I Miss Mardin Baklava

Do you miss going out with your friends? I certainly do. Maintaining social and physical distancing is no easy task when you’re someone who values the occasional rendezvous like me. But, we all gotta do what we have to do to keep ourselves healthy at the moment, no? 

What will be the first thing you do when the pandemic is over? I’ve been thinking about that a lot and, boy, there are tons of things I want to do. I would definitely want to catch up with the boyfriend and ask him for a nice warm hug. While we’re at it, maybe we can pay a visit to this particular dessert shop at East Jakarta and unwind with some sweet pastries and Turkish tea. 

The name of the dessert shop is Mardin Baklava, a place where you can get some  authentic Middle Eastern delights in Jakarta. Some people say that Mardin Baklava has the best baklava in town. I can’t say that I disagree, because I had been coming back and forth to that dessert shop before the pandemic existed and, now, I’m craving for some good deal of baklava. That’s how good Mardin Baklava is. 

Despite the fact that Mardin Baklava has no contender in providing the locals with authentic Turkish delights, the sweet pastries that they serve at the shop are made with high quality ingredients, which resulting in a series of high quality dessert as well. I did my research on where else I can get me some authentic baklava here in Jakarta, but the results only leaded me to this particular shop at Jatinegara. 

During my first visit at Mardin Baklava, I was awestruck by their array of various baklava displayed on the counter. They were, if I may say, shining, shimmering, and splendid! The color spectrum was beautiful and captivating. If I didn’t get a hold of myself, I would probably buy one of each just because of how attractive they were. Now, I know how baklava tasted because, back in 2010 when my family and I were still living in Doha, Qatar, I had an easy access to baklava as it was being sold in most supermarkets as one of the country’s staple dessert. What intrigued me the most at Mardin Baklava was this particular dessert named Künefe. Although a portion of this Middle Eastern dessert can cost you most of your weekly allowance, you should definitely give this dessert a try when you have the chance. 

Künefe is a dessert made out of noodle-like pastry, cheese, and sugar-based syrup. The one at Mardin Baklava is quite small and pizza-like you would automatically assume the dullness of this dessert. But, wait until you get a fork and cut through it. When you scrape a bit of the dessert, the generous amount of baked melted cheese layered beneath the noodle-like pastry will stretch so far it’ll stretch all the way to Timbuktu. Now, I know my parents taught me not to play with my food, but Künefe is super fun to play with I couldn’t help myself!

The combination of the thin and crunchy pastry with the gooey and melted cheese is to die for. Despite it being soaked in sugar-based syrup, making the whole being of a Künefe a little too sweet even for my sweet tooth, I love the unique flavor of this dessert - sugary sweet from the syrup, milky and savory from the cheese, and savory and doughy from the pastry. It is so delicious! But, I have to say, the amount of syrup in this dessert is very overwhelming, I always get a sore throat after every Künefe I ate at Mardin Baklava. If you can’t handle sugar like me, you can always opt for your Künefe with less sugar. The staff at Mardin Baklava offered me to modify the dose of sugar in my Künefe, but I settle for the regular sugar because I wanted to know how the dessert would taste like authentically. 

As a personal preference, I would suggest that you indulge on your Künefe with a serving of warm Turkish Tea. Compared to any regular tea you’ll find in the supermarket, Turkish tea is way stronger, thicker, and more bitter. Of course a serving of Mardin Baklava’s Turkish tea comes with some rock sugar for those of you who like your tea sweet. But, would you want an extra dose of sugar after all that Künefe you have? Trust me, it is best to sip on the tea as it is. It’ll help you neutralize all that sugary sweetness from the Künefe you just devoured. 

Sure, you can bring the Künefe home, so that your family can also get a taste of that savory and sweet pastry, but the cheese wouldn’t be as stretchy compared to when it just got out of the oven - as it stiffen when it gets a bit of a cold air. So, if you want to bring something home for the family, always go for the baklava. 

As I mentioned previously, Mardin Baklava has quite the collection of baklava displayed on its’ front counter. When seen with the naked eye, I could spot three types of nut that they use to make their baklava, which are cashew, pistachio, and walnut. Some of them were drizzled on top as a finishing touch to the baklava, while some are hidden beneath the layers of thin filo pastry. I’m pretty sure every baklava has its’ own unique nut flavor, but I’m certain that all of them have the same basic flavor, which are nutty and sweet. 

Compared to the Künefe, baklava is way sweeter. I could only eat a tiny bite of it at a time because of how sweet it is, yet most of the baklavas are already bite-sized. The thin layer of filo pastry gets soggy after being bathe with the sugar-based syrup, making the entire texture of the baklava compact, chewy, and only a little bit crunchy. At Mardin Baklava, you can only get your baklava by the grams instead of buying it individually. They have different types of packaging for the petite dessert, ranging from 100 grams to a kilo, and you can mix it up to your heart’s content. 

I once got me the 100 grams, thinking that it may not be sufficient to feed the whole family, yet I was stand corrected. I asked the staff to mix up my baklava, as long as they’re within my 100 grams limit, and what I got was more than a dozen type of individual baklava in my gift box. The size varies from big to small and it was definitely suffice for my family of seven. We sliced and share the baklava one by one, and we got immediately full after our third baklava because of how sweet and heavy they were. 

During this pandemic, Mardin Baklava is still open for business, both dine in and delivery through Go-Food and Grab Food. I would love to place my order online so that I can cure my longing for its’ delicious and sweet Künefe, but I think I’m going to wait until this whole quarantine thing is over, so that I can enjoy my dessert warm and fresh from the oven. Soon, I hope. 

Mardin Baklava

Jl. Cipinang Jaya Raya, No. 74

RT 008 / RW 007, Cipinang Besar Selatan

Kecamatan Jatinegara, Jakarta Timur - 13410

Opening Hours (Quarantine Period):

MON - SUN: 1 PM - 10 PM

Contact:

+62 821 1203 3331

Instagram

Habeeb Turkish Restaurant

Found my way back to Habeeb Turkish Restaurant, last January, and decided to capture the moment in a new way. Instead of the usual photo compilation, this time I made a video!

I dined at the restaurant with my parents and with some friends. We ordered lots of dishes, which were Boneless Chicken plater, Lamb Chops, Shawarma, Turkish Tea, and some French Fries. It was really great to eat at Habeeb Turkish Restaurant. Other than the fact that the restaurant gives you the Middle-East-atmosphere, it also serve excellent food! 

My favorite dish from the restaurant is definitely the Chicken Shawarma, followed by the Lamb Chop. Each shawarma costs 7 Riyal, either Chicken Shawarma or Beef Shawarma, and every bite worth every riyal you spent. Inside the shawarma, you will find chicken meat, veggies, white sauce, and chilly sauce. I prefer to have my shawarma without the white sauce because it tasted a bit off.

The Lamb Chop, on the other hand,  has very thick flesh and is crispy. It tasted savory and very juicy, and it didn't reek of bad odor of lamb. There was only a small amount fat on the Lamb Chop, which was good because I'm not a big fan of fat. The meat was tender and enjoyable, and I simply regret my decision on having just one piece. 

Every dishes are served with layers of Taboon bread, or flatbread, and they are delicious although they tasted bland. The bread are flat and floury, but they are thick and very satisfying. I love eating this bread the most, especially with some chicken meat and chilly sauce!

At the end of our meal, one of the waiters offered us some Turkish Tea. The tea was served in a small glass, more like a small vase actually, made out of glass. Under the glass vase was a silver cup mat, with unique and various patterns carved on it, and there were a couple of sugar cubes on the sides. The tea spoon is what I love the most about the Turkish Tea at Habeeb Turkish Restaurant, because both sides of the spoon bowl has got drawings of flowers on them. It was really beautiful!

It was my first Turkish Tea and, let me tell you, it tasted poles apart compared to the usual tea that I drink back in Indonesia, which is Tong Tji Tea. The tea was very thick and bitter, even though I added two cubes of sugar in it, it would just smack your taste buds the moment it enters your mouth. 

Now, if pictures can make you drool, then I hope a video can make you grab your wallet and sprint to the nearest kebab stand! But, if you prefer to read about Habeeb Turkish Restaurant, Having Shawarma Like Tony Stark is just a click away.

Habeeb Turkish Restaurant

Matar Qadeem, Doha

Ad Dawhah, Qatar

Bandar Aden Restaurant

One night, when I was at Doha, I went out for dinner with my parents and my Dad's housemate's family. We went to this dinning place named Bandar Aden Restaurant, a Yemen restaurant that is located at Souq Waqif - a standing market at the heart of Doha, Qatar. There were six of us at that time, and we were lucky that the restaurant was not crowded, so we headed to one of the private dining booths that were provided and ordered some dishes. 

There are two kinds of dining area at Bandar Aden Restaurant, the usual dining area and the private dinning booths. The usual dining area is the one with tables and chairs. Like any other restaurant, you can just pick a table and sit there when you dine. On the other hand, the private dining booths are more isolated and unique compared to the usual dining area. The booth is fenced and decorated with rugs and cushions. If we dine inside one of those booths, the waiter will spread some plastic on the rug to put the dishes at so that the food will not defile the rug. 

This is how we dined at Bandar Aden Restaurant

After we placed our orders, the waiter proceed to cover the rug with plastic. Lucky us, we got some complimentary soup from the restaurant! Dad said that we don't always get free stuff in this restaurant and that we were lucky to be given soup for appetizer. "I have tried this soup once and it's very delicious," said Dad in a very convincing way. 

The soup is dark yellow in color. It is very light and watery, yet spicy and very flavorful. At the bottom of the cup are chunks of shredded chicken and veggies. In my opinion, the soup is best eaten when it is still warm, with rice and some crisps - like roasted peanuts, crackers, or even deep fried chicken.

Complimentary soup for appetizer

Eat the soup while it is still hot

About 15 minutes later, our other dishes arrived - two hot-plates of Beef Ogdat, a portion of Hanid Chicken, and some Yemeni Bread. 

Beef Ogdat here is actually Beef Stew. Cooked with carrot, potato, tomato, and other veggies and herbs, Bandar Aden Restaurant's Beef Ogdat is very delicious! The stock is very tasty and is rich in flavor, not to mention light and throat-warming.

One of the waiters were bringing the dishes to our dining booth

Beef Ogdat

Beef Ogdat is rich in flavor!

The second dish was a basket of half-meter-in-diameter Yemeni Bread fresh from the oven. Yemeni Bread is like the signature dish of Middle East cuisine. Layers and layers of dough simply put into an oven, usually the traditional one that is made out of semen and bricks and cooked with charcoal and fire, and then served on a weaved basket. This bread is very large, has a chewy texture and is deliciously doughy. You can just tear the bread, scoop some Beef Ogdat with it, and indulged. The combination of the plain chewy bread and the flavorful beef stew is amazing!

This is how big the Yemani Bread was

Sprinkled with sesame seeds, then toasted to perfection

Tear the bread to get your share

The third dish was a big plate of Hanid Chicken - a big chicken, nicely boiled with some spices and herbs, served on a bed of rice that was cooked with saffron. The chicken meat was cooked evenly, savory and spicy, and went well with the complimentary soup from the restaurant. The rice on the other hand was plain. The shape of the rice itself was somewhat lanky, thin and tall, and they were broken white, yellow, and orange in color.

Hanid Chicken

One big portion of Hanid Chicken

I personally love the Yemeni Bread the most! Not only the bread tasted fantastic, it went well with pretty much everything. Hanid Chicken, Beef Ogdat, you name it! When you have the chance to visit Bandar Aden Restaurant, you ought to order a basket of those Yemeni Bread. It's a must-try!

If you would like to know more about Bandar Aden Restaurant, you can visit its' website here.


Bandar Aden Restaurant
Souq Waqif, between Musherib and Al Rayyan Road
Doha, Qatar

Phone: (+974) 4437 5503

Opening Hours:
Saturday - Thursday: 8 AM - 11 PM
Friday: 12:30 AM - 11 PM

Having Shawarma Like Tony Starks

When I was in Doha, Qatar, visiting the shawarma restaurant is a bliss. I'm a big fan of shawarma, yet the shawarma in Indonesia is far from similar with the shawarma in Doha. Indonesian shawarmas are lacking of meat, mostly filled with cabbages and mayonnaise, which make them pretty plain and less entertaining. On the other hand, the shawarmas that I bought in Doha had thick paratha bread, generously filled with grilled meat, covered in delicious spicy sauce, garnished with cabbages and french fries, and tasted superb. This particular post simply explains my love for shawarmas.

Shawarma guy on action 

Break time

One of the shawarma guy grilling the chicken

Look at those juicy stacks of chicken meat!

My Dad was on duty, so my Mom and I decided to visit the shawarma restaurant. When we arrived at the particular Turkish restaurant, the place was not crowded with people. The Tv was on and it was airing the soccer match between Italy and England. All eyes were on the television, including some of the staff from the restaurant. 

We ordered ourselves a plate of Chicken Shawarma and a plate of Lamb Chop. I was looking forward to have the chicken shawarma. Mom said that the lamb chop tasted superb, that is why she ordered a plate for us to share. While we waited, one of the waiter approached our table and handed us a plate of pickled vegetables and some small containers of onion puree. He didn't actually handed the appetizer though. It was more like randomly-putting-the-appetizer-followed-with-a-loud-thud kind of way. He did the same thing with the plates and the dinning tools. Maybe it's a custom in Doha that I just found out.

Pickled vegetables and onion puree

A moment later, the same waiter brought us our orders. It was the chicken shawarma. He handed the dish the same way like he handed us the appetizer and the dinning tools, with a loud thud. We ordered one portion of the chicken shawarma, but it turned out that it could probably feed four persons. There were four pairs of paratha bread covered in spicy sauce, a generous amount of grilled chicken, french fries, and vegetables.

A big plate of Chicken Shawarma

Look at those grilled chicken meat! 

This is what it looks like when the paratha are removed

The bread was thick and crispy, and it tasted delicious although it was considered plain and tasteless. The spicy sauce add some flavor to the shawarma. It tasted spicy and delicious, yet a bit funny because it left this weird spicy aftertaste in your throat. The vegetables were very refreshing and juicy. The french fries and grilled chicken were great! They were crispy and full of flavor, not to mention deliciously awesome. I can never have enough of this dish!

An orderly way to organize your very own hand-rolled shawarma

This is what rolled shawarma looks like

A mouthful of this would send you to bed of roses

Our next dish was the lamb chop. I'm not a big fan of lamb, to be honest, I'm more of a fish-chicken-beef-enthusiast. But, since I'm on my quest to feast on every food that I can find, I was looking forward to try this particular lamb chop that my Dad loves so much. The ribs were rather big and juicy, garnished with some fresh vegetables, french fries, and paratha bread. I took a bite of the ribs and it actually taste pretty nice. Lamb-lovers would totally love this dish, I can guarantee that!

A big plate of Lamb Chop

Boy, look at those juicy lam meat!

One is never enough!