Chocolates, Anyone?

Pigged Out

It is said that "Pork eaters are better lovers". I must be one epic lover. 

1 Ounce of Roasted Pork

My best buddies, Sally and Angel, and I had been planning on having lunch at a restaurant named Kaca Mata. For those who are not familiar with what Kaca Mata is, it is a Chinese restaurant where you can find crispy pork and a thousand year egg. It is located at Grand Wijaya Center, at Kebayoran Baru, to be exact. My Mom and I paid a visit to Kaca Mata Restaurant once and we had what its' called Casio Goreng Madu, or a fried crispy pork that was bathe in honey beforehand. I told Sally and Angel about the delightful manna from heaven, and they showed an eagerness to visit Kaca Mata as well. Today, we finally made it to the Chinese restaurant and had lunch together.

We ordered a lot of food - an ounce of Roasted Pork, an ounce of Casio Goreng Madu, a bowl of Pork Buns, a couple glasses of Soy Bean Milk, and a glass of Kietna - and we shared the dishes together. I have no complain about how the pork tasted like because they were all good. The Roasted Pork are very savory and enjoyable, not to mention very juicy and tender. The Casio Goreng Madu, on the other hand, was beyond crispy and palatable! It was very sweet, from the honey, and I enjoyed every bite of it.

A plate of golden brown Roasted Pork

Casio Goreng Madu

A bowl of broth with Chinese Lettuce

I didn't like Soy Bean Milk when I was a kid because I think it tasted weird and gross. But, for some reason, I began to fancy that drink and ordered it most of the time when I see the word "Susu Kacang" on the menu. Kaca Mata's Soy Bean Milk was very refreshing and not nauseating, which is a good thing. That way, I could enjoy meat and milk at the same time, without having the feeling to pour them out. 

Angel had a glass of Kietna. I had no idea what Kietna was! I searched on the web for 'Kietna' and I found out that it is a type of orange that Chinese people fancy. "Here, try some," offered Angel. I took a spoonful of the orange drink and savor it with my fully operational taste bud. The drink share the same sour taste with Tamarine, yet it has this sweetness and juiciness of an Orange. I puckered my face as a respond of how weird the drink tasted like. It didn't taste that bad, in fact it tasted very unique and amusing, but I prefer my Soy Bean Milk.

Left: Soy Bean Milk, Right: Kietna

We also had a bowl of Pork Buns. There were three small buns inside the bowl and each one of us got one. This food right here is my second favorite dish in Kaca Mata that I ate today. The buns were small, it fitted the size of my palm, and they were very soft and slightly sweet. When you cut open the buns, you will find a blob of red goo with cut meat inside. The red goo was the sweet sauce that bathe the cut meat, in this case, pork. The whole dish was very delicious and mouthwatering!

Pork Buns

The sweet pork meat inside the buns

Angel was not too happy with Kaca Mata's Roasted Pork because they were not crispy enough. "How about we go to Kenanga after we finished our lunch? It's a Chinese restaurant that sells pork as well, and it's not very far from here," I recommended. Sally and Angel agreed and we continued licking our plates clean before we move on to the next destination.

Nasi Campur Kenanga was where we headed next. It is located in Grand Wijaya Center as well, only a couple blocks away from Kaca Mata Restaurant. Now, this right here is my favorite restaurant. My parents and I often visit Nasi Campur Kenanga after we finished our mass to feast of crispy Roasted Pork and Sweet Pork. 

The place was filled with people when we arrived, which lead us to dine in at the second floor of the restaurant. We ordered an ounce of Roasted Pork, two pieces of Siomay, and a stick of Pork meat. We didn't eat a lot at Kenanga because we just ate at Kaca Mata. Angel was very happy with the Roasted Pork because they were very very crispy. The skin was very crispy and savory, it even let out a sound that gives people the idea of you eating Cheetos. I continuously munch on those golden brown pork, but for some reason, I ended up being feed by both Sally and Angel. They stuck a fork inside the pork, and the Siomay as well, and shove it into my mouth. I didn't mind at all!

Kenanga's Roasted Pork

Two pieces of Siomay and a stick of Pork meat

We were stuffed with pork and we were very happy. It was two in the afternoon and we didn't want to head home yet. I suggested that the three of us find a place where we can leisure while eating a bowl of ice cream or cake. Soully Butter Kitchen and Hampton's came up in the conversation, but then the image of creamy cake and milky ice cream popped out of no where, which made us didn't feel like having dessert. So, we agreed to head to Sally's place and enjoy the afternoon.

But then, I remembered that there is this awesome bagel shop near Sally's house named Bagel Bagel. I was craving for some bagels this past few days and, knowing that I got the chance to visit a bagel shop, I said to my buddies that I wanted to make a quick pit stop. So, we did, and I bought my self a bagel-wich! With an Everything Bagel, as in Bagel with sesame seeds and poppy seeds as toppings, and bananas, caramel, and cream cheese as the fillings, I completed my weekly needs of bagels.

Banana Caramel Bagel from Bagel Bagel

The bagel was hard on the outside and soft on the inside. My bagel-wich was very sweet from the ripe bananas and the caramel, yet savory and creamy from the cream cheese. Sally had the same bagel-wich, but she didn't use any caramel on it. It was very kind of Sally to treat me a bottle of Iced Thai Coffe and two pieces of plain bagels. I shook her hand and place it on my forehead like how Indonesian students pay respect to their teachers to say my gratitude. Angel got her treat as well, which was a Chocolate Chips bagel with cream cheese and blueberry as its' fillings. 

After we got ourselves some bagels, we headed to Sally's place and enjoyed the rest of the afternoon munching on bagels and watching the new season of New Girl. It was very delightful to eat bagels with your friends, I recommend you to do the same thing!

Had an Everything Bagel, which consisted of sesame seeds and poppy seeds

Iced Thai Coffee

Kaca Mata Restaurant

Grand Wijaya Centre

Jalan Wijaya II, Blok C No. 4

Jakarta Selatan, DKI Jakarta

Phone: (021) 723 5228

Opening Hours:

Monday - Sunday: 24 Hours

Nasi Campur Kenanga

Grand Wijaya Centre

Jalan Wijaya II, Blok F No. 19

Jakarta Selatan, DKI Jakarta

Phone: (021) 385 2293

Opening Hours:

Monday - Sunday: 10 AM - 7 PM

Bagel Bagel
Jalan Benda Raya 14D, Kemang 12560
Indonesia

Phone: (021) 781 8769

Opening Hours:
Monday - Thursday: 6 AM - 8 PM
Friday - Sunday: 6 AM - 9 PM

Hummingbird Cake

This morning, I went to Dharmawangsa Square to get a weekly check up on my spine. As you all know, Jakarta is like hell on earth during Monday, with all those traffic jam and polluted streets. It took me an hour to get to Dharmawangsa Square with a cab and I didn't plan on going back home immediately after I was done with my checkup because I don't want to get stuck in a traffic for another hour. I decided to stroll around the city walk, paid a visit to Ranch 99 Market, and bought foodstuff for my Mom and I. After I bought a couple of fresh juice and a pack of oatmeal cookies, I headed to Kuekue with no intention on spending some money on petite cakes.. but then I spotted a funky looking cake that goes by the name Hummingbird Cake.

"What's a Hummingbird Cake," I asked to the cake lady. She explained to me that Hummingbird Cake is a cake made out of banana and pineapple. I have never tasted such cake before in my life, heck I didn't even knew such cake existed! So, I took out my wallet and bought a piece of the peculiar cupcake. 

While I was in a cab on my way home, I searched the web about this Hummingbird Cake. Then, I found out that a Hummingbird Cake is a cake which originated from Hawaii, which explains the tropical fruits base. The cake is made out of ripe banana, crushed pineapple, pecans, and cream cheese. I couldn't help but to wonder how the cake tasted like.. and I was stuck in a traffic for another hour. I had to refrain myself not to poke a finger inside the cupcake and savor the tropical fruit sensation.

When I got home, I immediately went up to my room and set up my instant photo studio. I took pictures and examined the cake as if I was a scientist in the movie Alien. The outer appearance is very pretty, the cake is topped with broken white cream and crushed pecans. I lick some of the cream that stained my fingers and tasted sweet sugary cream instead of cream cheese. "Maybe they were improvising with the recipe," I thought to myself. 

I unwrapped the baking sheet that was attached on the cake and found a golden brown cake. Suddenly, I was filled with happiness and enthusiasm. I cut a bit of the cake and munched. The cake itself tasted good, not too sweet, and I could feel the bananas and some pineapple chunks. I ate the cake along with the sugary cream, and I have to say that I'm a bit disappointed because the cream didn't blend well with the cake. I was hoping that I would get an epic explosion of flavors when I eat the so-called Hummingbird Cake, but it didn't turned out the way I expected it would be. All in all, the cake tasted nice. But, I think, it would tasted nicer if the cream was cream cheese. 

Not bad for my first Hummingbird Cake. When I have the chance to visit Hawaii someday in the future, I make sure I get myself a slice of an authentic Hawaiian Hummingbird Cake. Who knows, maybe I will find a surprise inside the cake, like a big chunk of pineapple in the middle of the cake or a generous amount of cream cheese on top of the cake decorated with pecans and pistachios. 

Kuekue

Dharmawangsa Square, Basement F1, No. 52

Jakarta, DKI Jaya 12160

Phone: (+62) 815 922 6222

Twitter: @kuekue1302

Hours:

Sunday - Thursday: 9AM - 9PM

Friday - Saturday: 9AM - 9:30PM

Know Your Meme

As you all know, I've been experimenting with coffee beans and milk to create awesome latte art. I've been working on my pouring techniques, so that I will end up with a decent Tulip latte art or Heart latte art, but I keep messing up in the end. In the past few days, I've been taking over the Espresso machine whenever there are orders like Cappuccino, or Cafe Latte, or Cafe Caramel, just so that I can practice my coffee-making-skill. Cats and mice are two of the most common animals I usually draw in the cup. I couldn't help but to feel the need to advance to the next level. 

A friend of mine, named Joe, requested a meme latte art. For those who are not familiar with the word "meme", let me give you a brief explanation. Meme, you see, are those pictures you see in 9GAG, like Poker Face, Forever Alone, Troll, and Ridiculously Photogenic Guy for example. I've been drawing too much rabbits and bears on my latte, so I said to myself, "Challenge accepted."

Poker Face is the easiest meme to be drawn with steamed milk, in my opinion, as you only need to pour the steamed milk at the center of the cup and draw two dots and two lines on it. I succeed at making my first meme latte art and I was satisfied with myself. "Close enough," I murmured as I finished drawing the second line on the milk foam.

Poker Face

Then, another friend of mine, named Hans, requested another meme latte art, which is Derp Face. "It's pretty easy to make, don't you think," he said. True, making Derp Face is much easier compared to Me Gusta or Trollolol, so I brew some coffee and started doing magic with a help of my magic wand.

Derp Face

So, what do you think of my meme latte art? Close enough?

The Day Angel Turned 18

A quick introduction

The last day of October was fun and wonderful! It was the day when a good buddy of mine named Angel turned 18, and we celebrate it with a small feast and a trip to a haunted house. By "we", I meant me, Icha, Sally, Febby, Ratri, Anty, Evan, Chandra, Riva, Adrian, and Raja. There were a dozen of us, and we spread joy in Jakarta Convention Center and Senayan City as we told the world, "Hey, World, Angel is now 18 years old!"

It was in the middle of the day when I arrived at Fx: Lifestyle Center. Me, Icha, Sally, and Angel decided to meet up at this mall before we go to JCC, or Jakarta Convention Center, to go for a ride in a haunted house. I was the first one to arrive at Fx, and I got nothing to do, so I settled down at a restaurant named Kenny Rogers and ordered myself some appetizer. I didn't feel like eating a whole zebra, so I ordered myself a plate of Coleslaw and a refillable Iced Lemon Tea. 

A plate of Coleslaw costed me Rp18.000,00, while the Iced Lemon Tea costed me Rp20.000,00. Kenny Rogers' version of Coleslaw is a bowl of cut cabbage, carrots, spring onion, lettuce seeds, and purple cabbage, smothered in mayonnaise. I'm a fan of Coleslaw and I really enjoyed the dish because I think the it tasted refreshing and juicy. But, they put too much mayo in the shredded vegetables, and I don't think spring onion is very suitable to be included in the Coleslaw. The whole meal costed me less than Rp50.000,00, thanks to the pricey 10% tax. 

An hour passed, and Icha, Sally, nor Angel hadn't arrived yet. So, I moved to another restaurant, which was Ichiban Sushi, and ordered myself a plate of Tamago Sushi. The sushi palter only consisted of two pieces of Tamago Sushi and it costed me Rp12.500,00. The whole sushi was very sweet and light, and enjoyable, but I tasted better Tamago Sushi before. 

Light meals to start the day

Not long after my sushi plater arrived, Icha and Sally arrived at Fx and joined me for a quick lunch. Sally ordered herself a glass of hot Ocha, while Icha had a plate of Salmon Sushi. We finished our lunch and strolled around the mall until Angel arrives. The birthday girl finished her class at 3PM, and since her college is just a 5-minute-drive to Fx, it didn't take long until she arrived at the lifestyle center. Icha, Sally, and I had prepared a Box of Happiness as a birthday present for Angel, which consisted of things that would definitely make her super happy. One of the things inside the Box of Happiness was a handmade comic of mine, and I was very pleased when I know that Angel was very much entertained with my awesome and epic comic. 

We hopped in to Angel's car and drove to Jakarta Convention Center. She offered us a selection of petite cakes that she got from her college friends. It was Pepenero's cakes and I was very attracted to the cake with blue candle on it. It was a small Tiramisu with coffee-flavored icing sugar as decoration. I took a bite of that creamy cake and it immediately made me feel happy. Yes, cake can make you happy, people, especially if its' a good and delicious cake! The cake was creamy and soft, and it was deliciously filling my stomach. Icha ate the one that has no candle on it and, judging by her cheer, the cake was also delicious.

A box of petite cakes from Angel's college buddies

It didn't take long for us to get to Jakarta Convention Center. There was, and still is, an exhibition at JCC and the place was crowded with swarms of people. Icha, Sally, Angel and I went to JCC for one thing and one thing only, JAKK Incorporated's Dungeon of Demons. Dungeon of Demons, you see, is a haunted house made my JAKK Inc. I got five free tickets from a friend of mine whom I met at Gudang Rottie, Kak Aruga, and I was very excited, yet also terrified, to experience the horror. 

At first, I was going to go inside the haunted house with Icha, followed by Angel and Sally, but Sally and Icha were terrified and decided not to, so, I went in with Angel. The pretend ghosts and ghouls had nice costumes and makeups, which made them look promising. Angel and I were being shouted and shocked by the ghosts inside the Dungeon of Demons. But, it didn't take us five minutes to get out of the terrifying maze, so we decided to go inside one more time.

This time, I paired myself with Icha, while Angel paired herself with Sally. For some reason, during my second visit to the Dungeon of Demons, the ghosts increased from four to seven, and they made me shriek in horror. Icha, on the other hand, covered both of her ears and her arms and accidently sprinted towards a pretend ghost, making me flailed to grab her in terror. But, we survived. "I was scared, yet I was excited because they were playing one of Jigoku Shoujo's soundtrack during our turn, and I saw Kuchisake Onna," said Icha after she got out of the dark labyrinth. 

Hellgate passes to the Dungeon of Demons

The four of us had early dinner at a Thailand restaurant named Jittlada, located in Senayan City. Angel and Sally were the ones who picked the dishes for dinner. We ordered lots of food, such as Pineapple Fried Rice, Spring Rolls, Morning Glory, Pad Thai, Pandan Chicken, Thai Tea, Lime Juice, and Jittlada Surprise. Our table was filled with plates and dinning utensils.

Early dinner feast

Left to right: Iced Thai Tea, Lime Juice, Hot Thai Tea

Icha's Jittlada Surprise

It was a very luxurious dinner, I made sure I scooped every single dishes on the table. There were five different dishes on my plate and all of them tasted deliciously savory. The Pineapple Fried Rice were not sticky, they were savory and a bit oily, and you could taste a hint of shrimp oil in it. The pineapple made the dish rich in flavor because they tasted sweet and sour. Raisins and small shrimps could also be found in the fried rice, and they blended well with the other ingredients. Both Pad Thai, or Thailand Noodle, and Stir-fried Morning Glory was very spicy for my taste, my mouth was on fire, but they were very enjoyable and delectable. 

Pandan Chicken was one of the dish that I ate. It was a deep-fried chicken covered in Pandan Leaf. I didn't know whether or not the leaf could be eaten, so I took a small bite just to make sure. It turned out, the leaf was very crispy and savory, it went well with a spoonful of Pineapple Fried Rice. Angel and Sally were speechless seeing me munching on leafs like a soon-to-be-cocooned caterpillar. "You're not supposed to eat the lead," said Sally. "But it tasted good," I replied, still munching on the crispy edges. 

What I had for dinner

A plate of spicy Pad Thai

A plate of super spicy Stir-fried Morning Glory with Garlic

Three pieces of Pandan Chicken

The savory and sour Pineapple Fried Rice

A plate of Spring Rolls

After we finished our main courses, the waitress came to our table with a tray of dessert. Two plates of Mango Sticky Rice decorated the table and we dig in. I enjoyed the mango with a spoonful of sticky rice coated in coconut milk, the whole traditional dessert was very sweet and flavorful, but I prefer the fruit alone.

Mango Sticky Rice for dessert

Sally, Icha, and I had been planning on a birthday surprise, along with Febby, Anty, Ratri and the other guys. We were going to popped out with a cake at around 7PM, but our friend named Evan was a bit late and we ended up postponing the surprise. It was 8PM and there was still no sign from Evan, so the four of us left Jittlada and strolled around the mall aimlessly. 

I bought some times for the others to prepare the surprise by stopping at every cafe and restaurant on the basement floor. I stopped at some cookie shop, Japanese restaurant, cake shop, ice cream parlor, and didn't bought a single thing. But then I spotted Cold Stones. I got jumpy and excited, and dragged Icha to the ice cream shop and bought myself a cup of ice cream. "Tiramisu Ice Cream with Brownies and Almonds, please," I said to the ice cream man who decorate his face with fake blood because it was Halloween. I paid attention as he mixed the ingredients on an icy table. 

Cold Stone's Ice Cream for second dessert

Scoop them up!

My ice cream tasted sweet and delightful, it would turn a man's frown into a smile! Yes, I was fully aware by the fact that it was actually fattening gelato instead of ice cream.. but, hey, can anybody say "No!" to a second dessert?

A bowl of Tiramisu Ice Cream, with Brownies and Almonds

After getting myself a cup of ice cream, the four of us proceed to a new bakery that originated from Korea named Tous le Jours. "Come on let's go to that new bakery, I want to buy something for my Mom," I said. True, I was planning on buying something for my Mom, but Febby and the others were ready for the surprise and they told us to meet at the new bakery. So, we rode the escalators thrice and pretended to be looking for something inside the bakery. Sally bought herself a glass of Hot Tea, while I bought a slice of Classic Cheese Cake for my Mom. We sat inside the bakery-restaurant, chatting normally as if something was not going to happen. Then, came Febby, Anty, Ratri, Evan, Chandra, Adrian and Raja with a big Blueberry Cheese Cake, and the next thing I know, we were all singing "Happy Birthday" to Angel.

Sally's Hot Tea

SURPRISE!

"Happy 18th Birthday, Angelia"

The surprise was a success! Angel didn't expect that there would be a wolf pack surrounding her and demanding her to blow lit candles on a cake. There were supposed to be two cakes, one is the big Blueberry Cheesecake and the other is a cupcake from Anty. But, Anty accidently dropped her cupcake box and spoiled the Winnie the Pooh cupcake.

Don't forget to make a wish

Anty's spoiled cupcake

The happy girl

Even though we already had dinner, Angel decided to treat us with two buckets of fried chicken, ten glasses of cokes, and a couple of puddings. It was a fun night and I'm thrilled to be able to meet my best buddies again! I ate lots of dishes and beverages and I was certainly full!

A second feast 

Less than a dozen Pepsi and some puddings

A bucket of KFC's Fried Chicken

Kenny Rogers Roasters

Ground Floor

Fx Lifestyle Center

Jl. Sudirman, Jakarta

Ichiban Sushi

Ground Floor

Fx Lifestyle Center

Jl. Sudirman, Jakarta

Jakarta Convention Center

Jalan Stadion Senayan 

10270, Jakarta - Indonesia

Jittlada

Ground Floor, Senayan City

Jalan Asia Afrika, No. 19

Jakarta

Cold Stone
Ground Floor, Senayan City

Jalan Asia Afrika, No. 19

Jakarta

Tous le Jours
Fifth Floor, Senayan City

Jalan Asia Afrika, No. 19

Jakarta

Food Court

Fifth Floor, Senayan City

Jalan Asia Afrika, No. 19

Jakarta