Irene's Getting Fat!

Pasar Laris, Taman Surya - Jakarta

2013-05-23T11:11:00.000+10:00

Among those places in Jakarta, this one is sorely missed. Cicongfan - Pasar Laris Pasar Laris ('Laris' market) is regularly visited by the mother and I, almost every morning, after jogging session. It is a fun and interesting place for me. The market is a cross of traditional and modern ones. It has traditional market feel, but much cleaner and neater. The place is bustling with moms and

(Seven) Bubble Tea Spots in Jakarta

2013-05-15T09:52:00.000+10:00

Apparently bubble tea fever is happening in Jakarta. Fat Bubble's passionfruit yakult (IDR 23,000/$2.3) with rainbow jelly (IDR 3,000/$0.3) It seems to quiet down now, but when I was back home, bubble tea places seem to pop out one by one rapidly. Do you that there are more than a dozen bubble tea sellers in PIK, North Jakarta area only? Not to mention dozens other around Jakarta's malls. I

Indonesian Street Food - Food that Touches Your Heart

2013-05-05T15:13:00.002+10:00

They say: 'the best way to a city heart is through its stomach'. Couldn't agree more. By food, you will know a country's culture and tradition, even the people's characteristics. Food is my first priority when visiting a foreign country, because then I can feel the buzz and ambiance of the place I am visiting. If you visit Indonesia, you'll find out that it is a very diverse country. It has

Noodles Hunting (Stuffing Myself with Bowls of Noodles), West Jakarta

2013-05-01T10:09:00.000+10:00

Beware, this post is loaded heavily with carbs. Along with rice and potatoes, noodles are one of my preferable type of carb sources. If it isn't, this post will not even exist, I guess. On my last back home trip, I stuffed myself big time with bowls of noodles. I dragged everyone to share some; the BFFs, the boy, and the family. The best bowl of noodles crown is occupied by my fav bakmi

Liebster Award

2013-04-24T11:56:00.000+10:00

My first blog award! I should've done this much earlier, but I had to conquer some tasks that I had in hand. Thanks Irene from A Swoonful of Sugar for nominating me and I am sorry for not doing this earlier. So apparently there are rules. Here you go: Post 11 random facts about yourself. Answer the 11 questions made by the person who nominated you Create 11 questions for the bloggers you

Karaage Curry (Using Japanese Curry Blocks) [Recipe]

2013-04-19T09:46:00.001+10:00

How can you not love such practical stuff? Karaage curry Kudos for the Japanese to invent something spectacular like these curry blocks. I owe you one, sir (or madam)! This Japanese instant curry block is truly a friend of me, one who can't be bothered to do complicated stuff yet constantly demand tasty and satisfying meal. This one, whose brand I don't know, is a gift from a cousin's

Pancoran/Petak Sembilan Market, Jakarta

2013-04-12T11:59:00.001+10:00

It's a street food festival here. Pancoran market road It's almost impossible not to know this place if you are a Jakartan. Especially if your parents kinda grew up in the area, it's almost like their version of malls and cafés back then; at least that's what the mother told me. I can't really differentiate between Pancoran and Petak Sembilan market, both sound the same for me. It's sort of

Oceanic Café, Pantai Mutiara - Jakarta

2013-04-05T12:08:00.002+11:00

Dining peacefully with a view. Mojito and a view Seems to be a pretty good idea of dating for me. After countless times having dates with the boy at malls or restaurants, we were feeling like adding a restaurant with magnificent view into our dating plan. Due to his packed schedule and Jakarta's unbelievable traffic, we went somewhere nearby home, Pantai Mutiara, North Jakarta. Oceanic Café

Cooking Mamas - Trashing the Kitchen Session

2013-04-01T11:36:00.001+11:00

The best kind of food? Final result of lunch The one made with love. And these ones were made with a high dosage of love, jars of laughter, and (excessive) pinches of craziness; in other words: friendship. There are two reasons that I am posting this short post. First, I miss them. The two best friends whose characters are so different yet complementing each other very well. The two whom I

Japanese Strawberry Shortcake - Don't Do It My Way [Recipe]

2013-03-28T16:09:00.000+11:00

Lesson learned. Japanese strawberry shortcake in the making Or not. Because really, I don't know where I went wrong in making this lovely-sounding cake. So here's the story. I was looking for a sweet, Valentine-based cake recipe for Valentine's last month. It was for the boy and I am way beyond giving chocolate now, so it was a good opportunity to experiment with a new recipe. And so I came

Ah Poong, Sentul City

2013-03-22T15:03:00.002+11:00

Floating food heaven. Martabak Kupang on the pan That's the summary of what Ah Poong is. The name is a pun from the word apung which means float/floating in English, and it pretty much covers the definition. It's a food court, basically, located very beautifully over a streaming river in Sentul City, a part of Bogor, West Java. It's the sister of the well-known food court called Eat & Eat,

QQ Kopitiam, Summarecon Mall Serpong

2013-03-13T18:12:00.001+11:00

Kopitiam means kaya toast to me. QQ Kopitiam's kaya toast and kopi 'o' peng (background) And iced Milo with heaps of Milo atop. And delicious Malaysian or Medanese dishes. Meanwhile, it says coffee for the parents. And the brother will go anywhere as long as you feed him enough. Kopitiam or Medanese/Malaysian-based coffee shop is the family newest safe haven for our mall-visiting Sundays.

Fresh Market PIK, Jakarta

2013-03-08T10:55:00.001+11:00

I heart local markets. Preparing Baganese curry rice There is where you'll find the freshest of produce, familiar bustling sound of customers doing bargains, and of course the packed, small, local-favourite restaurants or eating spots. I always love doing food hunting in local markets. Especially if the market has so many delicious items to offer, like this one at PIK (Pantai Indah Kapuk),

Samgak Kimbap (Korean Triangle-Shaped Rice) [Recipe]

2013-03-04T11:44:00.000+11:00

This one's especially dedicated by students living alone. Samgak kimbap (Korean triangle-shaped rice wrapped in dried seaweed) You might want to bookmark this page, but then again, this recipe is too easy you will probably remember all the steps in one read. Don't we all love easy peasy and tasty lunch from home, that can be made with no fuss and save us some bucks too? As a uni student who

Rati-Rati, PIK - Jakarta

2013-03-01T09:44:00.000+11:00

A spoonful of a heavenly cake can wash your problem away. Kardinal chocolate roll cake in display Temporarily, maybe, but for me, it really can. And that's actually what I need now. I'm currently in a very homesick mood, and guess what, I lost my appetite. Nowadays I can eat salad for lunch and be satisfied at that. This must be some kind of sorcery. This is also the reason of me not

Warung Libersa, PIK - Jakarta

2013-02-25T19:26:00.001+11:00

A suitable place for eating with bare hands. A meaty business Because you will want to lick you fingers clean after touching the moreish sauce of the ribs. Warung Libersa is Bali-inspired decorated restaurant in one of Jakarta's hippest eating spots in North area, PIK. The best friend had bought a discount voucher for a meal for three, so there we went. Warung Libersa, PIK The exterior

Leaving Jakarta (Again) & Some Announcements

2013-02-22T13:12:00.000+11:00

My holiday's over. Assam laksa (?), Bangi Kopitiam (Citra 6) Why does it have to be so fast? To be honest, I'm totally still on my holiday mode. Anyway, I have a few announcements to make. First of all, really sorry about not updating the blog as regularly as usual. I've been (happily) busy on this holiday, and thus finding it difficult to make a proper post. I shall try to post twice a week

Cooking Experience with Bara Pattirajawane - Jakarta

2013-02-12T14:57:00.000+11:00

Cooking classes rock! My 'kakap goreng dabu-dabu meleleh' For those (read: me) who don't cook much but are thirsty for more cooking knowledge and skills, cooking classes are a great way to gain some. Thankfully, I got invited by Indomie to a cooking class, hosted by one of celebrity chefs in Indonesia: Chef Bara Pattirajawane. Of course I was excited, although the distance to the venue and

Chinese New Year 2013 Feasts

2013-02-11T18:05:00.001+11:00

Gong xi fa cai! A table full of food How was yesterday for you? Of course, for some of you, it was just another Sunday. But for us with Chinese background, it was the day to gather all the cousins and uncles and aunties for a big feast, with the children are all looking forward to the red pockets. Like always, the family and I went to the great grandma's house, where a table full of food is

Bakso "Pak Diran" ("Mr. Diran" Meatballs), Grogol - Jakarta

2013-02-08T13:39:00.001+11:00

Behold, this is Indonesian style of meatballs (soup). Bakso urat (sinew meatballs) in display Best eaten in cold weather, but still exciting in hot weather. Which in this case, is almost everyday in Jakarta. Bakso or meatball is really popular here, you can find it easily from street food stalls and motorbike-riding vendors who usually go around housings in the afternoon, or at fancier

Hakata Ikkousha and Ikkudo Ichi, PIK - Jakarta

2013-02-04T12:16:00.000+11:00

These two are the titans of ramen kingdom in Jakarta. Ramen babi silver (silver pork ramen) from Hakata Ikkousha With so many ramen places blossoming here and there, these are the two names that are most often recommended to me, and probably the most often talked between food lovers and ramen hunters as well. Hakata Ikkousha and Ikkudo Ichi conveniently open their branches in PIK, the one

Bukit Pelayangan, Tangerang

2013-01-25T18:56:00.000+11:00

Do you like beautiful and natural environment at restaurants? Then this one's for you. While I am more of a street food hunter who don't really mind roaming at the humblest-looking shack to find a bowl of legendary meatball soup, the father is a huge fan of restaurants with natural environment, especially ones with fantastic view. So it's natural for him to drag us along to a restaurant who

The Mom's Gourmet Catering Service

2013-01-21T01:00:00.000+11:00

*sponsored post* It used to be metal hampers. The Mom's Gourmet taster pack But apparently now catering service uses Tupperware-like containers. Well, not all of them of course. The Mom's Gourmet is a family catering service that focuses in healthy but yummy meals, delivered straight to your doors. They committed not to use MSG, over-seasoning, and to use organic and healthy ingredients.

Gado-Gado Bonbin & Gado-Gado Boplo, Jakarta

2013-01-16T12:24:00.001+11:00

Another awesome dish from Indonesia. Gado-gado Bonbin Another reason to be proud of Indonesian culinary treasures. Gado-gado is Indonesian-style vegetable salad, usually consisting of lettuce, beansprout, steamed potato, boiled egg, fried tofu, corn kernels, spinach, cucumber, lontong (compressed steamed rice in banana leaf); smothered with thick peanut sauce and topped with prawn and

Bakmi Alok (Alok Noodles), Jakarta

2013-01-14T12:05:00.000+11:00

This is special. Bakmi ayam Alok (Alok chicken noodles) This is a very memorable bowl of chicken noodles. Bakmi Alok is my all-time favourite noodles. The last time I went to this place is probably when I was 12 or something. Although I have tried the infamous noodles from their other branch/small stalls at food courts about a year ago, this one branch feels special as I used to go here