Mom's Homemade Burger Patty

It's New Year's Eve and Mom's preparing food to welcome 2015. This afternoon, she made a batch of burger patty to be grilled next year (that is me trying to break the ice, ba-dum-tss!). Like always, she didn't follow any recipe, she just made it up herself. Mom's recipe to make burger patty was pretty simple, you should definitely try it when you get the chance!

Mom's Homemade Burger Patty

Ingredients:

- a couple of onion 

- 4 cloves of garlic

- salt & pepper (as much as you like)

- 1.5 kg of grinned meat 

- 4 egg whites

- olive oil 

How to Make:

- dice your garlic

- slice, or chop, your onion accordingly

- mix your onion and garlic together

- pour some olive oil into your non-stick frying pan

- stir-fried your onion with medium heat until they are golden brown

When your onion is nicely cooked, turn off your stove and let the onion cools off

- prepare your meat by placing them in a container

- pour some salt & pepper onto your grinned meat and mix it well

My Mom prefer to use her bare hand to mix the meat with. If you would like to use some kitchen utensils, then be my guest. 

- next, pour the egg white and mix well

- when the onion is cool enough, spread them onto the grinned meat and mix well

Why do we have to wait until the onion cools off? This is so that the meat wont cook when it makes contact with the onion. 

- when your meat nicely mixed with the other ingredients, grab a chunk and make balls with it big enough to fit in your hand.

- then, with your finger, flatten it up until it shares the same thickness with your finger

 Your burger patties are ready to be cooked!

- pour a bit of olive oil into your frying pan and fry your burger patties with medium heat

Keep an eye on your patties, you don't want them to over cooked because it will make the meat becomes too dry. 

- voila, your burger patties are ready to be eaten!

SHIROKUMA: Simply Overrated

After Sally and I had lunch at LOCALE24 Diner & Bar, we headed to Shirokuma to get ourselves some ice cream. A birdy told us that Shirokuma is famous for its' matcha dessert - green tea ice cream, green tea cake, green tea rice balls, you name it! - so we went to the dessert house to get a taste of its' overwhelming green-tea-based dessert.

Sally had a bowl of Matcha Anmitsu - a traditional dessert bowl with mochi, shiratama balls, chunky red beans, matcha jelly and served with a side of brown sugar syrup. She asked for an additional ice cream on top, which costed her an extra Rp12.000,00. 

There were three choice of ice cream: vanilla, matcha, and twist. Sally went for the Twist Soft Cream because it was a combination of matcha ice cream and original milk flavor Japanese Soft Cream.

Matcha Anmitsu

I ordered a lovely Matcha Cake Parfait for myself, which consisted of soft cream layered with matcha cake, cornflakes, mochi, shiratama balls, chunky red beans and matcha jelly. My dessert is pretty much the same with Sally's. We were only lacking one or two elements each. 

Overall, the presentation of the dessert is excellent. They were very adorable and very appealing to the eye, very kawaii if I may say. But, do they tasted as good as they look? 

The soft cream was creamy and milky. It wasn't too thick, nor easily melt. Unfortunately, the Twist Cream was dominated with the original milk flavor cream, making it hard to distinguish the matcha flavor of the soft cream. 

On the other hand, the matcha cake in my parfait had a strong green tea flavor, yet, the texture of the cake itself was horrible. The cake was very stiff, as if the baker put too much flour in the batter, and it crumbled easily. Yes, the matcha flavor is very strong in this cake, too strong it made the cake tasted bitter and simply unpleasant. As a sweet tooth, I was disappointed by how the cake is lacking of sweetness. 

Next, is the shiratama balls. Shiratama balls are made from glutinous rice flour. It is similar with mochi, as they both were made from the basic ingredients and share the same chewy texture. Shirokuma's shiratama balls were basically tasteless, even the matcha shiratama balls didn't have any green tea flavor at all. It was a bit of a challenge for me to finish my rice balls because they were very unpleasant to my taste buds. 

Didn't like the chunky red bean in my parfait because they made my dessert tasted weird. And they weren't even sweet, just plain nutty! But, I did enjoy eating the matcha jelly on the bottom of the glass - they were sweet, slightly bitter, chewy, and tasted like green tea. The cornflakes tasted like, well, cornflakes and it blended well with the ice cream.

Matcha Cake Parfait

Now that I have tasted a glimpse of Shirokuma, I can say that the dessert place is overrated. Sure, they may have cute and adorable desserts, but they don't taste as good as they look. They are only good for Instagram and it ends there. Not recommended for those who strive for delicious dessert. 

SHIROKUMA

Ruko Crown Golf, Blok A No. 23

Bukit Golf Mediterania, Jalan Pantai Indah Kapuk

Pantai Indah Kapuk, Jakarta

Opening Hours

Monday - Sunday: 12PM - 10PM

Contact
+62 21 2923 7523

LOCALE24 Diner & Bar

My best friend Sally is back from Australia woohoo! She has been away for half a year and she is finally back to Indonesia for Christmas holiday. We made plans with the rest of the girls to meet up, but unfortunately Icha was studying for her final exam and Angel was having her wisdom teeth removed, so it was just the two of us. We decided to go to Pantai Indah Kapuk for some culinary adventures, and our lunch place was at LOCALE24 Diner & Bar.

LOCALE24 Diner & Bar

After a two hours drive under heavy rain, we finally arrived at Pantai Indah Kapuk. It was not that difficult to locate the dining place because you just can't miss that signature rivulet colored bus. The restaurant does look small from the outside, but as you step into the place, you will find an american-diner-themed bistro. 

Christmas songs was played through the speakers. There was this big Christmas tree near the cashier table. The restaurant was a sight for sore eyes.

The lovely bar of LOCALE24's

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas ~ ♪

Sally's back from Aussie, woot!

We were pretty hungry when we arrived at LOCALE24, so we immediately browse through the main course section and order us some meal.

Sally got herself a plate of Crispy Pork Over Rice that costed her Rp40.000,00. I didn't expect the restaurant to serve Asian dishes, because judging from both interior and exterior design, I thought they would be serving non other than American food. Lesson learned: don't judge a book by its' cover.

The presentation of Sally's meal was very simple. A handful of rice topped with a sunny-side-up, with mustard and crispy pork bathed in soy sauce on the sides, and garnished with some greens. I took a spoonful of the pork as I was curious, and it tasted good. The pork was nice and crispy, I really love its' texture that shared similarities with deep-fried lungs - it's a shame they only use soy sauce for its' broth. But, no matter how delicious this dish was, there was nothing special about it. Even my Mom can make it at home.

Sally's Crispy Pork Over Rice - 40K

As for me, I had me a platter of Waffle with Fried Chicken Sandwich. It came with french fries and macaroni as side dishes, and chilly sauce for some dipping business. The overall presentation of my sandwich waffle was very lovely as they were served on a cutting board blanketed with deli paper. What I love the most was the adorable little flag on top of my waffle!

The waffle itself was deliciously crispy and chewy on the inside. Too bad the batter was sweet, making the waffle had a hint of sugary goodness in it, which didn't work well with the thick and savory fried chicken. It felt like seeing Fred hooking up with Velma, and not Daphne. (Remember, Scooby-Doo?)

On the other hand, the macaroni was very enjoyable as it was glazed with butter and onion mixture. It had a strong onion flavor, which I am fond of. The french fries were crispy golden brown, nicely salted, and they were slightly spicy from the pepper. 

My Waffle with Fried Chicken Sandwich - 42K

Loving the miniature flag

For dessert, we ordered this brand new dry-ice-based dessert named Cool Kids. This kind of dessert is very popular nowadays. You can find some ice cream parlors at malls that makes their ice cream and dessert using liquid nitrogen and dry ice, and apparently LOCALE24 has discovered a few ways to experiments with them also.

Cool Kids consisted of a beaker of creamy and sweet iced latte jelly drink and three bars of ready-to-dip chocolate biscuits. It took a long time to prepare the dessert, we had to wait for almost half an hour, but it was worth it. The waiter will then serve the dessert and explain how to indulge it.

First, we have to drink the iced late to neutralize the flavors in our mouth. I really love the latte, it was very creamy and thick, and slightly sweet but not too bitter. We were given shot glasses to drink the latte with, and at the bottom of the shot glass was a glob of coffee-flavored jelly. Very delicious!

After we were neutralized, simply grab a bar of biscuit and dip it into the liquid nitrogen. Leave the biscuit be for around two minutes so that the nitrogen will soak into the chocolate goodness. FYI, the dry ice mixture was 100˚-200˚C cold! It was so cold your hand would burnt if you touch it too long.

2 minutes passed, you take your biscuit and have a bite. Because the biscuit is super cold, those who have sensitive teeth might want to be cautious because your teeth will hurt by just taking a bite, like I did. I felt the stinging sensation as I bite my biscuit, then it spread to the molar teeth as I chew. You will also feel this burning sensation on your tongue when the cold dessert made contact.

But, the fun part about eating this dessert is that, when the dipped biscuit has entered your mouth, smoke will come out from both mouth and nose of yours. The smoke was created as cold temperature from the biscuit made contact with the hot temperature inside your mouth, making us look like a fire-breathing dragon from How to Train Your Dragon. I included a video of me and Sally taking turns in enjoying LOCALE24's Cool Kids, you might want to take a look.

The new kid in town, Cool Kids

They gave us three bars, when there were two of us. Mean. 

Overall, I would rate my experience dining at LOCALE24 a 7 out of 10. The food was good, although it can be better, and the price was also student-friendly. Love the new kid in town and looking forward to try the other two dry-ice-based dessert. 

LOCALE24 Diner & Bar

Ruko Gardon House, Blok B10-11 

Bukit Golf Mediterania

Jalan Raya Pantai Indah Kapuk

Pantai Indah Kapuk, Jakarta

Opening Hours: 24 Hours

Contact:

+62 21 2903 3162

SepotongKue

SepotongKue, a dessert shop located at Pasar Santa, is famous for its' fluffy homemade choux, or puff pastry - which I have to admit was very delicious and insanely addicting. I visited SepotongKue when it opened a booth at Monas during Anlene Moveathon's even on December 8th. Since I didn't get to try its' famous dessert when I visited Pasar Santa, I quickly grabbed me some rupiah and got myself some pastries.

One of SepotongKue's best selling prouct is its' Special Choux. This is, by far, the fluffiest and most scrumptious choux pastry I have ever tasted in my hometown. It was very light, not that airy, and it had this different kind of taste that distinguish it from any other pastry I have ever eaten before. Can't tell what it is, but it's a good one! The choux was filled with a spoonful of thick custard, then topped with slices of fruit, usually kiwi and strawberry. 

Took my first bite of my Special Choux and I fell in love immediately. I just love how the pastry was filled with just the right amount of custard - not that overflowing, yet not too few either. I love how creamy and sweet the custard was, which went well with the savory pastry. The fruit on top was like a cherry on top of a sundae, it completed the dessert. Yet, it was very unfortunate that with just a couple of bite more, the choux was completely gone from my hand. 

Wouldn't you like some of SepotongKue's famous Special Choux? 

The second best selling product from SepotongKue is its' Ice Cream Choux. There are three varieties of ice cream, which are Vanilla Tella, Choco Jaffa, and Green Tea - all of the are homamade. I got to pick a flavor for my ice cream, so I went for the green tea ice cream to ease my curiosity. Made with fresh milk, non-dairy cream, and the best quality green tea, this dessert deserves a two-thumbs up! Not to mention it goes very well with a hint of Nutella on top. 

The ice cream was very creamy and thick. Its' matcha flavor was very rich and strong, yet wasn't that sweet. I was a bit disappointed with my choice of ice cream because it didn't blend quite well with the choux, as both element was lacking of sugary goodness, so, it was just okay. But, the ice cream itself was nice though!

The breakfast of champions

If you would like to get a bite of SepotongKue's delicious Special Choux and Ice Cream Choux, you ought to visit its' stand at Pasar Santa. You can even get in touch with its' owner via Instagram and website, and get some information about where she's going to open up a stand at an event or two. 

SepotongKue

Pasar Santa - Upper Floor #119

Jalan Cipaku 1, Kebayoran Baru

Jakarta Selatan

Opening Hours: 

Wednesday to Sunday

From 1 PM to 8 PM

EggO: Take Me Away

Get your waffles at EggO!

Its' name is Eggo, a brand new waffle stand that I found at Summarecon Mall Bekasi. I've been wanting to try out this waffle stand for months, but I haven't got the chance to do so - until last Sunday.

After having a lunch date at Sushi Tei and a stress-relieving shopping spree with Mom, we stopped by at Eggo on the basement floor of mall to grab a bite of its' unique-looking waffles. 

Located on the basement floor of Summarecon Mall Bekasi

We can build our own waffle by combining our choice of flavors and toppings. I wasn't in the mood to mix-and-match funky-tasting flavor with random sprinkles to create a unique and anti-mainstream waffle, so I decided to have something ordinary: chocolate flavored waffle with chocolate chips.

Build your own waffle

Unlike any regular waffle, Eggo uses this particular wide egg-shaped waffle pan to create their waffle, hence a rather unique and uncommon shape of their product. The waffle guy would first pour the toppings into the waffle pan, then create the batter whilst heating up the pan, pour the batter into the molding, and let magic do the rest. It didn't take long for my waffle to shape up, just a scroll or two on Instagram and ding! your waffle is ready to be served.  

Egg-shaped waffle pan

The batter bar, with ready to use batter and your selection of bottled flavors

Pour them batter into the pan

After the waffle was taken out from the pan, the waffle guy put the waffle on a tray to cool off. I thought he would just leave the waffle be to cool off by itself, instead he clicked on of the switch on the counter table and woosh! a pair of tiny electric fans turned on and helped the cooling process of the waffle. Not everyday you can find a smart guy like him, don't you think?

Using fans to cool down the waffle

Look at them chocolate chips!

My waffle was adorable! It had the shape of a hexagon, and on the top of each 'eggs' was this garden of delicious looking and scrumptious chocolate chips. The edges of the waffle was extra crispy, just how I like it to be, while the 'eggs' were chewy and deliciously bite-sized. You can just pinch an egg, pull it out, and eat it right away. Or, if you don't want no fuss, you can just bite all the way through it. The waffles was lacking of sweetness, but the chocolate chips managed to cover it up right away. Overall, I'm giving an 8 out of 10 for Eggo. 

Next time you go to Summarecon Mall Bekasi, why not stop by at the waffle stand and give yourself a try!

Peek-a-boo!

Enjoy your share of waffle

Summarecon Mall Bekasi

Jalan Bulevard Ahmad Yani Blok M

Sentra Summarecon Bekasi 17412

Basement, BF-IC-16

Opening Hours: 10 AM - 10 PM

Yourganic

Last week, I tasted the fanciest and most expensive milk in my life. Unlike your regular milk that you usually buy at the supermarket - the ones that came out from a cow's udder - this milk is made out of raw almonds. It shares the same concept as soy milk, as both drinks were made from nuts, it's just that they use almonds instead of soybeans. 

It goes by the name Yourganic. 

Ever since Yourganic became one of the hippest highly-recommended healthy product in society, a lot of people are dying to get a taste of its' famous almond-based milk. It has become popular among Indonesian Instagram celebrities, such as @pupupaula, @soniaeryka, @anazsiantar, and many more. Yourganic continuously gets great feedbacks from its' consumers because of its' vision to offer an alternative way for us to enjoy our glass of milk. 

The positive benefits that you can get from drinking a bottle of Yourganic is endless. Other than the fact that it improves women's health and mood during menstruation, it increases stamina and also contains lots of vitamin that is good for one's body. On the one hand, it balances your daily mood, plus it clear acne and blemishes from your face. Last, but not least, it can boost one's libido and increase endurance in your sexual function, not to mention the percentage of improvement in fertility that a woman can undergo exceeds expectation. 

I got the chance to try out its' best selling product, which is the Maca flavored raw almond milk. Maca itself is a kind of plant, a type of nuts to be exact, that is believed to be a medicinal herb and an aphrodisiac. I have never tasted one before, nor seen one - heck, I just found out that a kind of plant like Maca exists in this world! - so, you can imagine how excited I was.

Now, before I get to the part where I explain about its' texture and flavor, I would like to recall the opinion from most people of how healthy food tasted disgusting, while unhealthy food is often delicious - so that you can get the mental picture of how this non-dairy product tasted like.

I have to be honest, Yourganic's Maca flavored raw almond milk did tasted a bit weird and funky. The liquid has this clumpy and nutty texture. I even bumped into some nut bits twice! It has a strong almond scent, which is quite nice. As expected from a nut-based milk, it tasted like its' main nut ingredient: almond. Creamy and milky on the one side, and it also had this hint of caramel flavor in it. It was nice and quite enjoyable, yet I'm not very fond of it. Mom, on the other hand, loved the milk so much she ended up being the one who finished it. 

For those vegetarians out there, you ought to try this product. Yourganic is also good for those who are on diets and for those who are trying to lose some weight. Yes, a bottle of milk can be quite expensive (I bought mine for Rp38.000,00), but it worths the price to be healthy. Don't mind about the funky texture and flavor, I bet you will enjoy it eventually in the end.

For more information, you can check out their Instagram and blog. 

Hard Rock Cafe Jakarta

Mom, Dad, and I paid a visit to Hard Rock Cafe Jakarta today, the one that's located at Pacific Place. It was 7.30 in the evening when we arrived. Mom booked us a table in advance, so it didn't take long for the waiter to escort us to our seats. The restaurant was not that crowded for a Saturday night, yet maybe it was just because we were a bit too early. One of the waiters said to us that there would be live music performance tonight, so we decided to order us some food while we wait.

Hard Rock Cafe Jakarta

Not that crowded for a Saturday night, right?

I ordered myself a glass of Strawberry Basil Lemonade, while Mom and Dad had their pint of Heineken. If it wasn't for the promise I made to myself - about how I'm not going to drink any alcohol until I turn 20 - I would probably settle down for a Pina Colada, or Cosmopolitan. I have never drink any of those two cocktails before, and I'm dying to taste one so that I can release myself from curiosity. 

Strawberry Basil Lemonade is basically your typical cold and thirst-quenching lemonade, but with a little garnish of crushed strawberries and basil. The combination of those three elements made this drink highly recommended for those who fancy a sourly fresh light beverage. Not that sour compared to lime mint, yet not that sweet compared to punch. It was lacking of sweetness for my taste, but it was nice and very enjoyable while it lasted. 

Strawberry Basil Lemonade

It turned out, I finished my Strawberry Basil Lemonade faster than I expected, I ended up ordering a second beverage: Wildberry Smoothie. A combination of fresh banana, wildberry syrup, pina colada mix, and orange juice blended into one refreshing tutty fruitty smoothie that would give a little kick to your taste bud. I like this one better than the Strawberry Basil Lemonade. The sweetness was just right for my taste, not to mention it had a quite light texture for a smoothie - not too clumpy, nor liquid-like - but it needed a little bit more banana in it.

Wildberry Smoothie

We started off with a Jumbo Combo, a mixed plate of appetizers such as, Santa Fe Spring Rolls, Hickory-smoked Chicken Wings, Onion Rings, Potato Skins, and Tupelo Chicken Tenders - served with four different kind of sauce: Tartar sauce, mayonnaise, tomato sauce, and Thousand Island Dressing. 

My favorite was the Tupelo Chicken Tenders and Potato Skins. The chicken tenders were deep-fried into perfection, brown in color and very crispy. They were slightly spicy because the batter contained bits of pepper in it. I love it best to be eaten with some Tartar sauce, as it added more flavor into the already-salty-and-savory chicken tenders. On the one hand, the Potato Skin were also enjoyable. Topped with some Jack and Cheddar cheese, seasoned bacon bits, and green onion, the potato had been a second favorite of mine. The edges were crispy and chewy at the same time, while the middle part of the potato was not mushy like how I expected it would be. Nicely seasoned, nicely grilled, and nicely served. 

Nothing special about the Onion Ring. Like always, I ended up getting rid of the onion and enjoyed the deep-fried batter instead. Again, it tasted better when its' dipped in Tartar sauce. 

Santa Fe Spring Rolls were filled with spinach, black beans, cilantro, corn, jalapeños, diced red peppers and jack cheese, which was nice and healthy, but it was clearly not a favorite of mine. They were nicely stuffed as there were no empty squishy space in the spring rolls. I'm guessing vegetarians are very much fond of this particular appetizer. 

I'm not a big fan of chicken wings. Hard Rock Cafe's Hickory-smoked Chicken Wings didn't change my opinion about my likings towards this particular dish. Mom was fond of its sour and piquant flavor though, but not me. Even when its' well-cooked and not oily, I still didn't like it. 

Jumbo Combo

The main course that I had was a plate of Grilled Salmon Fillet. I shared my plate with Dad, and it only took us around 15 minutes to finish our meal. The fillet was topped with Merlot-garlic butter, and served with a couple scoop of garlic mashed potato and vegetables. I personally loved the garlic butter on top of the salmon as it melted down the fillet. It enhanced the flavor and the savoriness of the nicely grilled fish. 

Grilled Salmon Fillet

Mom is allergic to any kind of seafood, so she didn't join Dad and I in devouring the salmon. Instead, she ordered herself a plate of New York Strip Steak. Nicely grilled and cooked, the meat was very tender and savory. You wouldn't miss the oil spurted out from the meat as you penetrate a fork in it and slice it open with a knife. It was an enjoyable sight.

New York Strip Steak

I was super stuffed after I finished my salmon, but there were still an extra space for some dessert, so I ordered myself Hard Rock Cafe's famous Hot Fudge Brownie. I had to wait for 15 minutes for my brownie to be ready, and it was worth while. My plate of dessert was very appealing - square-shaped brownie topped with vanilla flavored Haagen Dazs ice cream, whipped cream, chopped walnut, hot fudge, chocolate sprinkles, and cherry on top. 

The brownies itself was slightly sticky, a bit warm, and it had this amount of sweet that would make you feel sick if you eat it too much. A couple scoop of vanilla ice cream went well with the brownie as it neutralize the taste that you got from eating the chocolate cake. The whipped cream was different compared to other whipped cream I have ever tasted in my life as it had this thick texture, not that sweet, and it was not airy even the slightest bit. Overall, the brownie made an excellent dessert and a perfect closure for a fancy diner.

Hot Fudge Brownie

Hard Rock Cafe Jakarta

Pacific Place, Ground Floor #G-05

SCBD LOT 3-5

Jalan Jendral Sudirman, Kav. 54-55 

Jakarta Indonesia

Opening Hours: 

Sunday - Thursday : 11AM - 1AM

Friday - Saturday: 11AM - 2AM

Contact: 

+62 21 5797 3055

+62 21 5797 3044

Pasar Santa

"Hipster palace" are the words best describe Pasar Santa the moment I set foot to this place. Located at Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta, Pasar Santa has emerged to be one of the few places where people express their uniqueness and inner creativity - in other words, being anti-mainstream. The atmosphere at Pasar Santa is different, in a good way that would make you want to stay at the marketplace forever. It has this good vibe going on and you can't help but to enjoy being in it. 

What used to be a marketplace, where vendors sell veggies and food products like they do in any traditional market you can find, was then transformed into a place where you can spend your weekend at and hangout with your gang. Pasar Santa was infamous for being dirty and slum-like, and the place itself is rather isolated and out of reach from the locals, which explains the declining interest from the citizens to pay a visit. It had it black days. But then, it slowly rise from ashes as groups of creative young people started to develop their independent businesses by renting spaces from the marketplace to give the local citizen a nudge about their whereabouts. 

Coffee enthusiasts, vintage lovers, toy collectors, foodies, vinyl collectors, and many others, all gathered here at Pasar Santa and started their business just for the fun of it. Most of the spaces here are rented by these people so that they can express their hobbies and likings. Some coffee kiosk even give out coffee for free! So, you can imagine how cool this place is. 

Last night, I finally got the chance to explore Pasar Santa with some friends. As we arrived at the marketplace, we were welcomed with a song from a group of trombone players. Not a sight that you can find everyday, right? The building is rather old, judging from the weary walls and old-fashioned structure, yet it only give the place an even more vintage atmosphere. Kiosks are separated with narrow alleys with bad lighting. The place was packed with people, but it was not like the crowded kind of situation where you would hurt someone's foot every time you take a step. Smoking is allowed here because the place is not equipped with air conditioners - so, for those of you who are smoke-intolerant, better be careful. It wasn't love at first sight, but as I strolled around the place, I found myself fell harder than I expected. 

The second level of Pasar Santa

We were welcomed with a song from the trombone players

The first place that we visited was a dessert kiosk that sells homemade Créme Brûlee, named Labrûletory. Allow me to insert you with some info about the kiosk being super small, which make queuing became a rather challenging matter at this point. They serve three flavors of Créme Brûlee here, which are original, caramel, and green tea; and each for under RP20.000,00. They also have some toppings available for you to enjoy your Créme Brûlee with, which are Nutella and Toblerone. I was curious, so I decided to have my Créme Brûlee original with Nutella topping. 

First stop: Labrûletory

Your choice of creme brûlee for under $2

I decided to have the original creme brûlee

Using smart-looking accessories to grab the consumers' undivided attentions

They freshly burn their Créme Brûlee here at the kiosk with butane torch - a tool to create flaming hot fire with butane, or flammable gas. It only took a minute for my Créme Brûlee to be served. "You're gonna have to wait for 10 more seconds for the top to hardens, then you can enjoy your dessert," the guy said. I did as he told, then enjoyed my sweet custard. 

I'm not that into Créme Brûlee because, as I recall, my first encounter with the french dessert was not as smooth as I expected it to be. I had this mindset of Créme Brûlee being custardy and sweet, yet I was given a blob of sugar-coated blob glazed with caramel that was unpleasant to my taste buds. Never again. But, this time was an exception, because I was very curious with the dessert. Fortunately, the Créme Brûlee was very delicious, making me gain my trust again for the french originated custard. 

The top of the Créme Brûlee was hard and well caramelized, it nicely cracked as I penetrate my plastic spoon in it. The custard was sweet and creamy, they sure did put a lot of sugar in it but I didn't mind because it was just right for my taste. The caramelized top blended well with the Nutella, making the Créme Brûlee more enjoyable and pleasing. I didn't regret spending some Rupiah for this dessert.

One creme brûlee coming right up!

Preparing the sweet dessert to be served to people

"You have to wait for 10 seconds until the upper part of the dessert hardens," said the seller

I'm craving for more of these!

After we had our dessert, we continued our journey at the hipster palace. Like I said, there were numerous kiosk at Pasar Santa, and each kiosks has its' own uniqueness. For instance, a dinner booth named Claypot Popo that sells cooked rice with tofu, your choice of meat, and veggies that was overflowing with customers which served a nice cup of hot tea to accompany your meal with. The kiosk was at the corner of the building, rather large compared to the other kiosk, and we can see them cook in their mini kitchen with their clay-based cooking utensils as we wait for our food to be served. 

And then, there are a couple of vinyl store adjacent to Claypot Popo that allowed us to try out the vinyls with funky old-fashioned gramophones. They were playing out a funky jazzy tunes which I'm not familiar with, yet pleasing to the ears. 

The narrow and slightly dark alleys gave out this grunge feeling, especially those walls that were decorated with funky stickers, Halloween party invitations, and reward posters for a missing dog. 

The narrow alleys at Pasar Santa

Endless surprises at every corner of the building

Some stickers that caught my attention whilst strolling around

Heartbreaking

An invitation to a Halloween celebration last October

Our next stop was a waffle stand, named Dream Waffle. Each waffle hold the price of Rp12.000,00. The waffle has a rather unique shape that reminds me of a banana, instead of the usual square-shaped ones. Each waffles were filled with fillings of their own. I went with the Banana and Chocolate waffle, while my friend Gavin bought the Chocolate Cream Milk waffle one. My waffle tasted good, but it was lacking of banana - they only put a tiny bit of it inside my waffle. I personally liked Gavin's more because the filling was sweeter compared to mine and overflowing. Dream Waffle was not that dreamy after all. 

A simple and funky mural from Dream Waffle

My Choco Banana waffle

There was this vinyl store that grabbed my attention. The name is Sub Store, and they sell not only vinyls in here, but also vintage clothing. The store was decorated with Japanese themed banners even though the products that they sell didn't have anything related with Japan stuff whatsoever.

Loving these banners

They also sell cds and tshirts here at Sub Store

Anyone care for some punk music?

Dominated with black as it color, DOG (Dudes of Gourmet) is a hotdog booth in Pasar Santa famous for its' one and only menu: Black Dog. What makes Black Dog different compared to any other hotdog is that they use black hotdog buns, also known as Charcoal Buns - buns that are made black with bamboo charcoal. People showed great interest toward this particular hotdog booth there was this long line of people queueing to get a taste of the famous Black Dog. To end my curiosity, I decided to wait in line like other people did. 20 minutes long, but I didn't regret every second of it. 

Sold Out

The only thing that they sell here is Black Dog, but it comes in three different ways of serving: single, double, and triple - with, or without cheese sauce. I went with the single Black Dog with cheese sauce, which costed me Rp38.000.

First is that, when we came up to the ordering booth, the guy would jot down our order under our name and let us wait for our hotdogs to be prepared. They will call out your name when your order is served. There were only five active workers at DOG, and hundreds hungry people waiting for their orders to be made, so it was pretty hectic. 

They only sell Black Dog hotdog here at DOG

Three people were handling the barbecue table. I was very fascinated by how quick they prepared all the ingredient needed to make a single hotdog. Each person handled a job of their own, yet in the end, they ended up doing an excellent team job. 

A small bbq table where they prepare their famous black hotdog

The Dynamic Duo

Putting some smoked beef to the hotdogs

Caramelized onions to enhance the flavor

Funky how they use black buns instead of regular buns

I didn't lie about DOG using black buns for their hotdogs, right?

Black Dog consisted of smoked beef and grilled wurst, topped with caramelized onion, then glazed with chilly and cheese sauce. My first bite of DOG's famous hotdog was not disappointing. I didn't regret having to wait in line for 20 minute just for a piece of hotdog because it tasted good! The black bun was chewy and slightly sweet, it had this crispy edges from being heated on the barbecue table. Both smoke beef and sausage were very oily, yet perfectly grilled according to my taste. The chilly sauce was nice, although it didn't stand out much, and the cheese sauce was very enjoyable. Highly recommended!

Selamat makan!

After we were done with our hotdogs, we continued our exploration. We visited a few vintage stores and creative entrepreneurs - there was this kiosk named book, gatherings & all things creative that had this comic interpretation of the Beatles' song. The guy from the kiosk had this quirky cut, with the cool side cuts and Harry Potter glasses dangling on his nose, and he was explaining to us about one of the Beatles' song "Revolution 9" that has a rather creepy and mysterious sound effect.  

An interpretation of what's going on in one of the Beatles' song, Revolution 9

The Beatles' I Am the Walrus

Photos of the store owner's daughter to sweeten up the store

Any of you are KISS's fans? 

Our last stop was at this vintage store which name escaped me. There were lots of cute adorable vintage stuff at this store - clothes, satchel bags, posters, stamps, and many more. I couldn't help but to shop for a piece of cute vest for Rp135.000,00, a Rp30.000,00 worth of poster, and an old tin toy that costed me Rp50.000,00. I lost myself for a second and ended up spending so much on things that I wanted, yet didn't actually need.

Calling all stamp collectors!

It was fun spending my Saturday night at Pasar Santa. I might actually pay another visit to the marketplace sometimes in the future. 

So, if you're a fan of vinyl and anything vintage, or if you're just bored of going to the same mall every weekend, then Pasar Santa is the right place for you to visit. Make sure you bring some cash if you're planning to have a food-venture, not to mention if you involuntary get caught up in some cute vintage stuff.

Pasar Santa
Jalan Cisanggiri III
Petogoan, Kebayoran Baru
Jakarta Selatan, 12170 - Indonesia