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. 

Out of Jakarta, Weekend at Resinda Hotel Karawang

When Jakarta is packed, you started to look beyond the borders. So did us. That’s why this post is another story about a driving out of the City Center. This time Fiona visited Karawang, a suburb 2 hours away from Jakarta. It was a bright and beautiful day.

Welcome to Karawang.

Deciding where to stay in places like Karawang also means finding accommodation with delicious restaurant on board. Sure, suburb these days aren’t that quiet residential places. Especially Karawang regency,a growing area under West Java province. So I picked Resinda Hotel Karawang, which is managed under Padma hotels.

Upon arrivals, after welcomed by the friendly staffs and drinks, we go straight to brunch at Tekai Japanese Restaurant. It’s an all you can eat sushi buffet, located at a cool minimalistic Japanese interior. This buffet serves sushi rolls but they don’t have sashimi. Too bad. Setting that aside, I moved on to beef minced karaage, fish karaage and curry. They quickly become my favorite. What’s surprising is that they have udon or cold soba. I love it so much! Come to Tenkai on Saturday lunch (from 11.30AM to 2PM) for their Sushi Mayhem promotions. It’s only Rp. 150k++/pax.

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.

The Weekend Brunch at Yu

Great restaurants are popping out around Jakarta, including this one called Yu (Happiness). Yu Jakarta is a contemporary Taiwanese dining pop up inside the Park 5 Hotel.

Located nearby, Fiona took her family for a Saturday Brunch one weekend.

It’s super close to my house, so I’ve been thinking about trying out this place, but it wasn’t until my family threw the “Saturday brunch” idea on the table that weekend. Park 5 is a boutique hotel, nicely decorated with contemporary touch. Yu is located on the left side of the hotel’s reception. I think the area is where hotel guests go for their breakfast and that’s why Yu is only open from 11AM onwards. But that Saturday, we had to wait until 11.15 because the table isn’t ready.

The first impression of Yu is a hip café-resto with wooden, marble tables, unfinished details and wild flowers in a bottle. While waiting for the table, we decide on what to order. Yu has a special menu consisting of food and drinks and we’ve waited for almost an hour for the food to arrive on our table so the anticipation is high. Here’s what we order:

Galettes and Crepes at Kitchenette

Hello Lovebirds! It’s Valentine’s Day and we can’t wait to spread the love. We’re spending out Valentine’s Day at Kitchenette Restaurant & Crêperie with the ultimate pair of Galettes and Crepes.

Please join our date.

But before we go any further, let’s take a 5-minutes crash course on the food. Just in case your date asks for recommendation. Galette, flat round or free form crusty cakes made with buckwheat flour, is more on the savory side. The ones arrived on our table bears the name of (arguably) handsome European guys: Antoine, Nicholas and Sebastien.

Holiday Inn Cikarang Short Getaway

Fiona has the opportunity to cross the suburb border. To a place called Cikarang, around 55km away from Jakarta city center. Roughly a two-hour drive on normal traffic. What’s on Cikarang? Apparently a comfortable Holiday Inn Hotel. Who’s up for a short escape?

Special thanks for Yenny for Fiona’s Cikarang adventure.

The hotel isn’t that far from Cikarang toll exit. I wasn’t paying attention because I was busy with make up haha. But I know it’s not far because we’re turning into the hotel right away. And the lobby took me by surprised. Wait, this isn’t Holiday Inn? The wall behind reception desk is wooden and as I looked around, symmetrical sofas, block pillars and wooden stairs are simply amazing. It was still Christmas mood when I arrived, so they have this Christmas tree from recycled bottle that caught my attention right away. Brilliant. Then the welcome drink arrived, a lemon mix beverage, and the staycation officially starts.

Fresh Fusion At Wilshire

The name Wilshire reminds us of one of the main roads of Los Angeles. But the Wilshire we discovered at Senopati is a comfy bar and restaurant located on top of a cake shop. Its street-facing window gives the much-needed romantic atmosphere, perfect for your Valentine’s Day.

Fiona is enjoying a nice chit-chat on a cool rainy day at Wilshire.

We found out that the name was indeed inspired by Wilshire Boulevard. And it translates to the cuisines. The foods combine local flavors with international cuisines, and are meant “to liven up Wilshire experience in Jakarta by made several fusion dishes,” said Cla Lisca as General Manager of Wilshire as quoted by the press release. The famous boulevard itself is a melting pot of different cultures which settled down in that side of California. Staying true to its name, well, we know Los Angeles is one lively place, the restaurant also provides extensive wine and liquor collection. Wilshire’s Executive Chef, Dolly Chia, is a University of Southern California and Le Cordon Bleu graduate. And I’m lucky enough to taste the following: