Fat Shogun Independence Deal

Do you remember Fat Shogun? The Japanese-Peruvian restaurant returns with this awesome line up to celebrate our independence day.

This is Fiona, giving freedom a taste.

When Fat Shogun contacted me to try their Independence Deal meal, I said yes right away. I've been to Fat Shogun a couple of times and it's been on our favorite list ever since. I celebrated Valentine's day here too and would recommend this restaurant for your special occasion. The unique flavor of Nikkei keeps you coming back for more. It challenges the freshness of each ingredient, uniqueness of the sauce and toppings, in presenting you with the mix of the flavors. Definitely my kind of food. Let's see what the menu has to offer.

Ceviche With Acar Dressing
Snappers, red onion, tomatoes, acar dressing.

It's summer for sure! The spicy, sour dan fresh snappers will fulfill your longing for summer in the end of August. It comes with pickles and real chilli, if you like more spicy sensation. For me, this is more than enough. It's a good introduction to freedom. It's hard to stop and this is just the beginning.

Red White Tiradito
Seabass, tuna, mango ginger salsa.

Fresh seabass is one of my favorites, especially Tuna. But the highlight of this meal comes from its sauce: mango ginger salsa. A dominant ginger flavor which is combined with a sweet touch of mango. So it's not overpowering the fish while you still can taste the freshness.

Chicken Roll and Cod Misoyaki

Cod Misoyaki is a familiar dish, so having this included in the menu gives a homey feeling to my palate. This is my must-have menu in Fat Shogun and I'm excited that they decided to include this on theit special menu. For those who aren't familiar with the Cod Misoyaki, it's a buttery cod with crispy vegetables on top. I always ask for crispier veggies. The Chicken Roll reminds you of sushi, but instead of seaweed, Chicken is used to "wrap" the sushi. Inside is super yumny tamago. If you're up to different kind of sushi sensation, try this.

Ceviche With Acar Dressing

Red White Tiradito

Chicken Roll and Cod Misoyaki

Yuccamochi
Cassava cake and crumble.

I can smell cassava when the dish arrived in my table. Surely delicious, according to my nose. The cake is real moist (makes me wonder) plus the vanilla ice cream and crumble pair, makes this a perfect dessert. I really appreciate that the vanilla flavor doesn't overwhelm the cassava sweet ending.

Yuccamochi

If you haven't gone to Fat Shogun then this is a good time to try their dishes. They simplified their menu into these four dishes. The idea is using different ingredients in every plate so expect different range of flavors from one plate to another but still feel the Fat Shogun rhythm along the way.

The package is only 400k ++/ pax and it's only available exclusively for two days on 16 - 17 August 2017. Book today (before the 16th) and get those meals only for Rp375k++/pax.

Where is this?

Menara BTPN - Retail Tower, Rooftop Level, 

Jl. Dr. Ide anak agung Gde Agung Kav, 5.5 - 5.6 

CBD Mega Kuningan, Jakarta Selatan.

Street Food Delight by Chef Marinka at Aryaduta Hotel Jakarta

Living in Jakarta means a never ending array of delicious culinary. It’s not always the luxurious romantic kind of food, but may be your comfort food, served with an international upgrade. Skipping lunch at the office, Ruth attended an event held by Aryaduta Hotel Tugu Tani, Jakarta.

The hotel, which I passed on my way to and from work everyday, is special. It’s been a frequent reunion place with old friends and coworkers, mainly due to its location. So, walking across the lobby then up to Ambiente where the event was held gives a special memory.

Aryaduta is revamping. This month, Celebrity Chef Rinrin Marinka joined on board the kitchen team to develop new menu for the restaurant. Taking Batavian street food and twist them with Marinka style. The star of the day is Nasi Goreng Kambing (Lamb Fried Rice). “Back in college, when I crave for Indonesian food, I always cook this dish. The challenge is how to make the dish interesting and pretty without losing its authenticity.” She then proceeds to do a live cooking show with Rob Cunningham, Group Director Food & Beverage from Aryaduta Hotels Indonesia. 

Fat Shogun's Rooftop Romantic

Win a special girl’s heart with a unique and lavish dinner. That’s probably what we brought back from this year’s Valentine’s Day. It’s all started with Fiona’s Valentine’s Day celebration at Fat Shogun.

Hello, This is Fiona.

I’m not celebrating Valentine’s Day with flower and chocolate, but a nice rooftop (romantic) dinner is hard to resist. Fat Shogun is located on the rooftop of BTPN building. There’s this simple Fat Shogun sign, dominated by the gold and black colors and the city lights reflected on the large windows. A bar is located on the corner. Needless to say, this place is romantic. 

Their inspiring set menu only adds on to the sweet ambiance. Called "Epicurian Of Nikkei," a romantic dinner journey related to Nikkei history. Nikkei is a combination of Japanese and Peruvian cuisine. So, set aside the thought of complicated stock exchange when you taste each meal. Its origin can be traced back to late 1800 when the Japanese worker immigrated to Peru, to work on railroads. Some of them stayed and the cuisines blended into what’s known today as Nikkei.

Love and Prosperity at Gran Mahakam

Happy Lunar New Year!

A prosperous New Year should begin with delicious foods. So we put our trust to Gran Mahakam for the special day. Needless to say, the buffet is beyond satisfying.

Here’s what we have for our New Year’s meal:

Appetizer & Soup.
Prawn Mango Pomelo Salad served with Crispy Wonton Skin. A delicious hint of sour appeared in the center of this mix. Fresh prawn (it’s a standard) and fun texture from the crispy wonton. Second appetizer is needed so we called in for Scallop Green Dumpling. A delicious skin is wrapping generous filling. You can forget those tasteless dumpling skins as this one is created with the same thought and love. This is our favorite and will get you back for more.Next is Asparagus Crab Meat Soup. Finding greens in the mug is a pleasant surprise. Crab meat is great too.

Jia: An Epicurean Journey to Contemporary China

The classic New-Year-New-You phrase resonates to Jia, Shangri-La Jakarta’s latest signature Chinese restaurant, which was opened in place of Shang Palace. This is Fiona’s adventure to discover the delicacy of contemporary China.

Ni Hao. This is Fiona.

I've been to Shang Palace couple of time. When Jia takes over the premise, I feel the difference, but in a good way. It’s still a Chinese restaurant, with a young, vibrant and modern feeling. I personally love the interior, which I think has taken the right path to present China. Tokyo-based firm Bond was in charge of the interior, creating an update from its former dining place with shades of cobalt and a range of earth colors. The dining area can sit up to 122 guests and the private dining rooms can host 20 guests each. 

It’s hard to stop taking pictures because the place is so photogenic. The big tables are everywhere and sofas for 4 people or less. There’s a small transparent glass room for those who want to see the Peking Duck roasting. Yummy, I can imagine the smell of Peking Duck being opened by the chef.

Guan Yin Tea Cold Brew is waiting for me at the end of my journey around the restaurant. Served in a transparent bottle, it gives another hint of modernity. It’s really refreshing and I always love Chinese tea. I’m glad to find a cold brew that I can enjoy in a hot mid-day. The menu book is a magazine. You’d be surprise.

Christmas is Here at Gran Mahakam Hotel

Christmas comes early this year as we start seeing decorations being put up and delicious dishes being placed on the menu. And when Christmas is your favorite holiday of the year, an invitation to Gran Mahakam Intimate Christmas Luncheon is something that you wouldn’t want to miss.

Happy Holidays from Fiona.

Held at Gran Mahakam Hotel private room, I was welcomed by the decoration of Christmas ball tree as its centerpieces. There’s a photogenic corner, with overall theme of white, silver and gold. It’s a White Christmas feeling. Elegant decorations using white paper flowers and Christmas balls as well as charming chandelier of silver and gold Christmas balls tree.

Two Makes Tasty, Sababay Meets TeSaTe

Was a little confused when a wine-tasting invitation arrived from TeSaTe, but who can say no to wine? Fiona decided to give it a try and arrived at TeSaTe Sam Ratulangi, Menteng. There's always the first time for everything.

So here's Fiona's first encounter with wine and TeSaTe Menteng. 

I have always love TeSaTe and its sister company, Sate Khas Senayan, because they're best known for its fine Indonesian dishes. But they always go beyond food when it comes to authenticity, like this particular branch of TeSaTe which features familiar ambiance in all three floors. The first floor is the lobby, dominated by the large windows and bright natural lights, plus an outdoor seating area. Right next to the open kitchen there's a large wine cellar. The third floor is a function room, complete with necessary equipments like projector. Then there are Gamelan and other Indonesian music near the stairs. Down the steps is private rooms, separated by partitions. Our area has open garden and waterfall which makes the underground floor isn't so packed. It's cool and simple, a perfect combination of contemporary and traditional corner. 

 

So, what's the story with the local wine? The name Sababay is taken from Saba Bay in Gianyar region, Bali. It's 100% Indonesian wine harvested by local Balinese farmers. Andy Fatima, Regional Sales Manager of Sababay explained the process, which is using the stainless steel equipments instead of wooden barrel. Sababay's 6 wine selections have been introduced in 2012 and are the winners of different awards like WSA Wine Challenge Singapore, China Wine & Spirits Awards , Hong Kong International Wine and Spirit Competition and Korea Wine Challenge. As a wine enthusiast, this local bottles really spark my interest.

It matches the vision of TeSaTe, holding the wine pairing to introduce local dishes to international customers as well as opening a way for Indonesian food to go international. I think it's a great idea because Indonesian food tend to be this inherited recipe with complicated spices which aren't exactly popular flavors when it comes to world's general preference. Sababay helps the idea that Indonesian dishes are famous for their rich and complicated taste, so what's better than Indonesian wine to pair with them? 

Introducing A&W National Day Promotion

We recalled flipping through calendar, couldn't wait for the next month to come so we can redeem that free ice cream. A&W has always been a dear memory to our childhood, serving the one-of-a-kind Root Beer, curly fries invention and the golden aroma fried chicken. That's why, when invitation called, Ruth jumped out the bed early on Saturday morning and join the BFF Rooty Picnic Barrels launching party at A&W Cipete. 

It's their first time doing a promotion in August, so it was a blast of fun. Aside from the sit-down, show-and-tell launch, that morning started with brunch an array of waffle, fried chicken,fries and nuggets. And ended in a traditional independence day game, which I accidentally won. The game is pick your best friend and do the dancing while keeping the balloon between our foreheads. The best friends concept is drawn from the barrels, which contains a lunch (or dinner) for two. 

My brunch for the day. Waffle and chicken are great idea.

It was displayed up front, so I was curious what’s inside the barrels. The limited edition BFF Rooty Barrel consists of a pair of Golden Aroma Chicken, rice, potato fritters (perkedel) and regular Root Beer (starts from Rp. 69,5k). The A&W Rooty Picnic Barrel comes in different packages to choose from. If you’re like me, thinking about skipping rice, try combination 1 of 2 Golden Aroma Chicken, 1 Beef Burger, 4 Chicken Chunks, 1 rice (for your BFF) and 2 regular Root Beer (starts from Rp.79k). Guys would probably eat more than one piece of chicken, so combination 2 is perfect for the buddies and bros searching for a filling meal: 4 Golden Aroma Chicken, 4 Chicken Chunks, 2 rice and 2 regular Root Beer (starts from Rp.98k).

 

The three limited edition picnic barrels are decorated with sporty theme, showing Rooty bear playing soccer, cycling and badminton.

But what’s A&W without its coupons? The good news arrives as we don’t have to wait for the months to change to use the coupons because now they’re available online. I think in the near future, they should start creating an app. I wouldn’t mind having Rooty Bear popping up on my screen with coupons haha. All you have to do is sign up at awrestaurants.co.id/kupondiskon and download the ones you want to use. Once you’re at the counter, show it to the cashier and enjoy the discount, explain Irvan Maulana, Head of Digital A&W Restaurant. He also assured that one coupon can be shared with your friends, so no need to worry about running out of promotion.

Sounds good, smells good and off we go. cos this National Day Promotion is only available through 31 August 2016.

Penfolds Bin 9 Launching Shangri-La Jakarta

We were asking ourselves, what’s our lucky number when a tempting red invitation arrived on our inbox, a ticket to savor the launching of Penfolds Bin 9 Cabernet Sauvignon at Satoo Garden, Shangri-La Hotel, Jakarta. It’s Penfolds, and you just can’t turn it down. So, Fiona agreed to go and try her luck with the free flow.

 

It’s always hard to overwrite a wine taste. At the entrance, I was faced with the dilemma of the night, Penfolds Bin 8 Cabernet Shiraz on the right and the star of the party, Penfolds Bin 9 Cabernet Sauvignon, on my left. The two booths were separated with an array of Shangri-La delicacies, ready to be paired with each glass. I was welcomed with a lot of laughter. Casual, as the invitation said, but not leaving classy behind. It’s a wine party afterall!