COFFEE AYA

In the middle of Jakarta coffee industry, you have to be bold among those popping coffee shops here and there. You have to have things to offer because people in Jakarta have too many offerings yet they can judge it even from the first step, the first sip, and the first bite. You can be a coffee shop that has an awesome cup of coffee, an exquisite food, a friendly barista, a comforting corner, whatever it is, you gotta have something you can highlight about it.

Stepping into Coffee Aya, one newcomer in Jakarta's coffee situation, located in the heart of Muara Karang. Surrounded by those crowds in Muara Karang market, the location quite surprised me by being the only modern spot around. It's like finding one zen in the hectic area. 

The story is, the owner has the good eye to build this pretty zen. Dressed in all white and soft wooden creature, Coffee Aya reminds me of the relaxing Japanese house. It's so quiet and suitable for working, to escape from reality in the heat of Muara Karang. I can imagine myself sitting there, hallucinating about the sound of soothing water fountain around. Tranquilizing atmosphere? Check!

Greeting on the door. Fall in love at my first step.

I have my latte, as usual. My cup of latte is way too hot, kinda surprise me while having my first sip, burning my palate. Not to mention the break latte art on top of it. Their latte is dominated by milk, a lot. The coffee is too light, even for my palate. The owner is very kind to change the first cup, but sorry to say, my second cup is hotter than the first one, with better latte art, but still too watery for me and burnt aftertaste.

Loving the ambiance. Everything is seated on point, very pretty.

Finding these cuties from Cotton and Tartlets with several flavours. IDR 10k each. I find these kind of pastry suit Coffee Aya well. Elegant yet beautiful. They also have cookies from Surely Someday Kitchen (thank you Coffee Aya for the cookies!) Everything is good and enjoyable. 

Overall the soothing ambiance really got me on my first sight. Everything is so pretty in white, modern yet elegant. Too bad I did not have any good impression about the coffee, even they serve it way too hot. Coffee Aya is really suitable for you when you need a refugee from this city, and I know that this hidden zen can make a good improvement. Best of luck!

COFFEE AYA

Ruko Niaga, Jl. Muara Karang Z8 no 19

North Jakarta

Opening hours: 8am-7pm

Best regards,

Jessica Christy Limanjaya

@jechristy

SOCIAL AFFAIR COFFEE AND BAKE HOUSE

Digging deep into Jakarta's food scene, it just never stop. The innovation and creation of something new somehow really awe me, making me curious about the creativity they have. So after scrolling through my social media over and over again, this one little 'creature' drool me much: martabak croissant at Social Affair. Getting excited? Wait until you see the rest of it.

Social Affair, one little humble sister of Cacaote, resides in Pantai Indah Kapuk area, align with Yamatoten Abura Soba, Chir Chir, and Sushi Hiro. Yes. it's another creation from the man behind Cacaote, a pretty well-known dessert cafe in the heart of Senopati. Having Social Affair, much more casual and humble, but still having its charm being a specialty in dessert. Cafe is quite spacious, decorated with the twist of modern cafe and colorful yellow, it deliver quite a pleasant ambiance.

Menu is quite spacious, having dessert, main menu, and brunch selection. At that day I am so into pastries (like I always did, actually lol) so I order some croisants and meat pie instead of their main menu.

MARTABAK CROISSANT-35k

Best seller here in Social Affair. Sweet sweet croissant bathed with condensed milk, covered with chocolate, peanut, and cheese on top. The croissant does not have its flaky consistency because of the double-bake cooking technique, but still I love it, a lot. The condensed milk is somehow quite domination, for some people it can be an overwhelming kind of sweetness, but I don't mind having this kind of goodness all by myself! 

CHEESECAKE CROISSANT

My number two favorite of all: cheese croissant. This time, Social Affair ace it by having its flaky croissant with melted cheese filling. Major love for the cheese filling because the flavor is very on point (not to sweet) for my liking. I do recommend to have it reheat before consuming!

CHOCOLATE AND GREENTEA CROISSANT

Still having its good consistency, both of them are very enjoyable to my palate. Covered in chocolate glaze croissant may be suitable for you who those who's a sucker for sweet tooth while the greentea  filling is more charming with its not to sweet and fragrant green tea filling.

TRUFFLE MUSHROOM CROISSANT-30k

May be sound appetizing, but unfortunately I don't think I can taste the truffle mushroom well. Some of friends tried this before and they loved it. Being unlucky for their lack of consistency, maybe?

BEEF PIE

Major love for this kind of meat pie. I used to have Australian meat pie for my breakfast every single day while having my 3 weeks holiday in Syndey (yes, almost every single day) and so pleased that Social Affair is being very thoughtful for bringing it here. The meat pie is so fragrant, the meat filling is the bomb, thick and flavorfull pie with tasty flaky skin. Love love!

PORK BELLY RICE BOWL- 85k

Craving into savory at the end of those sweetness, bunch of my friends are having this pork belly rice ball and seems like they're enjoying it. The thick and golden colored pork belly is surely drooling, right?

BRAISED BEEF CHEEK-115k

Beautifully presented beef cheek, tender and enjoyable.

So basically I am satisfied with what I've had in Social Affair. Their croissant and pastry selcetions is surely the highlight of my visit, while the rest of it is not bad at all. Best of luck for Social Affair!

SOCIAL AFFAIR 

Garden House BloK B no17-18A Pantai Indah Kapuk

North Jakarta

Opening Hours: Sun – Thur 07.00 – 22.00/ Fri – Sat 07.00 – 24.00
@socialaffair

Best regards,

Jessica Christy Limanjaya

@jechristy

TOBY'S ESTATE INDONESIA

You know, some of my friends are travelling-freak who are able to have those trip between their working days. Thing I love about it is I've got to know their favorite place and cool cafes overseas. Sometimes their experience drooled me a lot. Among those coffee, the one that caught my attention was Toby's Estate. I remember one of my friends had this major crush over their coffee and kept saying that Toby's was one of the best they had. So I got my curiosity about Toby's Estate.

Until God heard my prayer: yes, Toby's Estate is coming to Indonesia. Pantai Indah Kapuk, Jakarta, to be exact.

Meet Toby Smith, coffee expert behind the genius idea of Toby's estate. He spent years and years learning all about coffee and finally here to share the goodness of Toby's with us. Never in my mind slip that Toby's in Australia is that good. They actually sell over 1000 cups of coffee before 9 am. Yes, 9 am in the morning. I love to hear how those people appreciate and enjoy good coffee, as much as I do. So you can start imagining how good Toby should be, right?

So Toby's located in PIK Avenue, North Jakarta, one new mal in Pantai Indah Kapuk area. I honestly quite surprised about them opening Toby's here. I thought it would be somewhere around South Jakarta. It is surely a good thing, one (more) good coffee shop in North Jakarta.

Location is strategic, you can spot its pretty coffee right from the lobby. the one across the Tsu Zhi building. Ambiance? Post as hell. Rustic and modern twist in spacious spot. Major love! 

As a latte person, I tend to judge the coffee shop by its latte. Good thing that theirs is one of my favorite. Perfect amount of milk and coffee, light but not watery. It's like finding a heaven in a cup. Definitely a kick to my morning. I also have their cold brew, but I feel like I have better one somewhere. The taste is just not there. 

Kale salad

Papardelle pasta

Patty melt burger

Buttermilk fried chicken with on corn fritata and ricotta pancake

brioche french toast

Another thing to love at Toby's: Australian kind of brunch. Yes I'm a major sucker for brunch and having their brunch menu really enlighten me. I have this Kale salad, which is so good, crispy, with light dressing. Homemade Papardelle pasta with generous meat on top is surely a treat for me too. But me favorite would be Buttermilk fried chicken with on corn fritata and ricotta pancake, the chicken is so flavorful, juicy, and tender, the sauce is so yum, the corn fritata is really there to enhance everything to give a little bit crunchiness on every bite. Patty melt burger offer one guilty pleasure with its juicy meat and tasty sauce. Too bad I do not have a chance to grabe their brioche french toast. 

The flavor of everything is really above my expectation, it definitely rocket into one of my favorite brunch list in Jakarta!

PS: price ranging fromIDR 35-155k

So. basically Toby's estate offers one good cup of coffee. I believe that one pretty place that offer comforting coffee and enjoyable meal could be one contender in Jakarta coffee situation. Congrats to you, Toby's Estate!

TOBY'S ESTATE

PIK Avenue Mall GF Floor
Jl. Pantai Indah Kapuk, North Jakarta

@tobysestateid

Best regards,

Jessica Christy Limanjaya

HALAL GUYS INDONESIA

Yes, you read it right. It's a preview about Halal Guys Indonesia: something big is coming from New York City to Jakarta! ❤️

So today I got a privilege to give a bite to this phenomenal food chain from NYC with some blogger friends. So happy that finally I could find the original brand from overseas. Brief explanation about Halal Guys, they started with something small with foodtruck and turned out become one of the most wanted food in NYC, spreading world wide!

Okay I won't talk much about anything else beside the food. So Halal Guys Indonesia will open its first door sometime around end of January, located in Senayan City Mal, next to Pancious (ex-Killiney). It's gonna be their first store and will expand soon! ( I have some plans to open their next branch, but I'll keep it secret to make you curious!)

Gonna tell you this first: the portion is huge! One serving of rice, gyro, chicken, pita bread, veggy, and fresh tomato with lettuce. They have another kind of serving with fries too! My favorite will be the mixing part: adding the white sauce and mix it with everything on the plate. The secret ingredients is surely gonna be found in their white sauce: tasty and creamy and enhancing everything well. The red sauce turns out to be really really hot! (I'm serious about this, the red sauce is kinda burning my palate!) 

Ps: best to be enjoyed while its hot. Imagine having a mouthful of everything in one bite. Superb!

Rumor said they also have smaller portion for girls. yeay! Because honestly, I find this one way too big!

So basically I am satisfied with what Halal Guys Indonesia has here. I am never had one in NYC so I can't compare. For me, this bowl is so enjoyable and tasty, when the white sauce is surely the winner.

HALAL GUYS INDONESIA

Senayan City Mal - coming soon!

IZAKAYA KAI

Digging into one of the well-known place in North Jakarta: Izakaya Kai. Brief explanation, this Japanese restaurant is one month old baby from Chef Andhika Maxi, Karen Charlotta, and Tempura Master Hitoshi Kimora. Sounds familiar? Yes, they're the masters behind your favorite western food and fancy cakes at Union and AMKC. Knowing that they're exploring their area in Japanese food field, with the tempura master itself, excites me a lot to dig the goodness they offer. 

Located in the Pluit area, North Jakarta, this hidden gem is not hard to find. Basically they're separated into two different storey: they first one is for easy Western food, the second one is for Japanese cuisine. Place is pretty, comfortable, with open bar for the Japanese section and off course displays of pretty cakes for the Western section. Drooling me much!

Service is friendly, although they're still having those crowded weeks, it's fast and sprightful. Open my feast with brioche bun, one soft bun with flavorful minced pork.  Tempura set is one of their favorites, looks like everyone is enjoying their own on every table. Pork belly, reminds me of Chinese style of pork belly, is tasty and juicy. No wonder, this goodness has passed its 8 hours cooking time, must be delicious! Yakitori is offered in several styles, and I do recommend to have their tebasaki (wings) and tsukune (chicken meatballs). They may be simple, but those yakitori is surely well-seasoned and tasty!

Hint: don't forget to close the feast with those fancy cakes from Chef Karen Charlotta. Unique twist of their well-known red velvet with dense dark chocolate is one genius idea! 

Overall Izakaya Kai is one place you can try to have something different in North Jakarta.  Place is pretty, convincing, and food is palatable. 

Price:
Brioche bun-35k
Prawn tendon-120k
8 hours pork belly and trotter-60k
Tebasaki (chicken wing)-30k
Tsukune (chicken meatball)-20k
Chocolate red velvet-50k

IZAKAYA KAI
Jl. Pluit Kencana Raya no 59, Pluit
North Jakarta
(021) 22663966

Opening hours:
Cafe 11 am – 11pm
Izakaya Dining 11am-3pm, 6pm-10pm

Best regards,
Jessica Christy Limanjaya
@jechristy

YELO EATERY BOGOR

Hello from Bogor!

Yes, I took my day off to visit Bogor because apparently reaching Bogor is quite easy with train (Sukabumi-Bogor) which happens to leave 3 times a day, within 2 hours trip. This is my first experience with train and I find the executive class is somehow comfortable (50k on weekdays) while it's quite crowded at the economy class (20k). 

So I visit this fun and humble eatery called Yelo Eatery, finding this one excites me much because God know, I miss brunch! I can not say living in Sukabumi is not fine, but they do not this kind of food which is my favorite. I google through Yelo's menu and give me thrilled when I see 'all day brunch' on the menu!

Fun colorful wall is one main attraction here. Yellow and blue are surely a good match, expelling young and energetic atmosphere. They have good lighting, too! The big window give the hot ambiance to this place, but I still love it tho. 

So apparently I am lucky to visit them because currently they're having promo buy 2 get 3. Buying 2 main courses will give you one free meal they've chosen for you ( they have french toast, salad, etc). Such a good deal! I am having quite a hard time to decide what to try because honestly everything looks good by their description on the menu. 

HAMBURG ON POTATO-50k

My friend is a big fan of Rosti and she loves it! It is entertaining my taste bud as well! Australian beef patty is tender and thick, with melted cheese and egg on top. I am not a big fan of beef, I do not have any complain with theirs. Everything taste really really good on each other. I find their rosti is quite oily but seasoning is nice. So it's forgiven I guess. Portion is generous too! This kind of goodness for only IDR 50k is such a good deal!

GRILLED CHEESE SANDWICH-40k

Yeah I am big fan of grilled cheese and by looking at it on the meny drolls me much. They're using this thick wheat bread (may be for healthier effect) and tasty cheese inside. The thick bread somehow really make me full, eating two pieces of it can stop me from eating anything else. I prefer thinner bread with thicker cheese, but still. this one is alright!

FRENCH TOAST-40k

I find their french toast is a bit weird. Tasty fried eggy bread, topped with maple syrup, but having scrambled egg on top! French toast supposed to be sweet, so the scrambled egg kinda confuse me a little bit. I end up eating it separately, having the egg with the tasty strawberry jam and caramelized apple and eat the scrambled egg with addition of salt and pepper to make it better. So here's my advice: sweet and salty do not work on this plate.

So after all Yelo Eatery is one enjoyable eatery with and bright ambiance. Love love all the vibrant colors, good food, and service too. I know that eateries in Bogor city is developing, many new cafes are popping here and there, I believe that they, with this consistency, will surely survive. 

Ps: Will definitely come back to try another menus. 

YELO EATERY

Jl. Pajajaran Indah Raya no. 5 Bogor Tengah, Bogor

West Java

081802799127

Opening hours: 10am-10pm

Best regards,

Jessica Christy Limanjaya

@jechristy