Shaburi at Gandaria

Finally I'm done with my fourth semester! Although I have one more incomplete test by the end of next week at least I can be a bit more relaxed. To celebrate the end, my friends and I decided to go on a feast by going to Shari newest branch in Gandaria City since Pacific Place is further from our campus and we were afraid of the crazy queue we might had when we arrive. As we arrive each and every one of us ordered our own flavor of our shabu-shabu dashi broth, while we opt for the U.S. Beef Shabu-Shabu package (IDR 148.000++). We got 90 minutes to enjoy the limitless shabu-shabu, dirnks and their buffet options, so we wasted no time and begun our feast!

Shaburi has several options for the dashi soup to cook your beef and vegetables with. There are the original konbu soup, hot miso soup, sukiyaki, tomato soup, soy milk miso soup and the chicken collagen paitan that I personally ordered. So far I have tried the sukiyaki soup and the chicken collagen soup -- I preferred the chicken collagen since it has the right amount of savoryness and it goes well with the additional ginger and garlic dipping I had with this.

There were a lot of options in their buffet table that you can pick out freely regardless the beef package you took; although I'm not sure whether the buffet is available if you order the beef ala carte.  The range of the food you can cook alongside in the pot includes selection of vegetables, mushrooms, fishcakes, seafood, and noodles. There were also selection of side meals including chicken karaage -- which is my absolute favorite, beef teriyaki, and sushi amongst others. What's also great about Shaburi is the unlimited drinks including soda beverages, lemonade, tea and water. Bottomless beer can be purchased with an additional fee. 

And also, ICE CREAM!

We arrived at Shaburi around 11.30, right before Friday prayer and lunch time. By the middle of our meal, the restaurant were packed even to the extent of the outdoor seating by the edge of the upperground Mainstreet Dining. Everything we had were great although some of the server were giving us sourface and gave us plenty of cold shoulders, which is uncool. However we got off pretty happy and most of all plenty. This personal serving and everything goes really even if you're going with a group which were great. Try a visit and enjoy the meal!

Also, thank you so much for Kiky and Melisa for the meal, once again happy birthday to the both of you!

Shaburi

Gandaria City

Jl. Sultan Iskandar Muda

Upper Ground Mainstreet - M-U08

Kebayoran Baru

South Jakarta

Website

Instagram

Twitter

Facebook

Wingstop at Cinere

Wingstop and its elusive Wednesday Wings Day promotion had got me hooked up in the past, and this time I was visiting Wingstop since I was up for a good wings that day. With its concept similar to other fried chicken fast food joints, you can order your meal by the counter and  but then has to for the order to cook to be delivered on your table. Wingstop has ten different seasoning for its signature wings, which are: Garlic Parmesan, Lemon Pepper, Hawaiian, Hickory Smoked Barbecue, Louisiana Rub, Teriyaki, Atomic, Cajun, Original Hot and Mild. The flavors can be sorted based on its level of spiciness. The ones I underlined were the ones I have tried in the past since I've been visiting their Margonda branch often in between classes since Wingstop offers 10% discount for purchases you make upon showing your student ID to the staff. This time I decided to order two of their classic wings variant and to add another one to my flavor checklist, the Hawaiian!

Hickory Smoked BBQ, 10-pieces Classic Wings (IDR 73.000)

Shown above were 5 pieces of wings that was half of the order of the 10-pieces portion; the rest being coated by the Hawaiian flavor. Most of the variant of seasoning at Wingstop were dry rubs, but feeling like ordering some saucey goodness I ordered the barbecue variant. The wings were served hot right out of the kitchen, tossed with generous amount of barbecue sauce that has a hint of sweetness blending with the spices that is also enhanced with fragrant smoke that you can taste by every bite. I often opt for the classic wings instead of the boneless ones since it adds up to the wing-eating experience, but the boneless one is fine if you want a hassle-free meal.

Hawaiian Classic Wings

The Hawaiian and Barbecue chicken were part of my 10-pieces classic wings order, and this is the Hawaiian half of the portion. The Hawaiian sauce were composed of pineapple glaze that adds a touch of fruityness that is both sweet and sour that unexpectedly goess well with the chicken. Freshly fried and tossed, this one is also a good flavor options for the wings. The wings still has its crunchy quality from the fryer and the thin coat of batter before being drenched in sauce. The Hawaiian seasoning goes really well with the honey mustard dipping sauce that I opted as the order's complimentary dipping sauce. You can either choose the sweet honey mustard or the savory garlic ranch dipping by the order of chicken or as a side.

Cheese Fries (IDR 27.000)

The Cheese Fries is one of the dish I would recommend at Wingstop aside from the wings itself. The thickly cut potatoes were drenched in a hot aged cheddar cheese sauce and garnished alongside with slices of jalapeño. Also, in the second picture is the honey mustard dipping sauce! It can go as an additional sauce for the potatoes, although unnecessary since the cheese by itself were very very generous. Usually I wouldn't order french fries as my restaurant order, but this one is an exception.

I can now cross the Hawaiian flavor on my list of flavor that I have about to try from Wingstop. Would definitely try out the rest, probably on Wednesdays so I can enjoy their Wings Day promotion. My only negative for the Cinere branch is that its cleanliness and friendliness were inferior compared to the one in Margo City. Other that that, Wingstop had been providing great food on each and every visit that I would not hesitate to have some more!

Wingstop

Cinere Bellevue Mall

Upper Ground Floor

Jl. Merawan No. 84
Depok

West Java

+6221 29704981

Twitter

Mujigae at Kemang

It was a year ago where my friend and I discussed about having affordable Korean restaurant located in Serpong. Not familiar with the location and everything, finally a year later I tried out Mujigae in one of its branch in Margo City, Depok. I was pretty satisfied with the place, service and the food but no branch were close enough to home until now that Mujigae has opened its door in Kemang Village. Mujigae is located within the third floor, replacing Caliente (I will miss their grilled chicken and rice combo :(). That day, alongside going to Market and Museum: Surprise Kitchen Vol. 2, I decided to try out this particular Mujigae branch.

The interior is as always bright, bold, with television screens in every corner of the restaurant. The seating arrangement extends through the store as there were two divided spots to enjoy your meal: 'indoor' and 'outdoor' where the latter is practically located across the actual restaurant and kitchen but accessible to Mujigae customer only. Avoiding the public eye, of course I decided to dine in inside the restaurant. Greeted by the waitstaff nicely, we then got to our seat by the sofa brightened by the lighting coming from the restaurant big windom. We then ordered through the iPad menu provided on our table.

Choco Banana Milk + Nutella Pudding (IDR 23.000)

The drink consist of chocolate milk with a hint of banana, added with several cuts of Nutella-flavored pudding. I cannot really taste the flavor of nuttiness in this drink, but the chocolate and banana goes well together. In actuality, I still prefer their Banana Milk + Matcha Pudding option.

Green Tea Sea Salt (IDR 21.000)

One of the most interesting drink option! A mix of green tea, sea salt and creamy foam. The foam by itself tasted like a buttery palette with a hint of saltiness. All of it mixed creates a flavor similar to a green tea latte. Portion wise this is pretty plenty despite the unique shape of the glass. I was a bit surprised that we almost didn't get to finish a beverage. The drink definitely has a wow factor and the flavor really deliver.

Korean Chicken Wing (IDR 26.000)

The fried chicken wings is served very hot, served right out of the fryer. The portion consist of four pieces of chicken wings dressed in a coating of gochujang to add spiciness and flavor to the chicken wing. It was sticky, hot, spicy, and delicious.

Spicy Bulgogi (IDR 52.000)

The spicy bulgogi came in a dish of its own atop of a burner which settings you can control. It consist mainly of beef slices, frenched onion, rice noodle, and the sauce with hints of garlic, pepper, ginger amongst others. The marinated grilled beef were very nice and its portion is very plenty for one. We ordered this alongside with a warm bowl of rice and it was delightful; thank God I skipped breakfast for these. This meal is served alongside with a kimchi on a dish.

Paket Bulgogi 1 (IDR 47.900)

Feeling like a big meal and to try out multiple dishes, I ordered one of their bulgogi package consisting of bulgogi, japchae, Korean fried chicken, rice and kimchi. I would not say much about the kimchi because it was pretty 'meh' and its portion were very poor that I only got two cuts of the fermented cabbage. The bulgogi was nice, although considering it was a part of a set it is served a bit sloppily and arrived warm -- I then had to reheat it on the initial burner for the earlier spicy bulgogi. The Korean fried chicken does not in forms of wings but instead as cuts of boneless chicken. Again, there's no heat. The japchae consisting noodle, vegetables and bits of meats were nice though although a bit too oily for my taste. I was overall happy with the dish but the lack of heat is seriously a concern; it gave an impression as if the food had been left out too long.

Despite the lack of heat in the last particular meal, the services I got at Mujigae were excellent. The servers were all kind and warm; the food also came by pretty quickly. I just hope Mujigae can keep on improving its quality to suit more properly into a more authentic Korean casual dining experience. 

Mujigae

Lippo Mall Kemang

3rd Floor

Pangeran Antasari No. 36

South Jakarta

Website

Twitter

A Birthday Cake from Union at Pondok Indah

Happy birthday Emyr! Today is my only little brother's 17th birthday. He is now finally legal and are bound to be the subject of public law once he got a proper registration for his ID card (ah, my law student persona is speaking here). Unfortunately he came unprepared during the registration to the kelurahan and had to prepare several documents to then reapply. His celebration were as simple as he is, only a cake and all-you-can-eat lunch at Hanamasa the next day. Yet as he is a simple guy, my parents taught that he deserves something nice and a bit more grandeur, buying him a birthday cake from Union.

He initially requested Oreo Cheesecake from The Harvest but since my parents insisting buying him Union, being great fans of their bakery products, we then decided to buy Union's cheesecake -- expecting a New York cheesecake you'll find in most bakeries here. What we ended up seeing is still a cheesecake, but in form of layered buttercream whole cakes which doesn't seem like something we had in mind. Then we considered to buy their infamous Red Velvet, but having purchasing it oh-so-often we decided to try out something new per the suggestion of the kind staff that greeted us that day. Swear that is the best service I've got from Union Pondok Indah in comparison in three not-so-great visit I had before. Finally, we bought a whole Strawberry Charlotte cake in fifteen minutes after the order; a new menu that my mom conspired to have its name inspired after the birth of the new British royal baby.

Strawberry Charlotte (IDR 660.000) 

The cake consist of layers of vanilla sponge cake, whipped cream, strawberry (which I admit were very fresh!), sweet crumble and a cake-slash-pie-crust-bottom. The cake were not to sweet, the sourness of the strawberry goes well with the overall flavor. The problem is the texture, the only crunch I get were only from the crumble and the bottom feels like a subpar pie crust that I'm not even sure whether it is a plain crust or an actual cake outer that had gotten brown during baking. The outer cake, although pretty, were very dry and was the least favorable element of the cake. We were a bit disappointed that with such price, the flavour we get were sub-par. I was expecting so much more from Union and this time they didn't deliver in the flavor despite their marketing effort in introducing this Strawberry Charlotte. It was good and admittedly very pretty, but that's it.

Should've bought that red velvet cake instead or the actual birthday cake flavor that Union offer. Or even, should've bought that oreo cheesecake instead. However what matter is that the birthday boy is happy and that the family can gather to enjoy his moment. We are thankful for the blessings we had.

Once again, happy birthday Emyr!

Union

Brasserie, Bakery & Bar

Street Gallery Terrace

Ground Floor

Pondok Indah Mall 1
South Jakarta

+6221 29529781

Website

Facebook

Sop Buntut Bogor from Sudirman

Hello guys! Lately I've been titling my post as '....from....' instead of '....at...' since it's been a long time since I went out to try out new places or found good materials to post. That's why I've been posting pictures of food that I got by ordering it through delivery services or in this case were takeaways from my brother. As I got through my appendicitis surgery, my food intake were under strict monitor and my elder brother thoughtfully bought me some meals from Sop Buntut Bogor Cafe at Pacific Place since it was near his office. He initially bought plenty of foods such as the fried rice and variety of soups but my other sibling had eaten it way before I get to see the package. Oh, the struggle of being in a big family.

However, I did try out one of their menu and thankfully it is their signature sop buntut! I've been hearing about how delicious Hotel Borobudur's oxtail soup menu and my curiousness escalates when I saw the oxtail soup making its name by opening branches in several malls in Jakarta such as Pondok Indah Mall and this particular Pacific Place branch. I was really excited and the meal was suited nicely to the rainy weather during the time I was enjoying it at home. The meal heats up nicely and the broth were really flavorful, even from the first sight when I see the fat collagulate when it was stored inside the fridge; I knew I was in for a treat.

Hotel Borobudur's Legendary Oxtail Soup Specialties (Rp 168.000)

The takeaway price is drastically more expensive then the regular meal you will have on the restaurant. It came neatly packed alongside with sambal, lime, and emping (melinjo crackers) but unfortunately I did not get any shares of those. The beef and everything else though are a delight by itself! I'm pretty sure my brother ordered the grilled oxtail seen from the charring of the beef that is loaded with black pepper. The three-pieces of oxtail came with plenty of meats so don't worry about the portioning. The vegetables were also good and crunchy, it all goes really well into the plate. Imagine I had such good meal with reheated portion from the restaurant; how would a fresh meal goes? I bet its even better.

Sop Buntut Bogor Cafe

Pacific Place  

5th Floor, Number 57

Sudirman Central Business District

South Jakarta

+6221 57973238

Kyochon from Gandaria

Lately I haven't been going out to try out many food places as my options were currently limited post-surgery. College schedule were pretty hectic too, so I would rather opt for food deliveries or take outs. I've been enjoying food delivery services from either FoodPanda or Klik-Eat (I haven't tried ordering something by GO-JEK yet!) and at the time XL was having a Rp50.000 off promotion for an order set by minimum 100.000 if I remember correctly. Excitedly I surf their site, browse their menu and picked out to order chicken wings from Kyochon. I was ecstatic as the delivery range cover my household area since months ago my area was not included within the range.

60-minutes from ordering time that I set up a day in advance, I got my order delivered to my house. Kyochon packaging, still with a glammering picture of Lee Min Ho placed on its bag, serves Korean fried chicken that has gotten a bit warm due to the time. The crunch is still there; yet it no longer felt as crispy as a 'fresh' order to be but totally understandable since it is a delivery order and I'm pretty much grateful for having an access to the restaurant.

Sal Sal Chicken Strips (IDR 39.000)

Sal Sal Chicken Strips comes as a twist to the basic chicken strips yet it is covered with different batter than the usual you found as it is said to be added with rice crumbs. The chicken part used is the breast as it is an apparent white meat. It goes well with the sauce that comes within but I would rather have their chicken wings any day.

Mix Wings (IDR 99.000)

12 pieces assortment of chicken wings. Four pieces of each Original Wings, spicy Red Wings and Honey Wings.

Original Wings

Simply said this is the most basic out of the three chicken options (even four, added with the Sal Sal). The rice flour crispiness is apparent however the taste is not savoury enough and gotten a little bland. This is my least favorite of Kyochon wing sauce, hard to find the hint of soy and garlic in it. The competitor's (you know which; the name rhymed with Kyochon) original sauce has a way better flavor than the one Kyochon offer.

Red Wings
My favorite sauce for the wings! Really spicy with apparent kick of gochujang, Korean chili paste. Eating this one might get messy since the sauce were really generous. This one is truly spicy since there were still some sort of chili aftertaste minutes after eating this one but you will find some hint of sweetness from its sauce to balance it out. It is so good its hard to resist.

Honey Wings

Runner up for my favorite Kyochon sauce. Sweet glaze of honey rightfully balances the savouriness of the chicken, yet gets problematic as it gets your chicken soggy a bit faster than the other sauces as what I saw from my order. This one would get so much more only if the pricing of the honey wings is not more expensive than the other two sauces.

I am so thankful for FoodPanda for its continuous promotion offer. This is my fourth order ever from the site and definitely wouldn't be the last. Also thanks for XL-Axiata that becomes a huge factor in picking this order due from their promotion hehe. Kyochon really does not disappoint even from its takeouts. Flavors were always consistent from times I visit their restaurant. Keep it coming and I'll stay becoming one happy kid!

Kyochon

Gandaria City

Jl. Sultan Iskandar Muda

Upper Ground Level, Unit MU 29-30

Kebayoran Baru

South Jakarta

+62 21 2923 6448

kyochonlovers@kyochon-indonesia.com

Website

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram