Daisho

I'm sorry if I don't post anything lately. Life has never been busier, some things came up, and I'm just back from Bali XD. Well, anyway I'm back!! yippiee..

One day after work, a good friend of mine suddenly called me and asked me to accompany me grab some snack. He was craving for sushi, and since we were close to Mall Artha Gading at that time, we went there. There were a couple of restaurants that served sushi in the mall, but we picked Daisho.

My sister really like Daisho in Mall Kelapa Gading, so I thought why didn't we give the one in MAG a shot. I passed by this restaurant a lot of time, but never been there.

Back: New York Roll (Rp 31.5k) &
Front: Crunchy Unagi Roll (Rp 21.5k)

Since it was just for snack, we ordered the medium size (4 pieces, while the large size consists of 8 pieces) for both sushi. The waiter said that New York Roll was one of the favorites, and I also ordered Crunchy Unagi Roll just because I loveee unagi :p Well, they were actually quite good. We finished them up just by the blink of eyes. I think we were really hungry.lol

Cold & Hot Ocha (Rp 8k ea)

Overall, I think the sushi rolls are good, but whether it is better than Sushi Tei, well you guys decide ;)

Daisho Express
Mall Artha Gading
2nd Floor, Blok B2 No. 8-10
Jl. Boulevard Artha Gading Selatan No. 1
Jakarta Utara
Ph: (021) 4586-4204



Mall Kelapa Gading
MKG 3, Ground Floor
Food Hall, Food Court area
Jakarta Utara

Go! Curry

No, this one was not the same as the Go!Go! Curry in Singapore, the one with a gorilla as the mascot. When a friend asked me to accompany her trying out Go! Curry in Pacific Place, I immediately thought of the Gorilla one, but I was wrong.

The place had just opened for a few months I believed, and it was quite busy on a weekday evening. They took curry seriously since they provided different types of curry such as Thai, Japanese, Indian, Indonesian, and British (? I'm not sure about this. I mean since when the Brit is famous for its curry? but yet I'm sure one of the people from the logo was British, no?) curry, that we could choose to create our own curry. We were also able to choose the spiciness level, the type of rice, and what do we want to put in our curry. There were also three different choices for rice: usual plain rice, rice cooked with butter and cilantro, and yellow rice flavored with butter, roasted peanut, and mustard seed.

Tandoor Chicken Tikka with Rogan Josh Curry - Rp 56k

I went with the waiter's recommendation as there were just too many choices for everything.lol save the hassle. He practically recommended the Indian dish. Rogan Josh Curry was their special curry. I believed it was Indian curry. I ordered it mild since I do not eat spicy food. Tandoor Chicken Tikka was basically grilled chicken cubes marinated with Indian spices. He also recommended the Cilantro butter rice.

The portion was perfect to me; it was satisfying. I would say there's nothing really special about the curry. The chicken was tender. It was good but the curry was a bit bland to my taste. It might be because I ordered it mild :( Anyway, I really love the cilantro butter rice. It was aromatic and tasty. I usually did not finish my rice portion (I was on diet *cough cough*), but this time I had to work extra hard to resist the temptation!

Breaded Fish Green Curry - Rp 60k

Well, I actually forgot what my friend ordered but I believed it was the Breaded Fish. The green curry was made with coconut milk, green chili, lime, mint, and pandan leaves to give its green color. She got the long grain rice, which was the plain rice. She also paired them with Dory fillet which was fried with Japanase breadcrumbs.

I didn't try the dish, but I did ask her on how it tasted. She said it actually tasted weird at first since she got the Thai curry with Japanese style fish katsu kind of thing. However, she grew to like it as she ate more of it. And yes, she finished the plate.

Cheese Naan - Rp 23k

We also ordered Cheese Naan for the side dish. It was okay. There was cheese inside the naan!

I also ordered TWG French Earl Grey (not pictured) for drink. It costed Rp 26k.

Overall, I think it was quite good and affordable for Pacific Place. The portion was fulfilling. The bland taste might be because I ordered the curry mild, while others said it was great since they ordered it hot, or even insanely hot. Spicy food lover might want to try the insanely hot curry out!

Oh and I really love the logo graphic! Those five cute guys are so adorable :)

Go! Curry

Pacific Place, 4th Floor

Jl. Jend. Sudirman Kav 52-53

Jakarta Selatan

Cilandak Town Square, 1st Floor

Jl. Letnan Jend. TB Simatupang Kav. 17

Jakarta Selatan

Ph: (021) 7592 0265/75

http://go-curry.com/

Hachi Hachi Bistro

Hachi Hachi Bistro is my favorite sushi place! But noted that I loved fusion sushi a lot more than nigiri sushi. Some true sushi lovers might call fusion sushi as "fake sushi." heck I couldn't careless. Initially, I could not stand eating raw food at all, but with the help of other cooked ingredients (a.k.a fusion sushi), I was able to enjoy some sushi. Hail to the fusion sushi =)

I believed Hachi Hachi Bistro first opened in Surabaya. They had two branches in Jakarta located in Mall Taman Anggrek, and later opened in Central Park. The only downside of Hachi Hachi was both Jakarta branches were located in Grogol area, and I avoid driving around that area for its heavy traffic.

I went to the one in Central Park on a weekend night. It was not as crowded as the one in Mall Taman Anggrek, which usually would take about 30 minutes to get a table. It was full but the table was ready almost straight away.

Iidako (Baby Octopus) - Rp 9k and Inari (Tofu) - Rp 7k

Despite my long speech about fusion sushi vs nigiri sushi above, I actually loved some nigiri sushi. Inari and Tamago was one of them. Unfortunately, they ran out of tamago, so I got the inari instead. My cousin ordered the baby octopus. One of the thing that I like about ordering nigiri sushi in Hachi Hachi Bistro was we can order it in a piece. Meanwhile, most restaurants required you to order a portion, which usually consisted of two pieces.

Gindara Steak - Rp 45k

My cousin, who was a regular, ordered the Gindara for us to share. It came with a bowl of rice. The Gindara Steak was his favorite dish. I was always picky about ordering fish because well, it smelled fishy if it wasn't cooked well. However, this one was super delicious! The fish was smooth and well seasoned. Love love it.

Salmon Dip - Rp 39k & Black Dragon Roll - Rp 41k

The Salmon Dip was basically California roll topped with salmon or tuna, depended on what you pick, served with the cheesy dip. We picked salmon since I did not like raw tuna. I was reluctant when my cousin ordered the Salmon Dip since I did not really catch the idea of dipping my sushi to cheese dip as described in the menu. However, the supposedly cheese dip was actually crunchy batter mixed with cheese and mayo, I believe. and oh boy the dish was heavenly! The dip was awesome I really loved it!!

And you couldn't go wrong with Dragon Roll, since its main ingredient was ebi tempura and unagi. Both were my favorites. The Black Dragon Roll has ebi furai, cream cheese, crunch topped with unagi, more crunch, sweet sauce, and tobiko. I usually hate cream cheese in my sushi, but I loved this one. The taste blended perfectly.

Hot Ocha & Potion No. 8

My cousins ordered hot ocha while I got the Potion No. 8. The name caught my attention at first, but I also loved what were in it. It was actually green tea ice cream, cookies, milk, caramel, and ice blended together. Loved it! The waiter also said that it was one of the most ordered drinks.

Hachi Hachi Bistro was my favorite. The food was superb and well priced. I would dine here more often if only they have more branches in different area other than Grogol. Even with the super heavy traffic, it was worthed, though :)

Hachi Hachi Bistro
Central Park, Lower Ground
Jl. Letnan Jenderal S. Parman Kav. 28
Jakarta Barat
Ph: (021) 5698 5592



Mall Taman Anggrek
3rd Floor, Unit #311
Jl. Letnan Jenderal S. Parman Kav. 21
Jakarta Barat

Sushi Box, Food Sensation

I usually accompany my mom grocery shopping every Saturday. We went to Farmer's Market in Mall Kelapa Gading this time. Afterwards, I felt a bit hungry, so we decided to grab some snacks at a food court right in front of the supermarket, Food Sensation.

There were several food courts in MKG, and this one was located in MKG1 on the ground level. As for my observation, the food court focused on its Indonesian food theme. Therefore, Sushi Box felt a little bit out of place which made it stand out against the other tenants.

Yakuza Roll - Rp 39k

I ordered the Yakuza Roll, which consisted of tamago and tempura flakes and topped with unagi and teriyaki sauce. It was inexpensive compare to the other sushi restaurant in MKG. However, I would prefer if it comes with shrimp tempura, and not only tempura flakes :p As for the taste, I liked it, but the size was a bit small.

I'm sorry I couldn't get a nicer picture of the counter since the corridor was packed with people passing by. This is the best I could get with a super close-up of a customer's back :(

Sushi Box

Food Sensation

Mall Kelapa Gading 1

Ground Floor #194

Jakarta Utara

Blowfish Kitchen & Bar

Club goers must be familiar with Blowfish; I, myself, had been there several times. However, this was actually my first visit to try their food. I went there on a weekday night with my cousin, and the restaurant was not busy at all. It was kind of late, though. And Puro next door seemed to be closed down, I wasn't sure tho', but there was no activity seen. Anyone knows what happened to Puro, the restaurant, not the club?

We could still get the club ambience. It was dark and as the night wore on, they dimmed the light more. You could definitely tell that it was a restaurant in the evening, and it became a club at night. However, I actually thought it was cozy, if the light could be brighter.

Kabocha Croquette - Rp 45k

The waiter recommended the Kabocha Croquette as the appetizer. It consisted of 5 yummy croquette that were made out of kabocha pumpkin. I had never knew pumpkin could taste this good. Totally recommended!

Dragon Roll - Rp 85k

Blowfish Roll - Rp 95k

The sushi rolls were delicious! and they were actually big rolls just like the ones in the states, which I really liked; compared to the usual sushi rolls in Indonesia that came in really small pieces that you could barely taste it. Love, love it! We were really full just by these 2 rolls, which was extraordinary considering my cousin was a big eater :p

The drinks (not pictured) were okay-ed priced with Ice Cappucino for Rp 30k and Hot Wedding Tea from TWG for Rp 25k.

We were really satisfied with the food and planned to come back again. However, the super dark lighting made the place feel gloomy.

Blowfish Kitchen & Bar

City Plaza at Wisma Mulia
Jl Jend Gatot Subroto Kav 42
Jakarta 12710 – Indonesia

Ph: (021) 5297-1234

Social House

I took a day off to accompany Mr. Foo applying for a US visa. After finished with the US Embassy, Mr. Foo felt very hungry, since he got up late and had to skip breakfast. So, we decided to go to Social House in Grand Indonesia, or GI for short.

Food goers must be familiar with Social House. It was under Ismaya Group management. Being located in GI, Social House was one of the "IT" hang out place in Jakarta. It was always fully booked on weekend, and it was spacious.

It was located on the First floor right at the end of Level One, inside Harvey Nichols. Now that the department store had closed, the athmosphere at the entrance of SoHo was not as inviting. It did not give the exclusivity vibe it used to, it was actually a bit horrid. However, once you went in, you would forget about the entrance!

I love the decoration of Social House, or SoHo for short. I found that it was really comfie and cozy with the wood pantry atmosphere; and the most interesting part is it gave totally different vibes during afternoon, evening, and even at night. In the afternoon, the place would be really bright, since the restaurant was surrounded by mirror overlooking "Bunderan HI." In the evening, they would open some of the windows so that you'd feel the wind breeze passing through your face as you were enjoying your mid-day cocktails or tea. At night, they would dim the lights and it was usually really crowded. You could hear people talking and laughing while they enjoyed their boozes.

Anyway, we went there for early lunch and it was not that busy. We were quickly seated right in front of the open kitchen. I had been here numerous times, and I just realized that they had open kitchen.

Mr. Foo was really really hungry, while I was too full after my breakfast at McDonald's Sarinah. So here's what he ordered:

Fresh Oyster - Rp 20k each (Rp 100k for 6 pcs)

Mr. Foo LOVES oyster. However, he just ordered one because he already ordered a lot of other food. He said it was really really delicious! He even considered to order more before the other food started to come out.

Dragon Roll - Rp 70k

I decided to share the Dragon Roll since it looked so good! Extravagant food presentation was one of my weakness. Anyway, it did not taste as good. It was soggy in my opinion that I did not finish my part.

Bibimbab - Rp 75k

I tried a scoop of the Bibimbab and I didn't like it. However, Mr. Foo said that it was good, at first. But it might be because he was really hungry, because later on he said that it was not good.

SoHo had always been a hit or miss to me. It could be really good and it could be really bad. It was bad for our visit this time. I would stick to the waiter's recommendation next time. If you plan to go here at night or on the weekend, reservation is highly recommended.

Oh, and they have a bunch of different promotions for those who use HSBC credit card. For this visit I got 20% discount on food, since it was on the weekdays. On the weekend, I usually get a free dessert of the day.

Social House
Harvey Nichols at Grand Indonesia
East Mall. 1st Floor
Jl. Jend. Sudirman
Jakarta Pusat , Indonesia
Ph. (021) 2358-1818

Goemon

It was my second visit to Goemon. It was on a Friday evening, and as you may know well, Jakarta's traffic on Friday evening was the worst, especially at Sudirman area, where Goemon was located. So, I was not enthusiastic about going there. Moreover, my first visit was not that memorable, but most of my friends really LOVED this place. They said it reminded them of an authentic Japanese depot in San Francisco area, where we went for college.

Luckily, the traffic was friendly that time. I wonder, it seemed that Jakarta traffic on Friday got friendly these days. *fingers crossed* It was on the 3rd floor of the Wisma Kyoei Prince. Once we stepped inside, it felt like we were not in Jakarta anymore, but in some place in Japan. There were 2 types of seating style here, one with the usual table and chair, and the other one, you sit on the tatami. The waitresses would ask you to take off your shoes, regardless of your seating option. Once we were seated, we then realized that everyone else there was Japanese expats. Most of them drank sake, and would speak louder as the night went by.lol

Tamago - Rp 20k

Gyutan - Rp 13k each

Chicken Katsu Curry - Rp 58k

Miso soup and salad were included in Chicken Katsu Curry set. The food was delicious, cheap, and came in big portion. The tamago was moist and had a hint of sweetness. The curry was good, and so did the gyutan. Here's what my friends ordered, but I didn't know the price of the Hamburg Steak.

Yaki udon - Rp 47k

Hamburg Steak Curry

They also gave us fruits for dessert for free. Anyway, the food was good, but to be honest, not too special. I'd rate them 3,5 star out of 5. Service was ok, but then again, it was not a high class restaurant. But the traffic always made me reluctant driving here. However, if you are looking for cheap authentic Japanese food, Goemon is the place to be. Reservation is highly recommended. 

Goemon

Wisma Kyoei Prince

Jl. Jend. Sudirman Kav 3-4

Jakarta Selatan

Ph: (021) 572-3343