Jakarta : Maple and Oak

I am not a breakfast person. I can just drink a cup of cold chocolate milk in the morning, and it will just keep me full till noon time. But i fancy Brunch! hahaha.. Not sure if i got carried away by trends, or simply i just got hungry because i never take my chocolate milk in the morning before i go for brunch. Haha..

OR.. maybe i just love lovely places with good food and great companies.

Maple and Oak located somewhere in Menteng in Central Jakarta. The place is somehow quite hard to find, even though it’s located at the main road of HOS Cokroaminoto. It’s inside ‘De Ritz Building’. When you see ‘Bumiputera bank’, and ‘KERIS department store’ on your left side, you should slow down and turn left right after that.. The building beside KERIS, is De Ritz building! *Your Welcome* Hahahha.. Cause Once you missed out, it’s quite a long way for the U-turn.. *and yesshh, i took the long U-turn back. geezzz*

It’s a small cozy place, with modern design with some greeneries decorations all over the pillars. Maple and Oak serves all day brunch menu, coffee and tea, and some cakes. Since i just got back, i am not really updated on what’s hits in town. So a very good friend of mine suggested to go to this place. And since all three of us never been here as well, we decided to give it a try. We came at 10am on Saturday morning, and the place was already crowded. I can see that it is still on high demand, even after 1 year of opening.

Beet Salmon Lox (Rp 83.000)

Toasted bread with cream cheese and generous amount of seared salmon, Beetroot yoghurt and beetroot itself with feta cheese and some salad. I personally think that the beet makes it too sour. My least favorite, from the 3 menu that we ordered. But salmon lovers might like it. and the Feta cheesee!! ohh.. i think feta cheese never go wrong with any kind of salads.

Big Breakfast (Rp 98.000)

This is a plate that will never go wrong. I always order this for a saver choice when i dont know what to eat. Haha.. The mushroom is sauteed nicely, the egg is scrambled softly, the cherry tomato is sweet, the bacon is not that salty (which is good for me) and the sausage was just okay.  Well, actually i wanted to order a bowl of Granola (Rp 68,000). But as for the price, i think the big breakfast is more worth it.

Mapple Butter Brioche (Rp 78.000)

This is the ‘STAR’ of the day! It’s like a big breakfast, minus mushroom and sausage. It’s just a normal toasted bread with bacon and scrambled egg, BUT.. the truffle butter and the maple syrup makes the whole plate taste so different.. So nice, sweet and buttery, different sensation in eating the toasted bread. MUST HAVE item when you’re here. Ah ohh, you can request more maple syrup as well. Trust mee.. it is soo good! so different with other maple syrup. not that sweet but so tasteful and savory. Much love for this plate! ❤

Maple & Oak
De Ritz Building 1st floor
Jl. HOS. Cokroaminoto no 91
Menteng, Central Jakarta
Opening Hours: 07.00 – 21.00
Phone: (+6221) 3906757

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Izakaya Kai – Pluit Kencana, Jakarta

* Apologise for no pictures / less pictures as reference for this post.  As i mistakenly deleted some photos on my media blog and could not recover it back. =( *

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‘Hey Jend, lets go for dinner on Sunday’

‘Sure, where to?’

‘Ohh, Ms.N said there’s this one nice Japanese Restaurant in Pluit’

‘Wait, what? are you sure it’s in Pluit? I only knew there’s a lot of nice Chinese/Medanese food around Pluit. Surely not Japanese’ It will be more believable to have a nice Fried Kwetiau in Pluit area. Haha.

— sending me restaurant name and location —

‘Ohh, okay. Sure.. See you Sunday girls.. ‘ I still replied with my unbelief.

And there i was, driving after a church service.. and suddenly found rather different signage around the street. I parked my car just in front of the restaurant, and to my surprise, i saw a nice restaurant that’s quite different from it’s neighbours.

We mentioned that we already have a reservation for that night, and the waiter professionally escorted us upstairs to our designated seat. They passed us the clean ‘japan-ishy’ menu with no pictures at all on it.

Every time i visit a new restaurant, i often asked the waiter on what’s special on their menu. and the waiters here can fully answer in detail on each menu that we asked. Not bad at all for Pluit Area, normally i can only get this kind of service in those fancy cafe in North/South Jakarta.

(Tendon – a mix of prawn, fish, squid and vegetables tempura) – Rp 120,000

It’s one of their signature. Love the tempura set that served with the glazed rice. Crispy but not greasy, so it wont hurt your throat. as for me, i asked for extra tempura sauce, somehow i like a bit soggy-kind of tempura.

( Chili Cheese Sauce Chicken Karage ) – Rp 50,000 ala. You can add the rice, soup and pickles set for Rp 30,000

I know it looks like a salted egg chicken. But it is not, it’s melted cheese mixed with sliced chillis, and it tastes soo good! The sauce is really the bomb!

( Skewers / Yakitori ) – sold per stick ranging from Rp 15,000-45,000

(Grade 9 Wagyudon) – Rp 225,000

As for me, it’s just a normal beef bowl, with a very tender sliced glazed beef.

(Goma cake) – Rp 45,000.

Nice black sesame cake! The best-seller cake in the house. The sponge cake is so soft and not so sweet. Quite a unique taste i must say.

(Chocolate Red Velvet) – Rp 50,000

The most sinful piece to end the day. They are using dark chocolate and rhum to balance the sweetness of red velvet.

Overall it’s a nice dining experience. Nice ambiance, great food, friendly waiter, and great company! And ohh, they have limited baby chair though. So i dont recommend a bunch of young moms to hangout here. We waited for more than 40 minutes just to get one baby chair on non peak hour time. But still recommended for small groups of friends and family. They have omakase menu as well if you crave for one.

Izakaya Kai
Jl. Pluit Kencana Raya No.59
Pluit, North Jakarta
Phone: (+6221) 22663966

Opening Hours:
1st floor All Day Cafe 11.00 – 23.00
2nd floor Izakaya Dining 11.00 – 15.00, 18.00 – 22.00

Update Hidup 5

Jakarta 

It has been 2 weeks in Jakarta, and Thank God that this time is much better than the previous stay. Pas bulan lalu gw balik jakarta buat 2 minggu.. rasanya amburadul banget.. kayak separuh gw masih singapore, dan bingung banget ngapain di jakarta.. Karena kan temen2 yg gw kenal juga udah pada kerja, cousins juga sibuk sama kerjaan mereka masing2.. basically i was lost on what to do di Jakarta.. But now, i am much much better.. kayaknya gw udah bisa belajar to let go Singapore and isinyaa.. of course i still maintain all the friendship.. hehe..

I would say im picking up things di Jakarta.. belajar tahan macetnya jakarta lagi, belajar hidup lagi sama orang tua dan curfew pulang malemnya, kontek2an lagi sama temen2 lama, sign up les chinese biar gw ga bego2 amat nanti di Taiwan, kursus emcee, sama akhirnya gw memutuskan untuk bantuin sos-med online shop.nya temen gw.. haha.. ya intinya biar 3 bulan di Jakarta ini gw bisa actively productive..

Kursus Emcee

ini kursus terseru yg pernah gw ikutin.. ga ngerti apa temen2 yg seru dan guru2nya yg asik. atau emang gw suka aja sama pelajarannya. haha.. apparently di tempat kursus gw ini ada beberapa artis juga.. kayak artis FTV, presenter infotainment, artis layar lebar, sampe DJ juga ada. ternyata emang ngomong di depan public itu susah yaa, sampe artis2 aja masih ikutan kelas ini.. ya intinya belajar terus pasti ga ada ruginya sihh.. hehe.. di kelas ini gw belajar banyak hal.. dari pegang mic, posisi berdiri, gestures, kosakata, partnering, interview dll..

Guru2nya juga dateng dari background yg tepat juga, seperti penyiar radio ternama, script-writer handal, presenter2 acara TV, dan juga news anchor ternama. dan ternyata latihan sama mereka itu deg2an banget.. minggu lalu kita ada kelas interviewing technique.. Pas bngt yg ngajar kita itu si Mba. Aviani Malik, salah satu new anchor handal.nya Metro TV.. menurut gw ajaran dia cukup garis keras, dan dia cukup idealis bngt.. selama 4 jam di kelas dia, semua orng cuman bisa diem aja karena dia seru bngt ngajarnyaa.. jarang ada guru yang bisa bikin satu kelas diem dan merhatiin.. haha.. Nah, setelah itu, kita sempet praktek Interviewing Technique, langsung latihan sama pakarnyaa..

pas gw latihan sama diaa.. ya ollohh.. entah kenapa kyk otak gw ga jalan aja lohh.. deg2an bngt gt rasanya.. harusnya gw pikirin strategy buat tanya ‘follow up questions’ dll, tapi ya gt dehh, tiba2 agak kehilangan focus dan kosakata.. aura dia bikin gimana gt.. pandangan matanyaa kyk intimidating.. padahal mahh mungkin cuman gw aja yg berasa gt. hahaha.. bisa gt yahh.. gw jadi jiper nihh buat exam nanti.. huahua.. Mudah2an gw bisa lulus dngn hasil memuaskan.. dan bener2 bisa jadi emcee professional yahh.. hehehe..

Apply Visa Taiwan – Student Sekolah Bahasa

Ternyata visa untuk sekolah bahasa, dan sekolah biasa (s1 / s2) itu beda loh di Taiwan.. gw pikir sama kyk di singapore, dimana kalo status lu student, yah visa yg lu dapet student pass, doesnt matter sekolah.nya apa, tapi visanya cuman satu macem aja.. paling yg membedakan hanya durasi visa.nya aja.. harga juga tetep sama untuk buat visa student di singapore.

Pas research2 Visa student di Taiwan, ternyata beda requirement dan beda harga dan prosedur kalau mau ambil bahasa atau s1/s2.. nahh.. kalo kyk gw gt yg cuman ambil sekolah bahasa, tiap 2 bulan harus re-new visa dan perpanjang disana.. sedangkan kalau s1/s2 gt sih langsung dapet resident pass yah katanyaa.. hehe..

untuk pengurusan visa, Puji Tuhan semuanya lancar.. cuman sempet bingung aja soal beberapa hal kmrn, terus coba telpon ke TETO.nya. *Taiwan itu ga ada embassy, karena belom di akui negara sepenuhnya* tapi kok orang TETO.nya kurang helpful (cerita ini akan gw bahas di blog entry yg berikutnya), alhasil yah nekad aja deh kesana dngn bawa semua dokumen, untungnya semua udah settle dan visa udah keluar.. Tinggal cari tempat tinggal aja nih sekarang di Taipei.. Kalau ada temen / family yg tinggal disana, boleh dongg refer ke akuuu.. siapa tau mrk lagi cari housemate gt? ahhahaha..

Ya, update hidup kali ini cuman mau ngabarin aja kalo ternyata enak juga hidup lagi di Jakarta.. hehehe.. i hope i can do more productive activities di Jakarta before i left for Taiwan.. buat para bloggers, yukk kopi darat klo pada sempett!! hahahha..

Good night everyonee.. =)

What’s for Dinner?

Life is about decision making. From the moment that you woke up to get up or to snooze your alarm. to bath or not to bath because you are running late, which dress / suit to use, etc etc. your daily life is about decision making that makes you, You.

And talking about, What’s Your Dinner? indeed it is one tough baffling question for most of the human being to decide on.

Even though Singapore is only 1.30 hours away from Jakarta, it is very seldom for me to come back. Blame works that only allow me to take 18 days paid leave per year. Well, actually is already quite a lot for a newbie like me, just that i would rather go somewhere that i have never been to instead of going back to Jakarta.

Since 2 years ago, going back to Jakarta doesnt feel like a holiday anymore. it’s because there’s something that i must attend, like close friends weddings or attending family’s events. and this makes me so outdated with what’s ‘happening’ and what’s ‘IN’ now in jakarta. i only know Senopati area and Pasar Santa is so ‘hip’ these days. haha

When i went back to Jakarta last month for the interview, me and some of my cousins decide to catch up and we spend hours just to discuss what’s for dinner? The main problem is, we want to go somewhere that all of us have not tried before. it’s easy for me, since i seldom try out new things in Jakarta. but for them, it’s quite a tough decision. haha..

Finally we decided to go to Kuningan, Central of Jakarta, to taste Blue Grass Bar & Grill

We ordered some dishes to share, since we intended to grab some dessert after that.

1. Nacho Supreme – Rp. 65.000

I love the cheese so much! but i think the meat is a little bit too dry.

2. Grilled Sirloin – Rp 210.000

a nice tender U.S Sirloin, and just nice mashed-potato. A safe choice if you do not want to try other things

3. American Classic Burger – Rp 85.000

The least tasty food of all =(.. Found the meat is too dry, and nothing special about the burger. Not sure about other burgers, but you can skip this and try other things instead.

4. Pork Pepperoni Pasta – RP 75.000

I Love the pasta, it feels al dente and creamy. Only the Pork Pepperoni doesnt goes well with the pasta, it tastes weird because it so salty and taste like ‘Lap Cheong’ or chinese pork sausage. for me chinese sausage and italian pasta is not a good fusion.

5. Bluegrass Crazy Rice – RP 65.000

    Our favorite among all dishes that we had. it was quite a surprise that their ‘Nasi Gila’ or Crazy Rice is so tasteful. Basically it is a buttered rice topped with diced beef meatballs, stir-fry chicken and beef sausage. everything is just so nice on this plate. Love to come back and eat this one more time. =)

iRate Bluegrass : 7.3 / 10

Ambiance : 8

Service : 7.5

Food : 7.5

Value for Money : 6

**One-Third of Darmento Cousins**

Bluegrass Bar & Grill

Komplek Rasuna Epicentrum, Bakrie Tower lantai GF, JL. HR Rasuna Said, Kuningan, Jakarta Pusat,Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta 12710, Indonesia.

+62 21 29941660

Aku Cinta Bakmi

*re-blogged from my previous blog*

sungguh, gw cinta bakmi…

dulu pas SD..

cita2 gw tuh mau jadi president !

kenapa?

karena gw ga suka nasi putih.. dan mau mengganti makanan pokok Indonesia menjadi bakmi ! hahahaa..

ridiculous, isnt it?

 

tapi emang gt kenyataannya..

karena gw suka bngt sama bakmi / indomie / ramen / udon..

yahh pokoknya apapun yg bentuknya kyk bakmi deh. hahaha..

gw bisa loh makan bakmi terus2ann selama 3 hari buat lunch & diner.

contoh yg sudah2 :

– hari 1 : ban mian (mie singapore gt) dan ramen

– hari 2 : kim chi noodle dan indomie goreng

– hari 3 : another ramen and bakmi indo ( yg ada di singapore )

hari ke 4.nya gw nimbang..

naik 3 kilo aja donkkk!!! hahaha..

 

gila ga sihhh..?

sumpah.. kalo ga gara2 kiloan badan gw. mungkin gw bisa makan bakmi setiap hari.nya..

 

nahh.. kan kemaren pas chinese new year aka sincia gw balik indo nihh..

selama 5 hari gw disana..

gw 3 hari sarapan bakmi donk ! ahhahaa..

sebenernya gw pengen tiap hari makan bakmi.. yah tapi karena lagi sincia.. pada tutup gtuh deh rata2 itu toko bakmi.. =(

seperti yg kita ketahui. kalo bakmi2 di indo itu paling enak kalo yg toko.nya pake nama chinese.

seperti A-lok, A-chuan, A-mien, dan A-kong  dan A yg lainnya..

*dulu sempet mikir mau buka toko bakmi Jenita atau bakmi Darmento karena kecintaan gw sama bakmi, tapi kyknya ga bakal laku kalo pake nama itu* ahhahaa.. well. anyway gw juga ga bisa bikin bakmi enak. hahaha..

 

skrng, mari gw tunjukan 3 bakmi yg gw makan last week.. hehehe..

1. Bakmi Tan – Jl. Pluit Karang Utara No. 70 – Kota Administrasi Jakarta Utara – Jakarta – Indonesia 

ini bakmi sebaris sama bakpau a1 di muara karang, dulu.nya ada di Pantai Mutiara yg tempat berenang itu lohh.. hehehe.. 

ini bakmi enak mnurut gw.. karena kenyal dan asin.. bakmi.nya homemade.. bikin sendiri gt..

ohh.. dan juaranya adalah kriuk2nya itu.. duhh sedep bngt deh kalo di makan pake kuah sisa bakmi.nya. haha.. *gw rasa mengadung babi*

 

2. Bakmi Khek – Jl. Muara Karang Raya B 7 Utara No.115

ini di sebrang.nya sun marry (toko roti) di muara karang. hehehe.

ini bakmi super juara ! hahaha..

ga tau kenapa gw doyan bngt aja sama ini bakmi..

tiap kali pulang jakarta kyk ada suatu tarikan dr si bakmi khek ini.. haha.. *lebayy..

kalo ini jelas mengadung babi. hoho..

karena gw selalu pesen ‘Bakmi Khek special’ yg isinya ayam jamur dan daging berdosa ituu.. muahhaha..

sama.. tekstur.nya juga gendut dan kenyall.. i love it ! hehhe.

 

3. Bakmi Abadi – Jl. Muara Karang Blok O VIII/T – 63

ini terletak di deretan.nya bank BCA muara karang.. tapi agak jauh di belakangg.. sebelah.nya resto Eng’s house kalo ga salah..

ini pake daging ayam.. hehe..

enak sii.. cuman sedikit terlalu keras menurut gw bakmi.nya…

tapi yah lumayand lahh buat gw si lidah yg doyan bakmi.. hehe..

 

kalo kalian biasa.nya suka makan bakmi dimana?

kasih tau donk..

jadi kalo gw pulang lagi bisa cobain bakmi2 lainnya.. hehehe..