See You, Bella

I’ve been enjoying myself these past three months I almost lost myself to this newly developed alter ego of mine. She goes by the name Bella, a very strong woman who doesn’t give any care about anything other than her parents and her happiness. She does what she needs to do to make herself happy, even if it means unfollowing some Instagram accounts that don’t suit her aesthetic palate and cutting off toxic people in her life. She is wild and free-spirited. A very determined fellow that won’t stop trying before she gets what she aimed, one of it being skinnier. 

My go-to salad

Yes, I’ve been very cruel to my body. I ate one meal a day, drank black coffee and smoke some cigarettes whenever I feel hungry, cut all carbs and excessive sugar intake, and work-the-hell-out of my month of June. I managed to drop to 57Kg, which is an amazing achievement after a drastic gain of weight during my line training last year. I could finally fit into my old dresses, which made me very happy. 

During these months of hell, I mostly cook my meal. Even if I had to buy my lunch, I managed to get me Tous les Jours’ Cajun Chicken Salad every. single. time. Tofu and tempeh are my daily staples, with some soup along the way whenever I have extra time to spare. I’m well aware by the fact that, with my current allowance, I’m able to go for take-outs everyday if I want to, but I chose not to. Cooking my own meal helped me to control what I eat, as well as saving money for me to spend on a trip to Narita, Japan. 

Clear soup vegetable ala me

Some oseng tempe and fried tofu

A plate of stir-fried stuff

Another stir-fried stuff, but the uglier version

I got all of the recipe I used from my Mom, who is the cook I look up to in the culinary world. I’m used to watching her dice up some garlic and put a bucketful of ingredient on a wok to make a delicious stir-fried vegetables, so cooking is not that alien for me. Most days, I settle with oseng tempe and clear vegetable soup. But, there are days when I feel like experimenting with other plant-based ingredients I bought at Superindo. 

Bella, you see, was not satisfied when she reached 57Kg. She was happy, but she thought she can do more. She wanted to lose more weight. She wanted a body that she thought people would want. She wanted people to see her as a 9. She wanted to be wanted. "Being skinny is not enough," she thought, so, after she got her blessing from Dad to dye her hair, she did. An aquatic blue ombre that reminds her of Sailor Neptune from an old anime called Sailor Moon. Followed by a series of short denims and cropped tops, she showed the world how she bloomed into this wild and beautiful orchid after years being caged and not having any option to grow. She’s happy. I’m happy.

Boiled some chopped carrots because I didn't feel like cooking

Being happy is always a good thing. But, in my case, I had to slow down a bit because of how overwhelming it was. I was too focused on making myself happy, I got way too comfortable with myself being happy by myself only. So, here I am, back doing what I love and what gives me sanity: writing and eating. I managed to eat like how I used to eat these past two weeks and a gained three kilos of fat already. I know I'm not being healthy, and I'm being very anxious with this whole weight gain thing, but Bella does no good to my body. I need to change my mindset from wanting to be skinny to wanting to be healthy. It sure will take time. I just hope Bella won't comeback for now. 

P.S. Pardon the vertical pictures. I was focussing a wee bit too much on my Instastory feeds, so I took pictures mostly in vertical. 

Culinary Adventure at Gading

Tous les Jours

So many choices of good quality buns and breads available in this bakery. From sweet to savory, chocolaty to salty, icy to steamy, they have it all in Tous les Jours. I found this bakery by accident, as I was on my quest to search for an ATM. The sight of the golden brown buns decorating the trays caught my attention. "Man, can this bakery bake," I thought to myself. There were so many bakery goods to choose, not to mention most of them will probably cost you not more than Rp 10.000,00. 

It took me a while to decided on what bread I should have for lunch, until I spot this rather appealing toast. Topped with melted cheese and some smoked beef, I took the toast, put it on a tray that was provided at the bakery, and handed it to the cashier. "I would like to dine in," I said. "Would you like us to warm your toast," asked one of the male staff politely. I nod enthusiastically. 

The toast was beyond savory. The crust was crispy and crunchy, and it blended well with the melted cheese. I felt very fancy and a bit classy, it was as if I were from the capitol. Indulging on a rather fancy looking bread neatly, with a help of a fork and a knife, while I usually would just eat it with my bare hand, made me feel like as if I were Effie Trinket.

Cold Stone

Cold Stone are a bit pricey, if I might say. Rp 28.000,00 for a cup of ice cream, with one complimentary choice of topping, is rather expensive, yes? Add Rp 6.000,00 if you would like to have another topping of your choice. Since I was waiting for some of my friends to come to Mall Kelapa Gading, I decided to wait for them at this particular ice cream parlor. I bought myself a cup of Hazelnut-flavored ice cream, with a piece of Oreo and a chunk of brownies for toppings. Can you imagine how heavenly this ice cream was? It costed me Rp 34.000,00, but it was worth it. 

Cold Stone is famous for its ice cream mixing. The staff would just scoop the ice cream and put it on a glass base. Then, he will add the toppings, just on top of the ice cream, and mix them with a shovel-like tool. Later on, he will put the ice cream into the cup, or the waffle cup, and let you enjoy the masterpiece. 

In my opinion, Oreo tastes best if you eat it with Vanilla ice cream. But, since I was in the mood for some nutty flavored ice cream, it will just have to do. It turned out, indulging on hazelnut ice cream, with small chunks of brownies and Oreo, was not bad. Not bad at all. I enjoyed it very much actually. If only it didn't cost you half of your allowance, then I would probably stuff myself with the same ice cream everyday.

Standing Sushi Bar

Don't get fooled by the name "Standing Sushi Bar" because they have tables and chairs there. It will cost you Rp 25.000,00 for a couple of Ikura Sushi, a boat shaped sushi wrapped with dried seaweed and topped with salmon eggs. For those who are not fond of sushi or fish eggs, then this particular cuisine is no match for you. But, since I'm a sushi lover, Standing Sushi Bar's Ikura Sushi deserves a two thumbs up from the Almighty Fregeek.

For those who haven't got the chance to try Ikura, or salmon eggs, it tasted like as if you are drinking a glass of fish juice. A bit eeky and yucky, I have to say, but it has this unique deliciousness that makes me like them. If you bite one of those eggs, it will immediately pops and fills your mouth with its fishy liquid. Very amusing and delicious. A must try to those who love sushi.  

A friend of mine, Ano, dare me to eat this sushi he hated so much named Nato Sushi. Nato itself are fermented soy beans, one of the common dish that you can find in Japan. Some Japanese loves this food, some are disgusted by it. I'm not a big fan of Nato, but he said that if I could eat a whole plate, then he would pay for what I have eat at the restaurant. I immediately accepted the challenge and finished the whole plate in less than ten minutes.

The thing about Nato is that it taste bitter and a bit unpleasant. Well, what can you expect from a fermented soy beans? If you have drank a glass of expired milk, unintentionally of course, I believe that you find it far from tasty and unpleasant. The same goes for this unique dish. I am amazed by the fact that most Japanese people eat this for breakfast and can survive through the day. True, Nato tastes better than Wasabi, Japanese green chilly paste, but still it tastes unpleasant.

Ippeke Komachi

A rolling sushi bar is an excellent place to have lunch or dinner for Japanese-enthusiasts. Make sure that you got yourself a seat near the rolling bar, so that you can leisurely chose what sushi you would like to have. Each plate contains of two sushi of the same type. The price range depends on what color of plate you chose.  

For a starter, I grabbed myself a yellow plate, which contains Tamago Sushi. This plate is the cheapest plate on the bar. Tamago Sushi itself only contains rice, a small slice of dried seaweed and some sweet fried egg. Now you know why this particular plate costs the least. 

Tamago Sushi is my second favorite sushi after Unagi Sushi, which is fresh-water eel sushi. Other than the fact that this sushi only costed me Rp 15.000,00 per plate, it's its sweet fried-egg I love the most. I told you before that I'm a walking sweet tooth, didn't I?

Second serving was a plate of sushi, which contained rice, eels, fried eggs, cucumber, and some dried seaweed. By looking at the color of the plate, you can easily tell that this sushi is no cheaper than Tamago Sushi. Green and dark blue with golden stripes for its color, this plate will cost you Rp25.000,00. Pricey? Indeed. Delicious? Hell yeah!

Ocha, or Japanese green tea, is free in this restaurant. You can even get yourself continues refill without having to worry that it might cost you an arm and a leg. The waitress will ask you wether you want to have cold Ocha or hot Ocha, then latter on she will bring it to you. Don't be shy to ask for refills. Free stuff are not meant to be wasted.

For dessert, I ordered myself a glass of pudding, which costed me Rp 9.000,00 per plate. Notice the drawing on the plate? Yes, it is Hello Kitty. This adorable pudding came with a lovely plate that would make you go "Moe moe kyun~" the moment the waitress served this dessert on your table. The pudding is Vanilla-flavored, poured with some caramel sauce on top, decorated with whipped cream, some chocolate chips, a bit of cherry, and some cornflakes. 

Do not mix the pudding all at once. I repeat, do not mix the pudding. It is better for you to eat it slowly, spoonful by spoonful, bite by bite. Savor the taste of the pudding, the combination of the caramel sauce and the vanilla-flavored jelly, the sweet whipped cream that goes well with the cornflakes, and the crunchiness of the chocolate chips. I gotta tell you, this pudding is a masterpiece. A must try if you got the chance to have lunch or dinner at this particular restaurant. 

Mall Kelapa Gading

Jl. Kelapa Gading Boulevard

Blok M Lt. 2, Jakarta Selatan 14240

Phone: (021) 4585 3858