Tokyo Belly at Grand Indonesia : An Authentic Japanese Taste for Your Lucky Belly!

Before I went back to Surabaya, I got an invitation from Tokyo Belly (Thanks kak Nandya!) together with other 2 foodies to try their new & favorite menus in Grand Indonesia, Thamrin, Jakarta. I’m super excited and can’t wait to meet them! 

I arrived just on time before the tasting begins, and the other foodies (Ci Daisy & her husband, Katto from Food Escape) with Kak Nandya already there. I say hi to them, and not so long Kak Nandya start this private events with telling us a bit about Tokyo Belly. In short, Tokyo Belly is part of the Ismaya Group, and it adapts Japanese traditional food but somehow they adapt with the Indonesian taste. 

After the introduction, then Kak Nandya ask us to pick some of their new menus to be tried. Kak Nandya herself order lots of menus for us to try - trust me, I’m really full after that - and all of them are the best selling menus in Tokyo Belly. Well… I could see you drooling there ;)

How if we go directly to the reviews? 

Appetizer

Salmon Sashimi - IDR 68,000

Who doesn’t love raw Salmon? Well, I surely do! Hahahaha!

Popcorn Shrimp Okonomiyaki - IDR 78,000

Japanese love ginger. That’s why, inside the okonomiyaki you can taste the ginger. However, it’s not overpowering so don’t worry ;). I love how crispy and crunchy the texture of the Okonomiyaki crust’s. My favorite one is ofcourse the popcorn shrimp on top of it. It’s really crispy but somehow creamy. I think it’s because of the mayo combination that gives the creaminess of the popcorn shrimp. If you miss Japan and wants to taste a great okonomiyaki, that this one is a nice choice.

My favorite sushi menus in Tokyo Belly !! 

Rock & Roll - IDR 48,000

Do you love beef? Then this Sushi could be your favorite one, since it’s filled with beef and also have enoki mushroom! Yes, enoki and beef - what could gone wrong with that? 

Dazzling - IDR 48,000

Guess what? The half round shape of the yellow thing above is actually an egg! Very cute, isn’t it? This is a roll fried salmon sushi with crispy panko, and it does taste crunchy. I think it’ll be a nice choice if you don’t like raw sushi.

Salmon Oyako - IDR 88,000

Wrapped with fresh salmon and topped by grilled cheese & salmon roe, this sushi is super light and refreshing. Since I love sushi, salmon is definitely one of my favorite ;)

Main Course

Carbonara Ramen - IDR 68,000

Carbonara? Isn’t it a pasta? Well, that’s the uniqueness of this menu! Even though Carbonara is usually used for a pasta, surprisingly it was also good when served with Ramen! I could taste how creamy and milky the soup is, and the half cook egg-yolk, they’re definitely my fave!

Crispy Cheesy Curry Dory Bi-Bim-Bap - IDR 69,000

There’s only one word to describe this - Yummy! I just couldn’t stop eating the rice and the curry gravy. The dory itself is super crispy, and I think this is a perfect main course for all ages. It’s a bi-bim-bap that you can’t resist!

Salmon Tamatoji - IDR 78,000

Directly cooked on top of the hotpot, you could taste the smoothness of the eggs and feel the salmon inside of it. It’s a perfect, hot soup & meal, especially when your stomach is not in a good condition. It’s a comfort food especially for your stomach ;)

Dessert

Earthquake Hanito - IDR 58,000

This is one of the most favorite dessert in Tokyo Belly. It’s also really perfect for sharing, because the portion is super big! The bread is surprisingly buttery and the texture is really soft. I could visit Tokyo Belly again just to eat this dessert. 

Fondue 

Fondue is like a number one dessert in Jakarta these days. We order the Green Tea Fondue with some marshmallows, strawberries, kiwies, and peaches. 

Here’s a secret : if you also order the earthquake hanito, try to dip the bread inside the green tea fondue. Taste great? Yes, your welcome!

Beverages

Strawberry Breeze - IDR 39,000

After feeling guilty eating all of the delicious food in Tokyo Belly, then let’s end it with zipping a healthy strawberry juice. Their juice menus are all the favorite beverages menu here, so feel free to pick whatever juice you wants!

Overall, I would really like to recommend Tokyo Belly to all of you, especially if you’re craving for an authentic Japanese Food or even desserts! You know, Earthquake Hanito and the fondue is always a perfect comfort food to end the day ;)

Tokyo Belly

Grand Indonesia West Mall, 3rd Floor, Jl. M.H. Thamrin

Ph: 021 - 23581090

Website : www.ismaya.com/tokyobelly

Thanks, reader(s)!

[Megan Faustine]

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Curry House Surabaya: What's your favorite curry?

Hey guys! I bet you've missed me ;p

Finally I already finished my 5 months internship in Jakarta, my Final Research Report (Skripsi) and here I am, back in Surabaya!!  

I’ve heard about this restaurant before, and finally I got a chance to try Curry House when I was visiting Raya Darmo Permai Selatan for a Creative Contributor interview in the area. 

THE LOCATION

Located on the 2nd Floor of Papaya Fresh Gallery (A supermarket), you’ll see a big sign of curry house in the entrance of Papaya (just turn your head to the left near the entrance door).

At first, I thought it was just a small restaurant. It turns out that Curry House is super spacious.

To my surprise, they have 2 places and they are connected through a corridor. 

That day was Monday, so there are not so many visitors in the restaurant. 

The connecting hallway

At first, I thought their menu is printed on a wooden menu (so lovely!). But it’s actually their old menu. Their new menus are just printed on three pieces of regular, thick carton. You could see the full menus in the end of this post ;)

Their old menus

Let’s go to the foods & beverages review, shall we? 

FOOD 

Pork Cutlet Curry Rice - start from IDR 62,000

Why I said “start”, which means not a fix price?

Because you could choose your own favourite curry in Curry House.

So, starting from the beginning where you could choose from noodles, rice, or even sticky rice for the carbo, and then moving on to the portion, there’s Small - Extra Large, then choose the chilli level, choose the toppings (chicken, dory, nugget, karage, pork, and so on) and finally the curry sauce. 

What did I choose?

I choose rice - small - no chilli - pork cultet - pork curry sauce. So who’s with me? XD XD

I need to wait for about 7 minutes before I got my pork curry, which is kinda fast. On the first bite, I can feel the crunchiness of the deep fried pork, combined with the pork sauce, yummy!! I could eat this curry all day long, hahaha! Even though I order the small portion, but it’s big enough & makes you full, especially for girls ;) 

Anchovy Potato - IDR 32,000

Well, before I tell you how delicious their anchovy potato, first I’ll tell you that there are 3 kinds of potato finger food that they’re serving. Here are the differences:

1. Potato chips: It’s the usual french fries that you normally found in fast food restaurant.

2. Anchovy potato : There are two kinds, the first one is the thin, crispy potato (I ordered this) and the other one is like a potato wedges and have this flabby texture. 

3. Ras potato : It’s almost like a regular french fries, but a very very very long version of the regular one.

So yes, because I love crispy snack, I order the anchovy potato, crispy one. 

It’s really crispy and so crunchy, a perfect choice of finger food. They spread some other herbs & ingredients (I don’t know what they are, honestly) which makes it even better. 

BEVERAGES

Milk Lassi - IDR 20,000

I order milk lassi because the waiter told me it’s one of the favourite beverages here. Milk lassi consists of milk and yoghurt. In my opinion, it taste a bit strange and confusing, because you don’t know which one is more dominant, the milk or the yoghurt. Plus, I think there’s too much water in it. I just wish they could add more milk or more yoghurt so the taste will come out nicely.

Coca Cola - IDR 15,000

For those who didn’t like Ocha or any other Japanese drink, then the best choice is Coca Cola. Served in a can, I think I don’t need to tell you how Coca cola tastes like, right ? Hahahaha! 

THE MENUS

As promise guys, here are the full menus of Curry House. Click to enlarge, and zoom it in!

CURRY MENUS

FINGER FOOD & OTHER MENUS

BEVERAGES MENUS

SERVICE

If you follow my food post, I bet you know that I’m super chatty and ask so many questions about each menu, before deciding which one I would like to order. Well… that’s habit, sorry! *wink*

And the waitress there respond all my questions quite friendly and try to explain what she knows. So yes, the service was really nice.

I personally think that The Curry House is suitable for families with younger children, friends, families, or even business meeting is suitable here. 

Overall, a very nice curry to try!

Curry House

Papaya Fresh Gallery 2F, Jl. Raya Darmo Permai Selatan Surabaya

Ph: 031 - 7326291

Social Media: Still None.

Thanks, reader(s)!

[Megan Faustine]

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Let's Go & Hunt Some Photos at Kota Tua, Jakarta!

Do you know beside Travelling and Eating, I have another hobby which is photography? 

You might guess it while looking at my travel and food photos, even though it’s not a professional photography, it all looks great right? 

(*Pede amat yak!* Well, it’s okay to be proud of myself sometimes, isn’t it? ;) ) 

On Sunday, I went to Kota Tua - in North Jakarta - because I already miss hunting photos too much! 

Yes, it’s been a long time since my last hunting session. 

I just started to work as a fresh graduates and I’m kinda busy in office! 

- maklum, first jobber jadi so sibuk gitu deh -

Not only that… I went here because I want to drive my just-arrived Toyota Agya! 

Finally after 6 months saving I could by a car with my own money! 

*Whoa… 6 months? That fast?* I know you might get suspicious… hahaha!

Yep right, that fast! Thanks to Toyota Agya’s price that is very affordable and reasonable for a first jobber, I could buy my own car without asking my parents for that. super happy!

Now, now, the intermezzo is right until there, because I’ve arrived in Kota Tua, Jakarta!

It’s super crowded there and it feels like impossible to get a parking area for a car.

Fortunately, thanks for my super slim and skinny Toyota Agya, I could easily get a parking lot - like seriously, a lot faster than the other car around! - 

Taking out my gear (read: camera) I start to look around at Kota Tua. 

So crowded right? You can see the Pos Indonesia building right on your right side!!

Human Interest

One of my favourite photo theme is actually Human Interest, which means I secretly take a candid shot of people doing their things. There's always a story behind each Human Interest photos from the photographer point of view. That's why I love it! 

They usually don't share about the point of view or the story, they just keep it on their head. But well, since I'm a nice one, I'll share you my perspective in each photos! 

Here’s some of my fav shots in Kota Tua - and the story - how do you think?

An old man was playing puppets with "dangdut" songs

I take this shot because I realize that this man is super old but he has the spirit to fight! Maybe he's going through a hard life. His hair and beard colour is white & long, looks like he never go to saloon for years. His cap is old, might be as old as his age, and his clothes looks like it has not been wash properly. I just wonder if he has a kid or not, is there any one who still take care after him...

Foreigners enjoying their time! Upss... or not?

I take this shot because I'm in love with the black tank-top foreigners style, especially that glasses!! It's super cool! I'm glad that foreigners could enjoy their time, chill out comfortably with their friends in Kota Tua.

Thennn, I realize there's one foreigner with a white T-Shirt at the back... why you look so sad & confuse? Hmm, she might be waiting for a friend and I hope they will arrive soon!

Free Shots

Second, I also love to take whatever shots - scenery, stuffs, anything! Here’s what I capture in Kota Tua. 

Lots of museums and old buildings that you could visit around Kota Tua, Jakarta. Proud of Indonesia YEAH!!

Buy some souvenirs while strolling around Kota Tua: A must!

Love cycling? Let's rent this out!

F-o-o-d!

Last but not least… FOOD! Yeep, there are lots of food stalls in Kota Tua, and one of them is traditional street food like the ones eaten by this girl.

Oh my, so hungry right now!

Some girls were enjoying their food! Makes me hungry!

Overall, I can say that Kota Tua is super beautiful, unique, and so Indonesia!

You could go to the museum, watch street performance, rent a bicycle, buy some souvenirs, eat traditional street food, and even say hi to foreigners! Anything!

I realized that I’m still a super amateur photographer, but I just want to show people how I look at the world :)

Believe it or not, every people has a different and beautiful perspective in their own eyes about the surroundings.

Those perspective could be shown through each of their photos. 

That’s why, if you notice, every photographer has a different style / characteristic, right? 

If you share the same hobby as me, taking photos, don’t be shy to drop comments, give critiques to my shots, and drop you blog(s) URL too so I can visit and see your world!

See you in the next hunting photo session & posts! 

Thanks, reader(s)!

[Megan Faustine]

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