Street food...

Something about infrared films, that turn the most grabbiest of street scenes into something much more dream-like and fantastical. Jakarta streets are never dull, there is always some seller pushing his wares, stopping the traffic or setting up shop. Food for sale varies from across the archipelago and there are always a never ending stream of customers. Of course, street food is not for the faint of stomach, Jakartans have been eating street food all their lives so they have a natural immunity. I, on the other hand, am too scared to partake, basically because I often get Jakarta Belly even after eating in restaurants. However, I have it on good authority that street food is some of the most tastiest around. So, if you have a cast iron stomach, take your pick and get a real taste of Jakarta, and maybe a bit more than you might have bargained for!

Tjap Toean at FX Mall

I love Peranakan cuisine and the food served at Tjap Toean, I would say, is mildly influenced by Peranakan-style cooking. The interior is very quaint and traditional with lots of cute touches like old school bicycle horns on the tables to get waiters attention to menus made to look like old newspapers. I do like attention to detail and efforts to create a whole experience in restaurants. When I looked at the menu my eyes immediately fell to the I Fu Mie, which are crispy noodles topped with seafood and vegetables. It was one of my favourite dishes to eat when I lived in Singapore so I was really excited to see it again. Then my eye continued to the wide selection of toast and I couldn't resist the toast with sunny side up egg and chilli sauce. 

Food came out relatively quickly. The I Fu Mie was good. I would have liked the noodles a tad more crispy so I could really get that crunch when I took the first few bites. However, there were generous helpings of seafood and veggies and a good sauce bringing it all together.

The sunny side up egg toast was delicious. Thick, chunky toast engulfing a fried egg and a generous smearing of chilli sauce. So very good.

Nothing like an iced teh tarik to wash everything down and I must admit I came away feeling very satisfied. 

I will definitely head back here again to try out some of the other varieties of toast, have A Fuk (sorry, couldn't resist!) and honk a horn....don't you think you should too?

Old school menus...

'Can I have A Fuk, please?' Must be one that doesn't get ordered too often!

I Fu Mie, crispy seafood noodles

Sunny side up egg toast

Eric Kayser at Plaza Senayan

One thing I've noticed about Jakartans is that they are crazy for fads, definitely more so than Dubliners. I mean, here, when a new restaurant, cafe, bistro, bar, club, whatever opens...there is this buzz that goes around about it. Others pick up on the buzz and start going and it becomes the latest 'in' place to go. I suspect that there might be a group of professional 'buzz creators' paid to bring attention to these new places and create good publicity through social media, word of mouth, etc. If the right kind of buzz is created then you might find yourself actually queueing to get into the place. I remember this happening at Colette and Lola. I actually had to queue to get into a cake shop. It was a first for me. The laid back Dubliners would never do such a thing. You'd just walk around the corner and get a piece of cake at the next shop. 

Anyway, lately I have been hearing a lot of buzz about Eric Kayser, an artisan boulanger. In particular, it was mentioned to me during a conversation about brownies as a place to go for a great brownie. As I am always on the look out for great brownies here (so far the best ones are still my own, snobby but true!) I figured I couldn't miss the opportunity to give the brownies at Eric Kayser a taste test.

The restaurant is located in Plaza Senayan on the third floor. The place itself is fairly modest looking. This doesn't apply to the prices though! When given a menu for food, I was surprised to see pasta dishes costing over 100k! Anyway, I was on a purposeful mission and ordered a cappuccino and a brownie. The cappuccino was very strong to the point that after I finished drinking it my head was buzzing from the caffeine hit. Then came the brownie...at first glance it looked like it had the required crunchy outer exterior and that the interior was soft that epitomises the perfect brownie. I could see walnuts chopped up too which always makes for a good addition to any brownie. However, as I held it, I noticed it left an oily residue on my fingers. Oh dear, oily brownie, tsk tsk, not good. I took my first bite, waiting with bated breath for that crunchy, crackly top to give way to the soft gooey inside and fill my mouth with chocolatey heaven. Yes I have high expectations. I make my brownies to a very high standard so when I'm paying 28k for the pleasure of eating someone else's I expect it to be of a very high standard. Yes 28k! Very expensive! 

Unfortunately this brownie did not deliver. When I took my first bite I was extremely disappointed. Where was my crunchy exterior and soft gooey interior? Where was the explosion of chocolatey bliss? Where was the rich buttery undertone? All not there. What did it taste like? Sweet. That's it. Sweet with some nuts. I could hardly taste a chocolate flavour at all and let's face it, when we eat a brownie it's for the total chocolate hit that comes along with it. The chocolate flavour should be rich and smooth. I'm curious as to how they made these brownies because I don't see how it was possible to get the chocolate colour without having the chocolate flavour. Again, extremely disappointing. It's safe to say that I won't be recommending these brownies to anyone. I hope their other pastries and breads are better. However, I'll have to think about it before I go back and try. For those prices, I would want to be sure that I'm getting a little slice of heaven. 

Too little time, too many places...

Ah, Bali. I still love you as much as I always have. Now, there are quaint, gourmet cafes opening all over the place and you can really just spend your time eating and eating and eating. Here's a round-up of what has been devoured so far...if you are on the island, check them out.

Warung Pak Malen, Sunset Road

Revolver Cafe, Gang 51, Jl. Kayu Aya

Fat Gajah, Jl. Raya Seminyak

Biku, Jl. Raya Petitenget

And so many more...just wish there were more meals in a day and I had the metabolism of a racehorse!

Gluten free might be catching on in Jakarta...

Ok, so you can't imagine my joy when recently during a visit to Ranch market in Lotte shopping avenue I saw perched on the shelf packets of gluten free flour. Healthy food products can be quite expensive here in Jakarta as most of them are imported. At the moment I am trying to make any baked goods, like my waffles, with alternative flours. So far I've worked with coconut flour, banana flour and almond flour. Banana flour was the cheapest but probably the more challenging to work with as it sucks up all the liquid in a recipe very quickly so you have to make sure you add extra. Coconut flour is similar in that it absorbs the liquids very quickly. Almond flour is more stable but is also very expensive. So once in a while when I feel like making a batch of waffles it's good to know that I can use some gluten free flour. When I bought this flour, I was a little dismayed to see that there were no ingredients listed on the packet. Not to be deterred, I emailed Ranch Market and asked them to let me know what was in it. They replied fairly promptly and informed me that there was :

1. Tapioca Starch

2. Rice Flour

3. Potato Flour

4. Corn Starch

This is quite a normal mixture for a gluten free flour as I have seen various websites listing these same ingredients for people interested in making their own versions of the flour.

Once I knew what I was dealing with I was able to set out on making my gluten free lemon poppy seed waffles. They turned out really well. They were very light and airy and didn't feel heavy in your stomach. There was a good crisp to the waffles and they freeze up very well. So, if you need to take care of that gluten intolerant member of your family, now you can, with a little help from Ranch Market.

Jittlada at Lotte Shopping Avenue

I like Thai cuisine. It just seems to have this wonderful array of flavours that you don't get in other cuisines. So, it was only fitting to have some dinner at Jittlada in Lotte Shopping Avenue. The decor is simple and they have seating inside and outside (but still in the mall) so we sat outside as it was quieter and gives the perfect opportunity for some people watching. The menu is vast and there is a great selection of your typical favourites. We decided on the mango salad to start with followed by eggplant and tofu, green beef curry and chicken satay.

The mango salad was delicious, spicy, tangy and a nice big serving. It kicked off the meal with a big zing. Then came the eggplant, which was soft and full of flavour with small bits of tofu, the satay was very generous. There were huge chunks of chicken and a delicious peanut dipping sauce to accompany it. Finally, we got the green curry, this was perhaps the smallest serving, with only a few pieces of beef. I would have liked a little more because once we divided it between the two of us we only really had a couple of spoonfuls each.

Overall though I was very satisfied with the meal and the delicious flavours that each offering held. If Thai food floats your boat, then drop in here for a meal!

Mango salad 

Eggplant with tofu

Beef green curry

Chicken satay

Roadside snack...Nasi Bambu or Bamboo Rice

On the way home from the trip to Reok, I spotted long sticks of bamboo by the roadside looking roasted and still standing in the ashes of the fire. Never one to shy away from trying something new, i couldn't resist stopping to try whatever it was. Nasi bambu or bamboo rice is exactly what it is, rice cooked in bamboo stalks. The rice is soaked in coconut milk before being placed in the bamboo and roasted over a fire. The result, when it is sliced up, is a deliciously moist and flavourful rice with a hint of smokiness and earthiness to it. We had it with some coffee that was quickly rustled up for us. So simple but yet so delicious!

Take me back to Yesterday Lounge at Antasari

I'm forever on the look out here for unique and interesting places to hang out. It's always good to have a range of places to go to suit a mood. I came across Yesterday Lounge when I was googling around on Google. I was instantly fascinated by the theme of the place and decided I must make an effort to go and have a drink there. I'm really glad I did. 

Yesterday Lounge in Antasari is a breath of fresh air (if you can imagine that in Jakarta!). It's vintage, old school feel makes you believe you really have stepped back into yesterdays gone by. The interior furnishings have been ingeniously crafted from old car parts from the seats (old car seats and oil cans) to the tables (oil drums and engines). There are vintage posters adorning the walls and even some old motorbikes to add to the vintage vibe. The cafe itself is set on a large property with trees and gardens, a car garage, old jeeps and then to really throw a spanner in the works, you bump into deer roaming around the property. I'm guessing the owner is a car collector because of all the old vehicles and the repairs being done in the on site garage. 

We stopped in for a couple of beers and some finger foods. The beer menu was vast and offered a choice of serving sizes from a small bottle to a bucket of bottles and a mug to a pitcher. For the snacks we went for the nachos (made with singkong chips), the bitterballen and the French fries. Prices were reasonable ranging between 27k - 49k for the snacks and a bucket of four San Miguel was 150k. The food itself was fairly standard but the beer was cold, served in a bucket of ice. I would say that you would be more likely to come here because of the setting and drinks than the food. The lounge has live music five nights a week and there are a variety of music styles catered for from jazz to classic rock. 

I will definitely come back here again for drinks and bring along some more friends. I love themed cafés and lounges and being a big fan of all things vintage this place suits my style perfectly!

Outdoor seating

Vintage decor 

Interesting tables 

Shuttered walls

Unique furnishings 

Motorbike on display

Oil can stools...genius!

Singkong Nachos

Bitterballen 

French fries

Old jeeps galore

Garage

I spy with my little eye...a deer!

Better CHOCOlate than never...I totally agree!

So one of the perks of being a teacher is that on the last day of the school year you usually come home laden down with gifts. These are from thankful parents for the care and attention you have given to their children over the year. I cannot lie that I love to receive gifts and especially ones that contain food. One such gift today was a cake from better chocolate than never. This is a cake shop located in Senopati. I have wanted to go there for awhile now to sample their cake so you can imagine my joy when the cake came to me instead for one of my gifts.

The cake was a Banana Chocolate Pie and it smelled absolutely delicious when I opened the box. There was a rich aroma of dark chocolate and I could also smell caramel.

The bottom was an Oreo crust, then a layer of banana, dark chocolate on top and the whole thing was drizzled with salted caramel. Divine! It was pure joy in every mouthful. The contrast of textures with the crumbly biscuit, soft banana and smooth chocolate and caramel worked so well. As did the combinations of flavours. This is a must try for anyone who believes that banana and chocolate were made for each other.

The other bonus of being a teacher is the amazing people you get to work with and the fact that you can share divine treats like this with them. Otherwise I might have just crawled into a corner and eaten the whole lot. It was THAT good! I'm thinking I need to go and sample some of the other cakes they have on offer now too.

The Mango Tree Bistro at Epiwalk, Kuningan

Sometimes you can pass by a restaurant many times and never feel the desire to go inside. I live just across the road from Epiwalk Mall and although it is a small and relatively quiet shopping mall, it is home to quite a number of restaurants. The Mango Tree Bistro is one of those. I've passed by it a whole bunch of times, but only decided to cross the threshold a few days ago. It serves Thai cuisine and offers a good range of dishes. Prices are reasonable per dish ranging between 45k - 70k for main courses. Naturally we ordered a few and decided to share. First up were the Tom yum chicken wings. These were absolutely delicious. They were crispy and full of flavour. I could have eaten a whole plateful myself. Then came the Beef Red Curry. It was rich and creamy and the beef was tender. The Morning Glory was our choice of vegetables and this dish was spicy and the vegetables still had a bite to them. Finally there was the garlic prawns. The prawns were nicely cooked and the flavour was delicious. The meal was incredibly satisfying flavour-wise and it was great to have a meal that really tantalised the taste buds. My only gripe would be the portion sizes which I felt were rather small, especially the prawn dish. 

For my drink, I had a Thai ice tea, which was that lovely orange milky colour and tasted great.

The decor of the restaurant also met with my approval. I do like a restaurant that has some interesting things to look at as it all adds to the dining experience. Here, there were some brightly coloured lanterns, shelves of wine bottles and wall features to take in.

I will definitely pop back across the road to the Mango Tree Bistro as there are a few more dishes I wouldn't mind trying and I'm a sucker for a good Thai feast.

Lanterns 

Bottles and bottles...

Wall feature

Tom Yum chicken wings

Beef Red curry

Morning Glory

Garlic Prawns

Thai ice tea

Sop buntut at Dapur Ibu, Ciputra World

So recently I've been hanging out at Ciputra World Shopping Mall because I happen to have decided that 5 star cinema is the only way to go and the one at Ciputra also happens to be the cheapest. So yesterday on the way to watch a movie I wanted to have some lunch first. On the same floor as the cinema you will find Food Avenue, which is basically a food court featuring lots of choices of local food and a general large sitting area. After a quick walk around I settled on Dapur Ibu because they speciality was sop buntut or oxtail soup. Sop buntut is an Indonesian dish that contains beef and vegetables in a clear broth. It is served with rice and crackers and of course a good helping of chilli and sweet soy sauce. The other speciality at this stall is es sirkel which is a combination of coconut water and soursop juice. Once the order had been put in, I took a seat and waited to be impressed. The drink came first and at Rp. 30,000 was a good buy. Soursop can taste quite sour (as the name would suggest) and leave a strange aftertaste in your mouth. However, the combination with the coconut water made it refreshingly good with a smooth sweet taste. There were nice slices of fresh coconut in there too.

Then came the soup. It was steaming hot in the pot. We had chosen the 'lekker' option of the soup which promised to have very soft meat. The meat was definitely soft however I felt that there was not enough. At a cost of Rp. 86,000 for the soup I was expecting nice large juicy succulent pieces of meat. What I received were big bones with bra of meat around the outside. The broth was good, full of flavour (or MSG, maybe?) I'm always doubtful when something tastes THAT good in Indonesia. Generally it means that unhealthy spoonfuls of MSG or aji-no-moto or devil's powder (as I call it) have been added to enhance the food. Sop buntut is a favourite of mine and I have tried it in many places across Indonesia. Although this might not be my favourite, it was certainly satisfying and fulfilling.