Izakaya Issei

Another new spot to share. Yay! It's the newly established Izakaya Issei. This small Japanese eatery is located in the busy Senopati area, tucked on the second floor, on top of a small cafe, Appetite and Chief barbershop. Though it was quite hard to be noticed on first go, I am sure you'll notice it if I told you it was on the house right next to the famous Cacaote. Well, you know where to go. 

The word izakaya represents Japanese drinking establishment which also serves food to accompany the drinks, a casual place for after-work drinking. While issei means first. This kind of joint was not common here in Jakarta and that's why Izakaya Issei brought a whole new experience. Let me tell you beforehand that I fell in love with the place, the dishes and even the very hospitable host. I was there to join the crowd for #EATJKT event, held from 21 April to 18 May 2014, and I was so pleased with all the food presented, the speed of service and the nice dinner companion. Here we go.

sharing is caring

The place was not too large but somehow comfortable. It was very crowded on Tuesday night, a good sign that this place really serves good food. We got ourselves a table on the corner, right in front of the famous 'Sharing is Caring' sign.

Let's start with something girly, like this Sake Beries Issei 125k. With a really nice and unique presentation along with cute pink liquid, this definitely fits me, a beginner for drinking. Tasted bittersweet with a strong strawberry taste.

Issei Chicken 27k

This is a must try when visiting Izakaya Issei, their signature Issei Chicken, deep fried chicken served with spicy sambal. The sambal was very spicy and of course I'm a fan. The chicken was very tender and you won't notice that along the conversation, a plate was finished. It was just perfect to start the night.

Age Dori Negi Sauce 36k

This is my personal favorite, age dori negi sauce. If you followed my instagram account, you'll notice I uploaded this live from Izakaya Issei. It was deep fried chicken thigh with special sauce. The chicken was tender, moist, juicy and almost melt in your mouth. The sauce tasted dominantly sweet and blended really well with the chicken.

top: Wakame Salad 45k - Korokke Potato 27k
bottom: Agedashi Tofu 27k - Jacko Salad 36k

Stop a while with a healthier option, like the delicious wakame salad and jacko salad. Both salad served with similar veggies but wakame salad is topped with seaweed and served with additional mayonnaise, while jacko salad is topped with jacko (Japanese small fish, similar to teri). I prefer wakame salad as the dressing were richer with the help of mayonnaise, but I do love the jacko. So perhaps, you can order both and mix them together? Korokke potato was served hot and has a smooth potato puree texture while the agedashi tofu was a darling. Love the warm sweet-salty soup with smooth silk tofu. Yums!

One of the must item in an izakaya is yakitori (Japanese skewer). I taste lots of these that I can't even remember what I had that night. Is there something called yakitori overdose?

Assorted Yakitori - original

Assorted Yakitori - sweet

Here's my personal favorites: gyutan 18k (beef tongue), teba 12k (chicken wings), tsukune 16k (minced chicken) and bonjiri 16k (chicken tail). These yakitori can be ordered with original sauce or sweet sauce. In my opinion, both sauce were nice with different, unique taste each. Theser yakitori are well-marinated and cooked to perfection. Now, if you are allowed to eat pork dishes, do not forget to have these luscious, buta bara (pork belly) and buta bara negi miso (pork belly with miso sauce and spring onion). These pork belly melts in your mouth and definitely not to be missed.

front: Buta Bara Negi Miso 27k - back: Buta Bara 25k 

Continuing our exciting journey, we had teba tsukune, chicken wings stuffed with minced chicken. This is definitely one of my must-order item. Love the juicy chicken wings texture and loving the minced chicken stuffing. Yum yum.

Teba Tsukune 25k

Overwhelmed with the starters and smaller menu, but spare your tummy for the mains. First stop is my favorite, gyutan don, Wagyu tongue with special sauce and rice - spicy. Delicious is an understatement. The beef tongue was very tender and smooth, with enough seasoning and some chilies, you have yourself a bowl of happiness. I do think that the portion would be too small for guys, but hey.. you had more than enough starters and smaller menus to choose.

Gyutan Don 95k

Continuing our bigger menu with butabara don and tori soborodon. Butabara don is pork belly over steamed rice. The seasoning was similar with gyutan don with spring onions and chilies on top. Of course, the pork belly was tender and smooth. While tori soborodon is minced chicken donburi topped with nori and egg. Again, it was well-seasoned and delicious!

Butabara Don | Tori Soborodon 62k

If you prefer something without rice, try the chicken katsu curry and chicken teriyaki. Crispy breaded chicken cutlet drenched in thick curry sauce. You gotta love it. The chicken teriyaki is another darling. Juicy chicken cooked with sweet teriyaki sauce.

Chicken Katsu Curry 46k

Chicken Teriyaki 39k

Are you thirsty already? I bet the sake berries we had earlier were not enough to quench your thirst. Do not be afraid as Izakaya Issei serves Asahi beer. Japan's no. 1 beer served in a frozen glass. I did not try it as I'm not too fond of alcohol, but everybody knows the quality of this beer.

Asahi Beer 

Or try their signature cocktail selection. We had rhubarb lemonade and Tokyo flush fixx. Rhubarb lemonade consisted of orange wedges, fresh lemon juice, Jim Beam White, sour rhubarb and sprite on top. While Tokyo flush fixx consisted of sake, midori, vodka, soda water and lemon wedges. These are lighter version of the alcoholic beverages served in the house. I have to say that I kinda like the rhubarb lemonade as it was really refreshing, with a light taste of alcohol.

 Rhubarb Lemonade 110k - Tokyo Flush Fizz 125k

To end the lovely night, we were served with beer sorbet, a dessert made from the alcoholic drinks which tasted unique and refreshing.

Now imagine you with your beloved friends share the table for great Japanese cuisine and some fresh cocktails over gossips. That's definitely my kind of night. Overall, I had a great time at Izakaya Issei with a lovely host and delicious food. I will surely return to taste more of their delicacies.

Izakaya Issei
Jl. Senopati Raya No. 82 Level 2
South Jakarta
Ph.: 6221 6079 6880

Publico Bistro & Winebar

One of the best feeling in the world is sharing great food with great friends. Well, that's basically how I felt eating out in Publico Bistro & Winebar. Tucked in the most busy area in Jakarta, Publico Bistro & Winebar has stolen my attention since a while ago, however the chance to try had just came last month. It was a regular dinner where I shared table with my favorite 5 girls. We had our youth together and now spending our maturity ages by seeing each other regularly. Talking about spending the old days by playing mahjong together sounds really realistic haha..

As usual, we went there after a busy day at office. Lucky for us, the traffic was quite nice and I managed to reach Senopati only in 30 minutes from Satrio area. If you're familiar with Satrio area, you'll know that's a blessing. The place was quite packed when we arrived, but we managed to get a table on the corner of their 2nd floor. I fell in love instantly with the place: high ceiling, white stone walls, geometric tiles and black-yellow dining chairs, completed with brown leather sofas in the corner. Now let's get into business. It's dinner time!

Started slow by having our drinks coming first. We had hot cammomile tea (Rp35k), iced lychee tea (Rp35k) and doctor recipe juice (Rp50k), some other drinks were not photographed due to the thirsty customer haha.. I had the hot cammomile tea which tasted just okay, it was ordinary cammomile tea anyway. The lychee tea was a bit bland, I blame the amount of ice put into it. Luckily, doctor recipe juice come to save the day. A blend of fresh green apple, lychee and lime juice, this drink really refresh the night.  

cammomile tea - lychee tea - doctor recipe juice

We spent almost half an hour picking our dish. After some rough discussion, we finally made our choices. We picked 24-hr marinated chicken wings (Rp70k) to start. Six pieces of succulent chicken wings grilled in charcoal grill oven and served with spicy smoked paprika and mint aioli. The chicken wings were juicy completed with that finger-licking good sweet, spicy sauce. However, in my opinion, it was a bit overpriced looking at the serving size.

Onto the pasta selection, we had vongole pasta (Rp70k). A bowl full of creamy spaghetti with generous clams. Well, I have always been a fan of vongole pasta and of course I love this dish! The cream sauce was not overwhelming the pasta was al dente and the clams were served really fresh. We finished the whole bowl in split second. 

Next, we had grilled assorted sausage (Rp90k), served with sauteed mushrooms, coleslaw and triple cooked fries. On our first impression, two sausages do not meet the standard to be classified as "assorted". Sadly, the best thing on the plate was the coleslaw and mushrooms. The sausage were actually quite good, with a nice crunchy texture on the outside and tender on the inside. The fries were just mediocre. Perhaps we were expecting too much looking at the name.

From the fish section we picked steamed-grilled barramundi (Rp145k), fllet of barramundi in garlic, ginger, fish sauce and lemon marinade, steam-grilled in banana leaf. It definitely looked like pepes ikan right? An expensive one I suppose. But it was probably my favorite dish of the night. Love the tender, smooth texture of the barramundi. Simply cooked giving a nice, balanced taste where everything falls just right into place.

We still have some more food to go. Stay with me! Continuing our dinner that night, we had grilled peri-peri chicken panini (Rp75k), succulent grilled chicken homemade panini with smoked peri-peri aioli. The chicken was huge, served on top of panini bread, along with potato chips and salad. The chicken was tasty with a hint of spiciness from the peri-peri sauce. Their panini bread was fluffy and light, giving a nice texture to the whole dish.

Still from the chicken section, we also had grilled oven chicken breast with pesto (Rp90k), served with basil tomato concasse and butter mashed potato. The dish was very pretty! Loving the colorful food arrangement on the plate. The taste was as good as it looked. The chicken was tender and pesto sauce perfectly blend with the tomato concasse. The butter mashed potato was delightful side dish. The whole plate was just perfect in the eye and in the mouth.

Of course, there's always room for dessert. So we had varlhona mars bar (Rp60k) and vanilla creme brulle (Rp60k) to end the night. Warning, food porn ahead. The varlhona mars bar was a must order item for you, chocolate lover. The famous Mars bar with varlhona chocolate mousse, chocolate crumbles, vanilla chantilly then topped with salted caramel. I would say that varlhona chocolate mousse was the star of the plate. I really love the smooth, tender chocolate mousse especially when eaten together with the crumbles and salted caramel.

The vanilla creme brulee was served pretty to tickle our almost full tummy. It was served with caramel disc, banana passionfruit compote and coconut gelato. It was a dessert pick for non-chocolate lover. The creme brulee was not like the ordinary as the caramel was served separately. It was soft and not overly sweet with the right texture. The coconut gelato tasted a bit weird for my taste buds, though.

At the end, it was a nice dining experience we had in Publico. There were several hit and miss, but overall we had a great time, with great ambiance and delicious food. I, personally, will be back for their desserts. Yums!

Publico Bistro & Winebar

Jl. Senopati Raya 65, Kebayoran Baru

South Jakarta 12190

Ph.: 6221 5296 4960

www.rystgroup.com

Crematology Coffee Roasters

I am a coffee lover, well, a coffee addict actully.. It is a must to have a cup of coffee everyday.. Always remember that "a day without coffee is like sleep".. However, I noticed that Jakarta used to offer only those franchise coffee brand, which, in my opinion, has a decreasing quality day by day.. Lucky for a coffee lover like me, Jakarta nowadays is flooded with local, small artisan coffee, with curated coffee beans gathered from Indonesia.. I must say that I am quite spoiled and even overwhelmed by the amount of the new comers in town..

It was Saturday afternoon and the traffic was quite friendly.. My friend and I drove to Senopati with no specific destination, but keen to try one of the coffee shops there.. We have heard of Crematology Coffee Roasters and more than willing to give it a try.. The place is quite easy to be found and we arrived around 1:00 pm, which is not really common for people to have their coffee.. 

Let me tell you, I fell in love with this place instantly.. What not to love? Soft caramel color which dominates the whole area actually brought a nice, homey feeling.. Love the chairs and sofa, well basically everything! Wood is the main element of the shop, which combined with a hint of light grey.. It was modern and chic.. The coffee bar is located at the end of the room where you have to place your orders.. Next to the cashier is a mini display of cake selections.. And in the wall behind the coffee bar, written "Home to the finest baristas in Jakarta".. Well, we'll see..

We picked a corner sofa for two with a really short wooden table.. My friend was really afraid of accidentally kicking the table haha.. But I really love our spot.. It was private, cozy and intimate.. Definitely my kind of coffee shop..

I decided to have a cup of hot coffee latte 30k and my companion picked the ice version of it.. My friend loved her iced latte and finished it within split second.. Mine came shortly after, topped with a swirl latte art.. The coffee taste stood out as I had my first sip.. It was quite strong but smoothly went well with the cream.. The sweetness level is yours to decide, but I prefer my coffee a bit bitter, so I decide no to add any sugar.. Overall, it was a pleasant experience having coffee in Crematology and I will surely be back for more..

it's the short table :)

Crematology Coffee Roasters

Jl. Suryo No. 25

Senopati, South Jakarta

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

Paul Bakery and Patisserie

Before I start my post, let me wish you a Happy New Year 2014.. May the success and happiness be with you always ;)

now, let's get into business to the first post in 2014.. yes, it's the Paul that everyone has been talking about.. the famous French bakery with the best French breads.. then how can I resist not to come? all my life, I have believed in drinking coffee with croissants.. before we went further, a little background of Paul.. the history of Paul has been started long ago back from 1889, in Croix, Northern France.. and today, Paul has brought French breads to more than 450 stores across the globe.. quite impressive for a bakery, eh?

so, long story short, I dragged a friend to this famous patisserie on a Friday afternoon.. we were supposed to have our lunch at Paul.. the French eatery was not too crowded, but we were still in the waiting list.. luckily, not more than 15 minutes, we got our table ready.. it was a nice table for two in the corner of the busy patisserie.. we decided to have some time to go through the menu and ended up deciding to have a shared main with two desserts.. ladies preferred to have lovely desserts than savory mains.. 

for the lunch company, I picked 4 Fruit Rouges from Dammann 40k.. it's a delightful blend of four red fruits (cherry, strawberry, raspberry and red currant) combined with unsmoked black teas from Ceylon and China, bringing a fruity flavor.. it was a hearty cup of tea, I really love the smell, fruity flavor and thank God, the black tea was not bitter.. my friend picked the lemon ice tea 35k (not pictured) and commented it was just like other ordinary lemon ice tea.. 

Paul offers quite various savory selections, but we set our heart in the croque monsieur 90k, turkey ham, Emmental cheese, cream and pain de mie.. this was too delicious! I love the bread crunchy crust, combined with the melted Emmental cheese.. this was just perfect! the side salad added freshness to the whole dish.. I just love the fresh greens with balsamic vinegar dressing.. yes, a bit pricey, but I guessed it was still worth the money for once in a-while-meal..

now, the best time of the day.. it was dessert time.. for your information, other than the eatery, Paul also has a bakery at the back side of the restaurant, serving selections of beautiful French pastries and cakes.. we took a peek before ordering our desserts and basically, we wanted everything.. I mean, how can you resist ordering those pretty little cakes.. but our stomachs have limits, that we decided only to have tartelette framboises 55k and millefeuille chocolat 50k.. 

let's start with tartelette framboises.. it was sweet pie topped with creme pâtissière and fresh raspberries.. looked very beautiful that I almost have no heart to eat it.. but we just have to do what we got to do, right? the pie crust was a bit hard to be cut, so we have to break the pie.. on her first bite, my friend complained on how sour the raspberries were.. I did notice the same, but in my opinion, the sour raspberries were completing the sweet creme and pie crust, bringing a balanced, not-too-sweet bite..

next, millefeuille chocolat.. millefeuille actually means 'thousand leaves' in French.. it was Paul's famous Napoleon with chocolate creme pâtissière filling.. let me tell you, it was just PERFECT! I have never tasted anything like this before.. layers of flaky puff pastry with the most delicious chocolate custard I have ever tasted, then topped with the sweet chocolate glazing.. it's love at first bite.. I would recommend this dish to everyone, and it worth every Rupiah spent.. I was really impressed..

and here's how the plate looked after a few minutes..

as I have mentioned above, Paul has a bakery, which displayed all the good stuffs you can buy for your loved ones, or eat right away on the spot.. the pastries and cakes were just beautiful and really pleasing the eyes.. this is definitely what heaven looks like for pastries lover.. 

overall, I had a great meal there.. unfortunately, the service was poor, especially when they charged you 5%.. I got no smile or any warm greetings during our meal and if we asked for anything, they seemed really reluctant to help.. such a shame that one of the best bakery recognized in the world failed to bring the best dining experience.. but, I fell in love with their breads and pastries, that I would definitely return.. let's just hope their service improve immediately..

Paul Bakery and Patisserie
Pacific Place Mall
South Lobby Gallery Lafayette
Jl. Jend Sudirman Kav. 52-53
South Jakarta
Ph. +6221 57973464