WOOBAR at W Retreat and Spa Bali Seminyak Bali

Continuing the memoir of my glorious days in Bali is this post. By the way if you skipped the previous post about W Retreat and Spa Bali, you can read it HERE!

Most of the media trips that I have attended so far with beach surroundings spoil me with the sunset cocktails! Same thing happening to my previous trip to Bali with Sheraton Bali Kuta Resort with that spectacular view and refreshing cocktails! By the way did you know that Sheraton Bali Kuta Resort and W Retreat and Spa Bali Seminyak is under the same group which is Starwood Hotels? That’s why I am free enough to mention Sheraton Bali in this post, prove that I am not completely silly!

...and W Retreat and Spa has the perfect little bar: it's WOOBAR baby!

Bali was seriously humid during my visit and HAS BEEN! My sweat was drizzling everytime I took a walk even to the beach which was like only 20 metres away plus I freaking sweat easily! In a way I feel a lot healthier because I finally sweat, something that I certainly don't bother to release in Jakarta (talking 'bout sports here).

PHOTOS!!!

Incase you're wondering, the photos on the W series were taken with Nikon D3000 and Canon 500D, I borrowed my friend's 500D because I am too lazy to bring the heavyass prof. DSLR along to this trip. I wanna relax!!!

Sky so blue and the plants so green!

I spend extra time to edit these photos because I wanna have the mood of the vintage and retro tone, some kind of those old post cards look, and if you care, I edited the photos on Photoshop.

Woobar is open both for public and the in-house guests and it’s offering a relaxing venue to have your selected beverages along with pleasure and just a cocktail away from having Seminyak beach as your view. Seminyak beach was really clean and blue during the day but they might not have the best sunset (nature’s first problem) but it’s not completely dreadful, the cocktails here were what??? FREAKING AMAZING!!! Even a social drinker like me could stumble upon theirs!

I am totally not a drinker, everytime I drink just a little, even cocktails (I DON'T DRINK PURE ALCOHOL), I started to get rash on my body (mostly on my chest area) and they're VERY ITCHY! I remembered once I got back from an event, got so sleepy after having a few drinks and went straight to bed, woke up in the midst of my sleep because it was really itchy I couldn't stop scratching! but I drink on special social occasions like this and believe me, I had cocktails everyday while I was in Bali for lunch and dinner, I won’t let the chance of having a great time passed me by and again, thank you Aini for spoiling me with two Ls (love and lux!) and truth is, surpisingly I was totally rash-free!

There are two areas for you to choose when you're here, the indoor or outdoor seating. The indoor seating is located in the building and  it's up to you to choose anywhere you want to sit (or stand) among the two floors, but usually the lower ground is where the events are mostly held like the famous "Silent Disco", the interior was designed beautifully earthy and minimal, but still leaving the impression of homey and cozy, but I definitely love to sit outdoor to enjoy the sunset time while enjoying the fresh breeze of Bali. You can choose between cozy sofas or private 'bed' sofa for yourself while sipping on your fancy beverages! Jet set much!!!

The beverages here were created by the head bartender Yudi Hendarsyah who's not only sensible but very humble as well! By the way, you can read Ian's post of Woobar, when it comes to (only) cocktails, gotta admit that he's really good at acknowledging it because he's very into cocktails!

Aini ordered us four cocktails, each was unique and segmented.

The W2 Tini
Aini told us that this following beverage was created on the 2nd anniversary celebration, this didn't have that strong alcohol intensity to it, the term "women's drink" might be for this one: sweet, refreshing and subtle.

Strawberry Champagne

This one was one of my personal favorites, since I didn't really like strong beverages then this one might be the right fit for me. The presentation of this beverage was really unique with cotton candy, unfortunately the waiter poured the beverage too quickly so I couldn't snap any picture. This one is highly recommended.

Mandarin Sour
Numero uno personal favorites! Again, if you love the lighter beverages with less hint of alcohol then betcha gonna love this one! The foam is the bomb infused with the Earl Grey tea, the flavor is orange-tangy with a hint of zest, citrus, sweet but nicely measured.

W Iced Lemon Tea

The name of this particular beverage might not sound anywhere near intimidating, but from the four I tried, it had the strongest intensity of alcohol and very beautiful as well.... COCKTAILS SERIOUSLY HAS THE BEST COLORS! Ocean blue color with rocks, this one's a little more bitter than the rest too.

Told ya the cocktails here were really really good and I still couldn’t get myself over that Earl Grey (Mandarin Sour), it’s very refreshing, probably the one with the least strength and alcohol intensity and total worth to try!

If you happen to be in Bali and around Seminyak area, I can guarantee you (as what I have experienced myself) a complete joy blended with luxury and vibrant times in W Retreat and Spa Bali and of course, refreshing cocktails at the WOOBAR! Just blend with the moment, forget works, you deserve a freaking rest!

Stay tuned for more posts about Bali because this diary is not ending anytime soon, still going to write some more pages about W Bali!

WOOBAR
W Retreat and Spa Bali
Jl. Petitenget 
Seminyak, Bali 80361
+62 361 - 473 8106
WEBSITE | FACEBOOK | TWITTER | INSTAGRAM

FACEBOOK || TWITTER || INSTAGRAM

email: eatandtreatsindo@gmail.com

HYDE Kemang Jakarta

Went to this new restaurant which just recently opened for public, say hi to the newest joint in Kemang, HYDE!

Technically they're still on their soft-opening days but since the pictures from Odie Djamil's and HYDE's instagram has been hurting my eyes everytime they upload new photos to their account, that's the cut throat, couldn't wait any longer!

HYDE is located in Taman Kemang and it's close to Common People or Plaza Bisnis Kemang. I fell in love with their architecture and interior design, it was just so urban, minimalist, almost greece-like interior with those glass windows all around, but in the same time still earthy and modest. One thing that I must point out here (and to all restaurants with this privelege), finally another restaurant with separated smoking and non-smoking areas! Inside you'll also find a bar located in the middle of the main dining area, pretty huge and nicely decorated.

I am not completely satisfied with the pictures I took it was freaking dark and since they started opening at 6 PM, I guess you'll get what I got *defensive*. I probably spend more time editing these photos than actually writing this post! I do hope they're opening sooner because I could really imagine that the place's going to be so damn beautiful during the day just like what I saw from their instagram.

HYDE serves mostly western courses but there's also a little fusion and pan-asian courses you could choose here, well here are some of the menus that I ordered on my visit.

Strawberry Iced Tea
IDR 25k

Pasta A La Vodka
IDR 55k
This particular dish was in between good and not-that-pleasant for me, the good thing is the portion, it was pretty generous for one, even you can share it if you're really full, not only that, the filling was also generous, but I wasn't THAT fond of this dish because it was really cheesy which I myself was totally a contrast of, and since it's cooked with Vodka, I wasn't feeling even a hint from the Vodka, I was expecting the flavor to be bolder and braver or maybe a little wild or playful, therefore it tasted like a plate of pasta with tomato sauce dressing.

Stuffed Chicken Breast with Mashed Potatoes and Lemongrass Velour Sauce
IDR 85k
This following dish happened to be another sort-of-disappointment for me-sorry just being honest here-first, the chicken was cooked pan-fried, but as in for the result, the chicken was way too dry and it was not tender, it was clearly overcooked because the meat was hard and not juicy, it was lack of the golden pan fried color of the chicken coating that I was expected to be more. I also was not a huge fan of the stuffed filling, guess what? it was minced chicken, if I may suggest, I think it's considerable to change the filling to anything beside chicken (spinach cream perhaps :9), you get what I am saying right, chicken filling inside a chicken breast...hmm. I also prefer the mashed potato to be a little smoother in texture and consistency-more like a puree form, but it was honestly not a big deal for me, other than that the sauce and the veges dressing was quite good.

Crackling Pork Belly

IDR 125k

The bomb of the main course served on the night was truly this following! The pork belly rules my belly!!! Thanks to the awesome cooking of the pork belly: it was fat in a good way, juicy, fragrant (from the rosemary as well), the sauce was sweet and savory but fit just nicely. What you think was potatoes were actually sauted apples and it was also cooked in great temperature and density, was expecting the same thing happening to the carrots but it was fine. This one was recommended to try.

HYDE Chocolate Soil
IDR 55k
Okay, so far as it got served right on the table, I instantly fell in love with the presentation! It was just simple but very tempting and distrubing in the same time, I just always have this thing with wicked weird ideas to present your food, probably the weirder the better for me, especially those with genius touch of molecular gastronomy. As in for the dish itself, FUN-TAS-TIC! I fell for this on the very first scoop! It definitely got the texture play from the dusty form of 'soil' which was crumbs and chocolate liquid or paste, and for me, the sweetness was balanced nicely. Don't be surprised if later you'll find 'worms' because that's the exciting part! Chef Odie told me that the 'worms' were simply made of jelly. Must must try!

Honey Toast, Pandan Chiffon with Coconut Soup
IDR 55k
This was a complimentary dish from Odie Djamil, thank you Chef! It was a nice heartwarming dessert, the soup (or sauce) was made from cream and coconut and it had just the proper balance of sweetness and volume, the coconut flavor wasn't overpowering the whole thing. This dish was completed with honey toast cuts, Pandan chiffons and one scoop of dreamy ice cream, couldn't say much and no negative thing to say, it was just a heartwarming dessert with simplicity in a good way, another worth to try when you're here.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Lava Cake
IDR 55k
This one was another stunning dessert dish, the chocolate lava cake was cooked nicely on an appropriate temperature and consistency, it did had the peanut butter flavor to it which made it more interesting for me (peanut butter fan here!), the one that looked like an egg yolk was actually a plain jelly, I was expecting that it would be like a real egg-yolk and something would pop from it (but not literally egg yolk, meh!). This was probably everyone's good old favorite and HYDE made a good version out of this!

While the main courses were not the main stars of the night, the desserts were truly the savior of the night as well as...THE BOMBS! Their desserts are absolute must try and I highly recommend them when you're planning a visit to HYDE, I truly hope that the main courses would be fixed, it's just that unfortunate that a restaurant that awesome and good-looking as HYDE didn't nail it and lose it lux at the food. As for the pricing, I thought that HYDE sets a pretty good deal, they were pretty much affordable and reasonable for that portion.

I have high hopes for HYDE, good luck on the next services! Would be back for more of your food, I'm not done with you! Promise!

HYDE
Jalan Taman Kemang 1A No. 8
Kemang, Jakarta Selatan 12730
021 - 5610 3888 // 0817 170 399
Opening Hours:
Weekdays and Sunday: 6 PM - 12 AM
Weekends: 6 PM - 2 AM (except Sunday)
FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM

FACEBOOK || TWITTER || INSTAGRAM

email: eatandtreatsindo@gmail.com