Cimory Riverside

as time went by, I realized that the life here in Jakarta can be really stressful.. the work loads, the social pressure, not to mention the terrible traffic and a short getaway is just what I need.. of course, I would love to travel further and see the world, but in the mean time, I am still thankful for a short trip to Bogor, the rain city where I can rest my mind for a while.. Now let me welcome you to Cimory Riverside..

this place is beautifully located on the side of Ciliwung river, creating a very lovely atmosphere.. imagine having your weekend in the cold weather of Puncak, hearing the water flowing sound and surrounded by people you love.. heavenly! as always, Cimory always managed to fill in their restaurant with lots of cow accessories.. just look how cute they are welcoming me..

I came here with my mom and brother during a coffee break time.. and we were not too hungry that  we prefer to have some light meals.. I had strawberry juice (Rp26,500) while my brother had blueberry yogurt shake (Rp25,500) and we shared a portion of fried mushrooms (Rp29,500).. my strawberry juice was thick and pure which I love.. though I forgot to order it unsweetened, but it was still a good strawberry juice.. my brother's blueberry yogurt shake was not my favorite.. combining yogurt and blueberry juice was not my thing.. I prefer fresh juices to yogurt shake..

as for the fried mushrooms, you can definitely see that the serving size was way too small for such a price.. I was disappointed, in terms of serving size and taste.. I even made a conclusion for my next visit not to order any food there and stick to the drinks.. atmosphere-wise, it was still really a beautiful afternoon well spent!

Cimory Riverside

Jalan Raya Puncak KM 76
Bogor, Indonesia

[Sydney] FourAteFive

well, hello there.. it's my last breakfast in Sydney.. gosh, I'm writing this blog in a pace of a snail.. it was a windy day at Sydney and we have decided to have breakfast at FourAteFive located in 485 Crown Street, Surry Hills, due to recommendation from some friends.. looking at the map, Crown Street seemed not to be too far from our Bounce hotel, behind the Central station.. so off we go on our morning walk and yes, our breakfast place was not too far so it was good to have a nice warm up..

the place was quite small and packed with lots of patrons who seemed to be regular.. it was a cozy and homey eatery.. I really enjoy the warm and friendly atmosphere.. first we were served with iced water.. the menu was quite various with typical western breakfast.. I decided to go with banana mini-loaf served with cinnamon butter (AUD5.50) and hot cappuccino (AUD4.00) while the others went with homemade creamed corn (AUD17.00), french toast (AUD14.00) and blueberry muffin (around AUD5.00) with hot latte (AUD4.00) and hot mocha (AUD4.00).. foodporn ahead :)

hot latte - hot mocha - hot cappucinno

banana mini-loaf served with cinnamon butter

home-made cream corn

french toast

blueberry muffin

I'm drooling just by looking at those pictures.. I love the banana mini-loaf so much.. it has the right sweetness level for my taste buds.. and the cinnamon butter was just a nice little surprise.. it melts as I spread it on the warm banana loaf.. yummy! I wonder where can I found a banana loaf as good as this one in Jakarta.. our hot drinks were such a beauty in the eyes.. I love their coffee art and they all tasted just as good as they look.. my cappucinno was creamy and quite strong to wake me up.. 

my companion's breakfast menus were just as good.. look at the homemade creamed corn, topped with two poached eggs (we asked for well-done ones) and crispy bacon served with organic sourdough toast.. it was a unique dish, I have never tasted anything like this before.. the creamed corn was definitely the star of the dish.. it was smooth and silky.. while the french toast was stuffed with bananas, served with maple syrup, mascarpone and rhubarb.. the bread was huge and soft with all of those toppings, you can't just go wrong with it.. lastly, the blueberry muffin which served with butter..  I don't know what love relationship between Australians and butter, but almost every breakfast is served with a piece of butter.. spread the butter on top of the warm muffin and as it melted, quickly put it in your month.. nice and yummy.. 

 

overall, I had a hearty breakfast at FourAteFive.. the best one I had during my Australia trip.. I smiled every time I looked at those food photos.. a nice morning walk continued with a warm breakfast shared with best girls in the world.. I truly cherish every moment spent :)

Four Ate Five
485 Crown St, Surry Hills, Sydney
Ph.: +61 2 9698 6485
www.fouratefive.com

[Sydney] Hunter Valley

our second day in Sydney was a full day tour to Hunter Valley.. Hunter Valley is an area located in north of Sydney and famous for its wineries.. apparently, one of my travel mate is a huge fan of wine while the rest are curious wine beginners.. we booked a Hunter Valley Wine Tasting Tour with a light lunch for AUD90.00.. we were picked up at our hotel with a Mercedes Benz mini bus on 6:45 in the morning then continued our journey to pick other travel mates.. the total tour participants was 14 people.. it was really exciting meeting other tour members as some of them was also tourists..

the beautiful bright sky

the journey from Sydney to Hunter Valley took around 2 hours and we stopped by a coffee shop for our morning coffee.. we visited 5 wineries, including Capercaillie, McGuigan, two other which I can't recall, perhaps I wasn't quite sober during the visit and lastly, Blueberry Hill.. let me spoil your eyes with the beautiful Hunter Valley :)

wine and cheese are a match made in heaven

remember, keep calm and drink wine

wine, wine and more wines

I think it's the pinkish Moscato

beautiful vineyard

McGuigan's wines: white, red and semi-vodka

the home of Pinot Noir

the vine

after four vineyards, we were escorted to Hunter Resort and Blue Tongue Brewery where we will have our lunch.. as we ordered a tour package with light lunch, we were free to choose from pepperoni pizza, mediterranean pizza, smoked salmon on sour dough with Thai salad or pumpkin and feta frittata.. not in the mood to take any risk, I picked pepperoni pizza while some of my other friends picked smoked salmon on sour dough with Thai salad.. we were given a number which will ring once our orders are ready to be picked up in the counter.. it was a very efficient way for the self-service experience..

pepperoni pizza

smoked salmon on sour dough with Thai salad

well, the pepperoni pizza was unexpectedly delicious.. a huge portion.. thin, crispy crust with generous pepperoni, mushrooms and mozzarella cheese.. it tasted really good, at least way above my expectation haha.. the smoked salmon also tasted quite good, served fresh on top of sour dough (I don't know why Australian love sour dough), and some Thai salad with beansprouts and pink ginger served with some sauce which tasted like balsamic vinegar to me.. still edible though was not my personal favorite, the pepperoni pizza still won my heart.. 

anyway, near the Blue Tongue brewery, we found this black board.. I truly love what it says :)

overall, I had a great day at Hunter Valley.. it's really exciting to give yourself a chance getting to know more about wine.. at least, I managed to keep my consciousness after five wineries and I don't know how many glasses of wine.. the only effect I got was feeling very sleepy and light.. luckily I didn't get my face red.. anyway, cheers for a good, well-spent day :)

[Sydney] Hurricane's Grill

Hurricane's Grill is in my must-visit-no-mater-what list.. the brand has been really famous for selling one of the best pork ribs in the world.. I remember that everybody who knew we were visiting Sydney was recommending this place.. so the expectation was really high!

we decided to visit Hurricane's Grill branch in the famous Bondi beach, though they also have a branch in Darling Harbour.. we made our reservation in advance for 8:00 p.m.. but for overexcitement reason, we arrived too early and ended had to wait for a while.. but the waiters were very nice and made our table ready even before our reservation time.. once seated, we ordered plain water to accompany our meals.. a portion of caesar salad (AUD20.00) and full rack pork ribs (AUD42.90).. both dishes were shared between four girls.. don't get us wrong, but we heard that the portion was huge, so it's better to order the minimum and add more than to waste food due to over-ordering.. before our orders arrived, we were given an apron to avoid anything happen to our dresses.. very thoughtful :)

the caesar salad arrived first.. a good thing, since I do want to eat the appetizer first.. unfortunately, some Indonesian restaurants just don't get the idea of appetizers and main course.. a huge mountain of crisp cos lettuce, croutons, bacon, anchovies, shaved parmigiano drenched in caesar dressing.. it was delicious! I am a huge fan of caesar salad and this one didn't let me down at all.. the freshness of the lettuce combined with parmigiano and the dressing was just delicious.. I think I took the largest portion of finishing this dish haha.. 

a few moments later, come the star of the night.. full rack of pork ribs accompanied with french fries.. the portion was unbelievably huge.. first bite and the expectation was met.. it was one delicious ribs with tasty seasoning.. the meat was very tender and easily got off from the bones.. it was finger-licking good! the french fries was fat, crunchy outside and very smooth inside.. counting the calorie every time I eat a bit of it.. we were not quite satisfied and we ended up ordered another portion, half rack pork ribs (AUD31.90) for the second round.. that's just how much we enjoyed the meal.. forget about the calories or diet or anything.. it was simply heavenly..

Hurricane's Grill
130 Roscoe Street, Bondi Beach,
Sydney, Australia
Ph.: +61 2 9130 7101
www.hurricanesgrill.com.au/

[Sydney] Chat Thai

hi all.. welcome to Sydney.. one of the most beautiful cities in the world.. I left my heart there, with the old buildings, great view and of course, the Opera House..

our first culinary experience in Sydney was another Thai food.. I can tell that Thai food has a place in the heart of Australians.. I got this recommendation from my friend who used to live in Australia and it was one of the most recommended restaurant found in Sydney's food blogs.. so the expectation was high.. our hotel is located right behind the Central Station, and we only have to take a few walks to reach Chat Thai in Campbell Street.. a little sports to start up the day.. as we arrived during lunch time, the place was packed! another level was added to our expectation..

after a while, we finally got our seats.. a small table with four seats.. the distance between each tables was quite narrow that you can hear as the other patrons were speaking.. not too comfy actually but it was one of a kind eating experience.. I noticed that there's an Indonesian family across our table.. well, off to the food.. our drinks came first, one kafe yen or iced coffee with caramelized milk (AUD4.00), one iced cha nohm rorn and two hot cha nohm rorn or sweet tea with caramelized milk (AUD4.00).. the kafe yen was great! but we were quite disappointed with the cha nohm rorn since they tasted kinda weird.. 

kafe yen - hot cha nohm rorn - iced cha nohm rorn 

as the appetizer we had mhu bhing or grilled pork skewers (AUD2.00 each).. pinkish pork skewers served with Thai chili.. the skewer itself was rather bland but luckily the chili saved the day.. it tasted really good and full of spices.. 

of course you can't go to a Thai restaurant without ordering padt thai,  the stir fried thin rice noodles with chicken, dride shimps, bean sprouts, garlic and chives in a tamarind and palm sugar sauce (AUD9.90).. I'm so sorry to say but Boon Chu Thai's padt thai was way better than this one, in terms of taste and portion.. 

this one was one of Thai's finest cuisine,  gaeng keaw gai or green curry of chicken with apple eggplants, kaffir lime leaves and basil (AUD14.00).. it's my first time trying this and I have to say I'm not a fan.. a lot of things going on my tongue on my first bite and it was quite overwhelming.. I still find it edible but I don't think I would order this anytime soon.. I'm gonna stick to tom yam goong for now.. however, my friend found it very enjoyable.. she said it was one of the best green curry she has ever tasted.. talking about different taste :)

lastly, we have khao mok gai which is chicken and rice braised in tumeric and five spice with green chili and garlic sauce with rice (AUD10.90).. in my opinion, it was similar to Indonesia's nasi kuning.. the chicken was nice, crispy outside and tender inside.. I love the yellow rice since it was fragrant and perfectly cooked.. the green chili was another plus point.. I love the spicy food.. 

overall, I didn't find Chat Thai quite as I had expected before.. and turned out our high expectation was not fulfilled.. I still think Boon Chu Thai has the best padt thai.. or perhaps I should travel to Thailand to experience the original padt thai.. but until then, the best padt thai is still in Gold Coast.. 

Chat Thai

20 Campbell Street Haymarket

Sydney

Ph.: +61 2 9211 1808

www.chatthai.com.au

[Gold Coast] Pancakes on the Rocks

holla peeps! how are you doing? it's a long weekend so I have plenty of time to write in this blogs.. too many photo and review waiting to be posted so I think I have to finish my homework.. anyway, this is the last Gold Coast post, so here we go..

eating in Gold Coast can be very tricky.. remembering that most shopping malls are closed at 5.00 p.m.. you have to prepare your research well and ensure the opening hours of your target restaurants.. actually Pancakes on the Rocks was on our Sydney's must visit list.. but since we only have three days in Sydney, the must-visit list was packed already.. lucky for us (oh, thank God!), Pancakes on the Rocks has just opened a new branch in Mermaid Beach, Gold Coast in 2012.. so after a long and tiring day at the Dream World and the urge to have some good food, we drove along the Mermaid Beach to find the historic restaurant..

Pancakes on the Rocks has been selling pancakes since 1975 in Sydney! such a long history for a pancake shop.. but only after 1994, this restaurant started to sell menus other than pancakes, including pizza, salads, crepes and ribs.. the menu offered today is very extensive.. lots of choices to confuse you as each one looked very appetizing.. we arrived around 8.30 p.m for a late dinner and the restaurant was quite empty since it's not common for native Australians to have dinner at such time haha.. 

so we decided to share the whole thing.. monte cristo savory crepes (AUD14.95), chicken and bacon pizza (AUD17.95) and devil's delight pancake (AUD13.95).. with tap water and a glass of hot marshmallow cocoa (AUD2.95).. here comes the foodporn..

it's my choice actually.. the monte cristo was a savory crepes filled with chicken, smoked ham and cheese served on a bed of mixed lettuce then topped with house chili sour cream and shallots.. it looked rather colorless but it was really amazing! the pancake itself was very thin, soft and nice.. creamy fillings poured as you cut the pancakes, and it tasted great! I love this dish so much, really..

the chicken and bacon pizza came in a "unique" look.. I was really thinking that they burn the pizza crust as it was really dark.. let me describe first, chicken breast pieces (you can see the chicken chunks there), bacon, sun-dried tomatoes, marinated mushrooms and tomato salsa on a guacamole and mozzarella cheese base, then topped with sour cream, guacamole and shallots.. that's what the menu said.. it tasted quite good, despite some bitterness due to the burned crust.. I think it has a Mexican twist as you have the guacamole and sour cream.. I somehow love it.. the crust was actually very crispy and the fillings was very tasty..

last, but of course not least, the dessert! devil's delight pancake, chocolate pancakes with strawberries, cream, chocolate ice cream and drizzled with chocolate sauce.. yumyum.. it was so good.. I mean look at the combination.. what can be wrong with all of those? I love the pancakes texture as it was soft and fluffy.. it was one hearty and chocolaty dessert!

lastly, it was our hot marshmallow cocoa.. for a cold nights at Gold Coast.. this is a perfect treat for sweet tooth like me.. hot choco with melted marshmallow.. I love it since it was pure chocolate and unsweetened, so I can manage the sweetness level.. life's good with a cup of chocolate and girls talk :)

Pancakes on the Rocks

2488 Gold Coast Highway, Mermaid Beach (Next to Putt Putt)

Trading Hours: Sunday to Thursday 7.30am-9.00pm | Friday/Saturday 7.30am-10.00pm

Ph.: +61 7 5526 6274

Fax: +61 7 5526 6361

www.pancakesontherocks.com.au

[Gold Coast] Three Beans

image taken from here

I am living the quote here.. a good way to start your morning, especially in Australia, is to try their coffee.. it was quite famous and I am more than excited.. it was a 24-hour little cafe, located in Broadbeach, right next to Boon Chu Thai.. I have to emphasize the 24-hour thing since almost every mall closes at 5.00 to 6.00 p.m and every eatery around 10.00 p.m.. in the black board in front of the cafe, they also emphasize the 24-hour thing by saying "yes, we really, really are open 24 hours.. always.." cute!

back to business.. of course, we ordered their coffee.. here, the coffee offered is Merlo Coffee.. as mentioned in their website, Merlo Coffee was named Australia's favorite coffee in Lifestyle FOOD's I Love FOOD Awards in 2012.. it's a premium fresh espresso which comes with high expectation from all of us.. so we made our orders, a cup of regular hot cappuccino (AUD3.90) and three cups of regular hot latte (AUD3.90).. mine was hot latte as cappuccino sometimes offered too much foam.. anyway, it tasted great.. I can taste that the coffee was quite strong, with silky milk.. I added a sachet of brown sugar to make it less bitter and I was content.. as easy as that.. it was a hearty cup of coffee to start the day.. a time well spent shared with best friends..

hot cappuccino

hot latte

as for breakfast, I decided to have their quiche lorraine (AUD6.00).. I once heard that you have to try Australia's quiches and pies.. so there I went.. when it was served on my table, I was quite pleased with the way it looked.. a golden brown pie crust was simply great for breakfast.. appetizing and (I hope) healthy as well.. it was served with a small plate of caramelized onions.. yes, those red, bolognese sauce look a like, was the caramelized onions mixed with some tomato.. 

I love my quiche!! crunchy pie crust with smooth, yummy fillings.. I think it was a mixture of cheese and bacon.. I finished the whole portion all by myself, only let the others taste a bite each haha.. that's just how much I love my quiche.. the caramelized onions was also very tasty.. too tasty, perhaps.. there's a lot of thing going on in your mouth all at once.. I didn't finish my caramelized onions and this one friend willingly finished it up for me.. she used it like a jam to her toast and simply said that it was so good.. 

well, there you go.. a decent Australian style breakfast.. a good cup of coffee, delicious quiche shared  with great friends and lots of laughter and you're on holiday.. life is good, you know :)

Three Beans
Phoenician Building, Shop 13, 90 Surf Parade
Broadbeach, QLD 4218
Ph.: +61 7 5538 8744

http://www.merlo.com.au/

[Brisbane] Cactus Republic

road trip to Brisbane! it was a one-hour trip from Gold Coast to Brisbane and we made it with the help of Google Maps.. well, lots of help, actually.. and now I am officially a fan of the application, really.. our first destination in Brisbane is South Bank Parklands.. it was a huge park located right on the southern bank of Brisbane river.. a mixture of rain forest, grassed areas and artificial beach.. you can enjoy the city view of Brisbane which was located right on the other side of Brisbane river.. have yourself enjoy the sun or just sit calmly in the middle of the cool rain forest.. here, you can also find the Wheels of Brisbane, one of the most popular landmark in Brisbane.. here's a sneak peak of how South Bank Parklands looked like..

the sun is bright!

got no beach? well, Brisbane made one!

Wheels of Brisbane

the city right across the Brisbane river

we arrived just before lunch time.. looking around the plaza, we were quite confused of what to eat.. as usual.. so, we decided to try something we had never tried before and the decision went to Mexican food.. not so adventurous for some of you, but it was quite an unusual choice we made.. located strategically in Stanley Street Plaza, we could not help but notice Cactus Republic.. without too much negotiation, we made our orders.. chips & dips (AUD6.95), chicken quesadillas (AUD9.50), added with guacamole, sour cream and pico de gallo (AUD1.50) along with the people's burrito (AUD11.95).. while waiting, we are served with iced tap water for free.. it was really good since the sun was just too bright.. we're sweating already..

the first to arrive was chips & dips.. the options available were chili dip, flag dip, guacamole dip or pico de gallo dip.. we chose chili dip which was basically minced beef with chili and cheese.. it was delicious! really.. crunchy nachos with generous dip.. I fell in love with it.. imagine, having this as afternoon snacks while you're watching your favorite movie at home.. yum yum..

next was chicken quesadillas.. a little info, quesadilla is a tortilla filled with meat and other condiments then folded in half to form a half-moon shape.. it was originated from Mexico.. in Cactus Republic, the choices for quesadillas include cheese + jalapeno, chorizo + cheese, chicken, pork or vegetarian.. chicken was our choice, since one of my friend has no longer eat beef.. the quesadilla was delicious.. eat it with a mix of guacamole (avocado paste), sour cream and pico de gallo (tomato salsa) and it was perfect.. I personally loved the pico de gallo so much as it was really fresh..

lastly, the people's burrito.. there are four steps when you order the people's burrito.. step 1. liberate the meat: chicken.. step 2. free the beans: whole black bean.. step 3. take what's yours: medium - chipotle tomato salsa.. step 4. do that little extra: none.. so there we have it, chicken burrito with whole black bean and chipotle tomato salsa.. so inside the tortilla wrap, we found chicken, beans, lettuce, tomato salsa and rice.. yes, rice.. I was quite surprised to find rice inside a burrito.. the verdict.. it was definitely not my favorite.. the sourness of tomato salsa was dominating the whole dish, which was supposed to be a good thing.. but combining the sour salsa with rice had totally turned me off.. actually other than that, the whole dish was quite okay.. the chicken was very tender and the fillings were generous..

Cactus Republic

Stanley Street Plaza, the Parklands

South Bank, QLD 4101

Ph.: +61 7 3844 0878

www.cactus-republic.com.au