to convive...

Yes Yes Yes.. I love hanging out, whether it's with a large or small group of people, I just love to hang out..
A few weeks ago, I spent my Saturday night with my big sis's friends.. We went to Convivium to try their food..

And it struck me. I was curious what convivium means.. Well, I suppose it came from the word convive, which means an eating or drinking companion, can also be interpreted as a banquet or a feast.. Okay, enough of the split second of literature enlightenment.. As a literature student, I guess I miss being a literature junkie..

When I first walked into the place, I got that humble warm comfortable kind of atmosphere. The thing is the place is just an ordinary house, decorated to the max, which I think is very smart.. I am kinda sick of going to fancy overrated places where the waiters don't even bother to get what you want.. For a change, it's very nice to visit Convivium. It's so humble, not sure you can use that adjective to describe a place, but I couldn't get any other words that I think suit this place best..

rustic menu.. Just how I like it..

They also sell different types of cheese..

Affettati E Formaggi, I remembered watching Jamie Oliver saying that term.. They are the types of cheese and ham that they have.. Truth to be told, I don't understand a thing except parmigiano, mozzarella, and pancetta.. lol

Pretty lamps

Simple cute decorations

The decorations aren't fancy but they're too darn cute

Our table is next to this huge black board.. We were intrigued at an instant to order this dessert..

Group photo.. I'm the youngest of the bunch

Took away their red velvet cakes for my sister's friend..

Mediterranean Salad (35k).. I love how they use enough balsamic to season things up.. They use tuna on top.. The onions are definitely not your usual onions.. They're very fragrant and spicy.. I am an onion lover, so yes I love it! 

THE BEST MUSHROOM CREAM SOUP (35K) IN TOWN.. It's so thick and warm, aaaaah, it's heaven.. lol.. Imagine a bowl of love, well this is a bowl of love.. 

Tagliatelle Porcini (80K).. Another type of pasta, tagliatelle.. porcini is a type of mushroom..  My sis's friend said it's nice..

Rigatoni Della Nonna (105K) I love how generous they are with the cheese..

Straccetti Cream Mushroom (100k) It's so creamy, it's to die for.. But if you eat a portion alone, you'll get quite sick of the creaminess. I think it's really delicious! But I couldn't finish this alone, I think it's best for sharing..

Rigatoni Salmone (85K) Another creamy pasta. It's yummy, but once again, if you are not accustomed to eating  creamy food, I suggest you share the meal.. What I love about this type of pasta, all those creaminess is saved inside that hollow space.. Creaminess in every bite..

This is what I ordered, it's Tagliata con Grana el Balsimico (130K). Three words.. I. LOVE. IT. It's very fresh! The  beef is medium well, so tender it literally melts in your mouth.. The tomatoes and balsamic vinegar are a perfect match and it balances out the whole dish.. After trying out creamy pasta, I still able to finish this meal all by myself..  I love how they include salad in the dish, so healthy.. 

Nananana... This is the dessert which is on the big board next to us.. Gelato Sorbetto Sampler (70K). It's definitely something else.. I am sick of the whole rainbow red velvet cake, so we decided to order this instead.. 

Starting from the left side, we have chili, bacon, lychee, earl grey, lime rosemary, vanilla balsimico, red velvet, orange basil, squid ink, and last but not least, risotto mascarpone .. FUNKY INDEED.. not your everyday dessert for sure.. I love the lime rosemary. It's quite bitter but I love how fresh it is.. My sis loves the earl grey flavor.. Well, the bacon flavor is just too funky for us.. But one of my sis's friends loveee the chili flavor and finished the whole think.. spicy.. :p 

I definitely recommend this place. I think it's a very nice place to have simple yummy creamy fresh Italian dishes.. I love the place, I love the atmosphere, I love the whole concept of the place.. and once again I love how humble it is.. Really a nice place to hang out and laugh your times out with your loved ones..

Convivium Cafe Deli
Jl. Panglima Polim IX no 1, Jakarta 12160
Facebook : http://www.facebook.com/conviviumdeli
Opening hours : they're closed every Monday..
Tue - Thu:10:00 am-10:30 pm
Fri - Sat:10:00 am-11:00 pm
Sun:11:00 am-10:30 pm

Moroccan Jewel

I was craving for Middle Eastern food, so I decided to try this Middle Eastern restaurant called Maroush..

They serve Indian food as well, which is a plus point for me.. Being in Mahatma Gandhi School since I was a kid made me LOVE Indian food..

When I entered the place, I couldn't get anymore excited! Well, for a Moroccan Restaurant, Maroush really puts the real deal even into the tiniest detail of the restaurant.. My friends and I were amazed at the gorgeous interior, the ambiance is just amazing, the hospitality is super, and the food is delicious indeed.. Okay without further ado, let me just show you the pictures.. 

Disclaimer : Some photos are taken from Michael Anggi's SLR. You'll be able to tell the difference which one is whose..

Starting from the place...

Welcome to Maroush.. Even the main door excites me with what's within..

They're also offer you with shisha

The table we sat in

Basically, the place is quite big. They have separated rooms.. I love this room the best! So magical,  reminds me a lot like I'm in some sort of an exotic castle..

I guess this room is perfect for meetings.. See how spacious and how perfect this room is for a private party..

Still in the same room..  It's the continuation of the right side of the picture above

The red light gives the room its mystical middle eastern touch

Told you they really put in the real deal even to the tiniest detail

Another semi private room, they can cover this place with a curtain.. Perfect for a small family gathering.. I love how elegant the arrangement is

Wine cellar.. BOOZE!

 Let's move on to the food, shall we..?

The Menu

Look at the cutlery, they're so unique!

Complimentary appetizers.. The left one is raisins with peanuts and the right one is herby olives. I don't usually like olives, but I love their olives! It doesn't smell like one anymore.. The herbs had been absorbed so well..

Mango Lassi(35k).. It's basically mango juice with what I'm guessing, milk

Saourary Lassy(35k).. This drink is unique indeed. It's yogurt with salt. Not only it is sour, it's also has a salty kick. Maybe not all people will be a fan of this drink but I personally thinks it's refreshing 

Ayran(45k). This is basically also yogurt. But I just don't get this drink. When you stir it with the straw, it'll look runny, but once you sip it to your mouth, somehow it feels so dense.. Not a fan.. 

This is the Moroccan Tea Pot(25k).. I LOVE IT.. It's basically just tea with sugar but the mint leaf changes everything.. With the warm tea, it really enhances the smell of the mint.. 

4 Favorite Dips in one Plate (98k). For starters, the waiter recommended us with this dish. Starting from the one on the top left . It is hummus (Mashed chic peas), beside it is some kind like chili but it's not that spicy, on the right below is a salsa-like sauce, with diced tomatoes.. very fresh.. I personally love the hummus dipping, hell, I love them all

The dipping comes with the bread.. It's definitely different from the ones in Italian restaurants (well, duhhh.. -_-")

Yey the food is here! There were only the four of us, so we didn't order that much

The tagine.. I love how bold the colour is

VOILAAAAAA..

Chicken Tagine with Almonds(115k). I love this dish so much! It's fragrant and the almonds just add another texture to the plate.. Yummy! The top is a mashed potato fritter

The vegetable couscous..  It's just not complete without couscous.. Perfect rice substitution.. They also have a clear broth as the sauce to put on top of your couscous if you want it.. I like to eat it plain just like that..  

Royal Grill Plate(200k).. Basically this is various meat cooked in shish kebab style.. On top is the lamb kebab which looks like sausages, then they have shrimp, fish, vegetables, and chicken as well.. 

 Of course, we also took narcissistic pictures

In conclusion, I love this place. I love the atmosphere and I definitely love the food.. Well, if you like Indian food, I think you will love this place.. That night when I went there, there was a bunch of Indians who were having a private party in the main room, so they moved out all the chairs. It's a bummer I didn't get to see its normal arrangements ..

The waiter is very patient in explaining you the details of the dishes.. So if you are new at this, don't be scared, ask them about what's inside the dish that you feel like ordering. I definitely loveeee this place. It's good to have a different meal once in a while.. A different place, a different atmosphere.. 

Maroush
Crown Plaza Hotel 2nd Floor
Jl. Jend Gatot Subroto Kav 2-3
Jakarta Selatan
Phone : 021-52892431

The Duck goes Quack Quack.. I went wek wek

We were at Bebek Tepi Sawah, Ubud, Bali last year

We took corny pictures as well

They really have a rice field behind the restaurant.. 

Bebek Tepi Sawah in Ubud, Bali serves the best crispy duck I've ever eaten so far.. I have missed it so bad that it hurts.. Okay, I am over reacting, but yes I do miss it.. So, when I saw they have a branch in Living World Mall, I was super excited to get my hands on some of their crispy ducks!

After a long time of waiting, both to be seated and to have the food on our table..

The metropolitan version of Bebek Tepi Sawah is finally here

They tried to put the Bali essence in the design as much as possible

Cozy

Fancy drinks

Famous Bali Sambal. My favorite is the one on the left. It's basically sliced shallots and chili, not too spicy. The middle one is so spicy! I can't bare it.. The one on the right is like the medium level

Kangkung Plecing.. I think my family is accustomed to at least order a dish of greens.. I don't like it that much cause it's basically just plain steamed kangkung topped off with sambal plecing (Balinese sambal) and some peanuts. I think another factor why I am not a fan because it's spicy..

This dish is off the menu. Not sure what it's called. My Mom asked the waitress whether they have something spicy and she recommended us this dish. Even though it's spicy as hell, I LOVE IT. It's diced chicken cooked with sliced tomatoes, chili, shallots, lemon grass. The lemon grass really gives a nice kick in the smell. I kept eating and sweating at the same time.. Not pretty.. lol

As everybody else on the table has ordered the fried crispy duck, I volunteered to order the grilled duck.. It's sweet in a good way! They always serve half a duck with rice and some green beans cooked in Bali herbs..  

Famous crispy duck. Actually I was quite disappointed. It's not as yummy as the original one in Bali. It's still crispy though.. You can even bite some of the bones..

Plecing Satay.. NOT A FAN OF THIS.. It's so bland.. and expensive (40k for 5 sticks). It looked good but I couldn't give any credit for this dish

I love the Bebek Tepi Sawah in Bali, but I just couldn't say the same for the branch in Living World. This restaurant is just a franchise and they definitely fail to resemble the authenticity of the original crispy duck.. The one who opened this branched venue is the owner of Ace Hardware and the Living World Mall itself (they are the same person). How do I know it? Well, the owner kept walking here and there supervising the whole staff and my eldest sister happened to know the son of the owner of the restaurant..

Another bad thing about this place was that it took so freakin longgggg for our food to get into our table.. And when our ducks had arrived, suddenly I can see loads of already fried crispy ducks piling idly in the kitchen.. If they had so many ducks, then how come my duck took that long to get in our table. And talking about piled ducks, now I know the fact that all the ducks have been fried before hand and I don't like that fact..

I think the one in Bali has fried the ducks before hand as well cause it took a very short amount of time for them to serve the ducks to the customers, but my problem with the branch in L.W was the friggin long amount of time.. And the ones in Bali were sooo damn crispy, I remember eating the bones off the duck, but the ones in Alam Sutera weren't that crispy

And once again, they fail to resemble the flavor of the ducks as the original one.. If you have tasted Nuri's pork ribs in Bali (which is heavenly delicious), you will be disappointed to taste the Nuri's pork ribs in Jakarta's branches.. I don't know what is the deal, but they're just not the same. This goes to Bebek Tepi Sawah as well..

For half a duck and the rice, it will cost you 98k before tax. It was worth it when I ate it in Bali, but it's not worth it when I ate it here.. I'd rather eat Bebek Kaleyo in Sunter, which only will cost you a lot less than 50k with fancy drinks on the side, which also have better taste compared to the ducks in the branched venue of Bebek Tepi Sawah..

The place was so packed. But I think people go here because of the prestige of the original Bebek Tepi Sawah in Bali.. Again, the review is based on my personal opinion and also my family member's.. We all agree that the ducks here are just ordinary..

We spent approximately 500k for the dishes.. It is expensive.. But it's so worth it when you eat the one in Bali, just not this one..

Bebek Tepi Sawah
Mal Living World Ground Floor
Alam Sutera Boulevard Kav 21
Serpong, Banten
Telepon: 021-29211919