..It's a journey after all.. : Food and Travel Blog based in Jakarta: coffee
Showing posts with label coffee. Show all posts
Showing posts with label coffee. Show all posts

Friday, 26 October 2012

little rendezvous at Sabang 16

Last week, this guy in the picture, who happens to be a coffee lover, asked me to have a little rendezvous with him at Sabang 16.. When I googled about the place, it turns out that Sabang 16 is located at Sabang Road number 16B, which is also easy to be spotted cause it's located next to Kopitiam Oey, which happens to be owned by Mr. Bondan Winarno, our national famous foodie, and it's almost at the very corner of the Sabang Road itself, just a few metres away from The Baked Goods..


Why Sabang 16?

Well, it serves good coffee with a reasonable price...
They serve nothing heavy except for Indomie, our national instant noodle, or some fries and chicken wings
People always boast about their famous Kaya Toast
I just happened to be in the mood to be an explorer, going somewhere out from my neighborhood area

So it's 7 p.m and when we arrived there were no empty seats. Yes, the place is small enough that when someone is talking, I think all the people inside might have a good chance in hearing it, especially when you are sitting next to their table. The red wall inside, which is very contrast to the white paint from outside, accentuates the darkness of the night. It's pretty easy to be attracted to this small cafe when you are just walking by as the clear window glass allows you to glare at the whole interior inside. Decorated with photo frames and paintings hanging on the wall, the small space blooms coziness. I did not expect to get any intimacy in here considering the small space, but somehow the atmosphere given from Sabang 16 was intimate enough (if you know how to control the volume of your voice and everybody seemed to be in control of theirs)



Can you tell where I am? See how little space they got, yet people keep coming and going from endless time to time..
Desperate for coffee, yes, we both were desperate.. And we happened not to notice that it was 7 p.m. I wasn't even hungry, but we ordered two meals and two cups of coffee.

Simple one page menu
Aceh Gayo coffee (18k). Quite acidic.. Feel free to ask the waiter about the coffee choices..
Papua Nabire ala Vietnamese coffee style (18k). Papua Nabire is the mildest coffee they have
Stir all that condensed milk
The famous kaya toast (16k). The bread is quite thick compared to the usual kopitiam kaya toast. 
Yes, look at that glistening slimy sweet shiny beautiful kaya.. MY PRECIOUSSSSSS 

French Toast (14k). Not bad, not bad at all for a little cafe like this. The bread is dipped in egg milk batter before processed and served with honey and a touch of cinnamon 
I even get to spend some time enjoying oldies American poetry.. This happens to be a real candid photo..
Well, this one, I was just being plain narcissistic
In a weird way, I love the fact that this place is small. The idea is simple. A small down to earth space serving good coffee and good Kaya toasts with never ending customers pouring in at day and night and night and day.. If you need to kill time, give this place a visit. Be adventurous with the coffee choices. Order a sweet treat to accompany your cup of caffeine.. You might find this place as comfy as how I found it.

Sabang16
Jl.KH.Agus Salim (Sabang) no.16b Jakarta Pusat
twitter : @Sabang16
Open daily at 7am-11pm

Wednesday, 19 September 2012

Blacklisted.. Get your bittersweet dose of caffeine..

"Why did you name it Blacklisted?" That's the first question that I uttered out. It's an unusual name indeed.

1675, the year King Charles II banned coffee houses
That's the reason why.. In the year of 1675, apparently drinking coffee is banned due to some political threat issues. They thought the caffeine in the coffee itself served as a mild opium. Aside from the fact that drinking coffee used to be 'blacklisted', the trend and habit continues to this very day.

Personally, I know very little of coffee. I drink them occasionally (in fact, I enjoy them a LOT) but I never pay any attention to the different qualities that they can pursue. Being invited to Blacklisted last week, was such a HUGE honor cause I feel so enlightened.

The invitation itself came out of the blue. It was almost midnight and I was just laying on my bed, ready to sleep. Suddenly, I received a message in twitter from Ellyna from Culinary Bonanza asking met to join her for tomorrow. I said yes in an instant.. ;p We were also with  Ines from Oh My Good Food. 

The Menu..
Saxon Wright, the Head Judge for World Barista Championship and coffee expert, is the one who's behind all the formula for the gourmet coffee in Blacklisted. He's such a humble guy and willing to share his views in coffee. He really cares about the tiny little details that will bring out the best of whatever every customer is going to have in their cups.

For starters, I have the privileged to drink a cup of cappuccino made by Mr. Saxon Wright himself..

This is Mr. Saxon Wright. He set the coffee machine and in charge of training the whole staff in every little detailed process.. From roasting, to grinding, to serving it to the customers in a cup of yummy coffee
Making sure there's no air.. Press press press it down
Voila.. My cappuccino is ready to be served.. Full concentration though
"Even a two degrees difference can bring out a different taste in your cup of coffee" said the coffee expert.
The RULES of having a good cup of coffee :
1. From the quality of the bean itself. From the time of harvesting, roasting, grinding, and brewing really determine the final quality and taste of your coffee.. Fortunately, Blacklisted offer you all types of coffee beans from locals to imported ones..

2. The man behind the machine. Every man can bring out different taste of coffee. If they don't understand how to brew coffee the right way, no matter how high the quality of the bean is, they'll just put it to a waste. I, myself, no matter how hard I try to copy the way my Mum makes coffee for my Dad, it will just never taste the same. Which I think, it kinda make coffee brewing perceived as an art cause different people will have their own unique way in creating their one cup of coffee.. Well, that's just how I see it..

Too bad Mr. Saxon was only staying for a while..
I was quite embarrassed actually cause I know so little of coffee, yet Saxon was being very kind, explaining to us in every detailed way possible to make us understand that it's not just about the brewing. They have these jars that can show you the final product of each process, from the green beans to the second cracked beans. 
He also gave us the honor of making Filtered Coffee. He said he drank this every morning and it's the cleanest coffee you can get. It's quite hard to press it down, cause on the bottom, there's a filter paper which will detain all of the unwanted residue. I only pressed it down for a while before I gave it back to him.. 
It almost looked like tea, right? It tasted very acidic, different from any other types of coffee I have ever drunk in my life. Saxon has predicted that we won't be able to appreciate the taste at our first try because the same thing happened to him. But right now, this is what he's having every day.. So, that made me a Newbie ;p
The roasting machine. Again, he's in charge of it. He's also training all of the staffs.. Blacklisted roast their own coffee bean everyday and keep it at least for 4 days(that's how long it takes to get the best coffee after the roasting process) before they grind and brew it. 
We heard this popping sound. It's the first crack! If you were there, oh my God, the smell was amazing!
Final outcome.. Saxon told us to have a bite. It's crunchy and you can smell a strong fragrant of coffee in the back of your mouth. I even consider of having it as a snack.. 
Second of all.. The pastries.. Oh yummy pastries.. :)

The pastries and cakes are made by a Lenotre-trained pastry chef with over 20 years of experience, Mr. Ong.. He's a Singaporean, too bad I didn't take any pictures of him. He's the sweetest humblest, the most comical stranger I've ever met. To be frank, he doesn't even look like a pastry chef and I could easily mistook him as another customer. He also sat down with us and have a little chat behind each sweetness..
Croissant Au Almond (17k). C'mon what could go wrong with a good cup of your dose of caffeine and a bite or two of good pastry. This picture right here, really made me appreciate how blessed I am. It's effortless to enjoy the two combination.. 
They have tiramisu, chocolate banana layer cake, red velvet, opera cake, etc
Fresh baked pastries everyday!
THE FOOD...

Spaghetti Javanese (48k). Yes, the pasta is green. They use green chilli sauce and shredded of chicken and shrimps. If you are a chilli fan, this is the right pasta for you. In every strand of pasta, I can definitely smell the hint of chilli..

Fettuccine Carbonara (48k) Yummy! It's creamy and at the top is beef bacon. The bacon isn't burned, I simply use the wrong filter while editing this photo (Sorry). The bacon was definitely crispy and cooked to perfection..
Oxtail Fried Rice (59k) They're really generous with the oxtail. I don't usually eat fried rice in cafes. But this one is exceptional. 
Grilled Salmon with rica rica sauce (60k). This menu is from the breakfast list. The bottom part is mashed potato. I super love this dish cause the fish was NOT FISHY AT ALL! And for 60k, I think it's worth it. The top layer of the fish was quite crispy just how I like it..

Banana Chocolate Frappe (35k), Mango Mojito (28k), Homemade Lemonade (20k). I love sour drinks.. I prefer soury drinks with my meals. Mango mojito and the lemonade are the winners indeed.. 
The DESSERTS.. 
The cakes are about 35k but they also serve different types of desserts, like honey crumble affogato (35k), panna cotta (35k), etc, but the ones on the menu aren't available for takeaways.

The banana chocolate layer cake. YES OH MY GOD THIS IS SO YUMMY I COULD NOT SHOULD NOT WILL NOT STOP EATING IT! I asked Mr. Ong about this cake. He said the sliced and also mashed some of the banana to be put in the whole mixture. And the melted chocolate on the top of the cake is mind blowing. GAH.. I am drooling.. again.. 

The Tiramisu.. I can definitely smell that hint of rum... Creamy indeed
The opera cake.. Different layers bring out different texture.. 
I had such a wonderful time in Blacklisted. The people are warm and friendly. They really care about the food quality and the final product of both on the food and the drinks.. The combination of the meals, the coffee, the dessert is splendid. I will definitely recommend this place to all of you guys. If only the place is bigger or located somewhere more intimate, it'll definitely be my new favorite place to hide myself in everyday. LOL.. But seriously, give this place a try..

Have a cup of coffee of your choice and a slice of cake or other pastry. I hope you fall in love with it just like how I fell in love with it already.. :)

BLACKLISTED
Puri Indah Mall, Ground Floor unit 71
Jl. Puri Agung, Puri Indah, Jakarta
Phone : 021-5823332
Facebook : blacklistedcoffee
Twitter : BLACKLISTED_ID
Website : www.blacklistedcoffe.com


Monday, 20 August 2012

Monolog.. the coffee.. the brunch.. the lunch..

Yeah, I know Monolog isn't a new place.. I just happened to go there a couple of weeks back so VOILA, I decided to write a review of it.. When I went there, I indulged myself with their brunch menu and of course a taste of their caffeine.. I personally think brunch is the most comforting meal of the day and although it was 2 p.m when I ordered my brunch set, I didn't give the slightest damn.. MUWAHAHAHA...

Without further ado, I hope you will drool..
the menu as usual.. I love the fact that they have written all the prices with tax included.. 
this is how it looks inside.. I love the vintage, woody slash pipe-all-over-the-ceiling interior..
This is the coffee bar (I suppose) cause it's in front of the barista.. 
When you go in, this is the first thing I saw..
well.. that and this.. okay scratch it.. This was the first thing that I glared at.. who am I kidding.. lol
I ordered the latte (27k). Look how pretty it is! Okay.. ehem.. I personally love this.. I was not in that much of a mood for caffeine dozes so this drink came in handy.. It's not too strong yet I still got that smell of fresh coffee.. 
The cappuccino (27k). My sister ordered this. I didn't know what went wrong, maybe the milk was too strong, I honestly didn't know. But there was definitely a cheesy after taste in this drink. It's like as if we were drinking a cheese flavored cappuccino.. 
This is the iced cappuccino (38k)
Chicken Florentine Galette (62k). As you can see for yourself, they have a layer of crepe, topped with diced chicken and mushrooms with super yummy creamy sauce.. I love it. If you like chicken, this is definitely the right choice for you..
Sunrise Breakfast set (73k). The wheat bread was freshly made! I can smell how fragrant it was.. In the middle we have sauteed mushrooms. I loveeee mushrooms so three thumbs up for their mushrooms. The omelette was perfect, it's soft and creamy just how I like it!
This was what I ordered. It's the omelette breakfast set (78k). Oh I LOVE THIS SO MUCH.. You can choose the fillings for your omelette.. I chose mushrooms and ham. And no, this wasn't one of those pretentious omelette with little fillings. This one will indulge your cravings for brunch! In the middle we have pan roasted potatoes, which I also love to the max! super yummy!
This is the Monolog Egg Cheese Burger (78k). I didn't get to try it, but there were two of us who ordered this and the two of them found this really yummy. There's a sunny side up between the layers.. 
This is the grilled salad (58k)
Overall, I like this place. I think I will definitely go back for more.. I didn't try any of the cakes though.. Too full.. Seriously, my omelette was so thick with fillings yet fluffy and creamy at the same time which was pure bliss.. I gave 8/10 for their food.. The ambiance and service are great too.. I think it's a nice place to hang out with your friends.. Whether it is day or night time.. 

Bam! Baby Nathan is in the house yo!
my big sis and her friend, Anya.. my companies for the day.. 
Monolog
Plaza Senayan Level 1 CP 101 B
Palm Gate Entrance
Jl. Asia Afrika no 8, Jakarta
Phone : (021) 572 5144
website : http://monolog-coffee.com/
twitter : @monologcoffee