled really good and actually tasted nice and light.. it was such a perfect companion for sweet snacks.. love it..

Starbucks Fruit Toast (Rp19,000) was my choice to accompany the casi cielo.. it was toasted whole wheat bread which was mixed with dried fruits, including cranberry, dark raisins, apricots, papaya, pumpkin, sunflower seeds and assorted nuts.. what do I think? of course I love it.. especially after putting some butter on top of it.. a perfect way to have breakfast and start your day plus it was whole wheat which was healthier..

next, we have tokyo cheese danish (Rp21,000).. it was soft and sweet buttery bread filled with cream cheese.. I love the bread, which was really soft.. and perfectly mixed with cream cheese.. this bread with a hot black coffee would be a match made in heaven.. yum yum..

mango lychee layered cake (Rp30,000).. to be honest, this one is my favorite.. a soft creamy cake filled with mango and lychee then wrapped with lapis legit.. it's east meet west dish and it's one of Starbucks way to celebrate Chinese new year.. I love the creamy cake so much that I just can't stop.. the lapis legit also tasted nice.. but I choose to eat those separately since combining it was not too acceptable in my tongue.. I think too much taste confused my taste buds.. 

so, you're not a sweet tooth head? well, Starbucks have thought about that.. introducing Chicken Caesar Wrap and Tuna Tomato Wrap (Rp33,000 each).. both dish was made from tortilla filled with creamy, herb chicken and cheddar cheese or tuna salad with lettuce, tomato, cucumber and cheese.. both dishes were meant to be served cold.. they both tasted really good but I personally love the tuna.. 

at the end of the day, it's not Starbucks if they let you walk away empty-handed.. a cup of hot white chocolate mocha was given to us.. it was heavenly.. and a goody bag!! yearly planner of my dream and a cute candy cane glass accompanied with casi cielo and those food (dancing happily).. thank you so much Starbucks.. *hugs & kisses*