Christmas Dinner Jakarta 2013

Christmas time is the time to share our love, just two weeks away and we're going to cherish the Day! There is always this thing about Christmas that is so heartwarming! I have this perfect imagination for Christmas: I am in a vintage-sophisticated dining room with maroon color all over the wall, it's snowing outside and the lighting of the room is dim, majority comes from the fireplace. This imagination of mine stays in mind and someday I am going to make my dream come true! The only thing missing is the snow which is like the most essential -_-. So anyway, what are your plans for the Christmas eve? Are you guys planning to cook and have a scrumptious dinner at home? Or have you planned a lovely date with your loved ones outside? If you haven't then this list might help you. Here is the eatandtreats' guide to Christmas Dinner in Jakarta this year!

This is NOT an advertorial list, this is purely from my perspective. These are the restaurants I have visited before and I see great potentials in this places for a lovely, romantic, heartwarming and proper Christmas dinner with your loved ones. There are tons of great restaurants in Jakarta but again, this one was the one I have stepped my feet in before, so anything outside these, I haven't been to. Christmas dinner might cost you a little more than the usual and that happens in most restaurants during Christmas because they tend to have promotions, but the experience and the vibe of the dinner might be different :).

Altitude at The Plaza
The Plaza Tower 46th fl.
Jl. M.H. Thamrin Kav. 28-30
021 - 2992 2448

Altitude is surely one of the most famous restaurants in Jakarta at the moment, located at the 46th floor of The Plaza Tower, Altitude consists of three major restaurants: Salt Grill by Luke Mangan, GAIA by OSO Ristorante and Enmaru (Japanese cuisine). If you want to have a seriously romantic vibe, I'd recommend going to either Salt Grill or GAIA for the view from these two restaurants is directing to Bundaran HI, but the restaurants here actually serving pretty decent food.

They're having a promotion for Christmas eve dinner (24th) and Christmas day lunch (25th) starting from IDR 450k/person, or if you're in group and you want a more private dining experience, then you could be seated in the VIP room for 10 people capacity for IDR 6million (before tax).

Balboni Ristorante
Kota Kasablanka, Tower A Lobby
Jalan Casablanca 88, Jakarta Selatan
021 - 2956 8712

Balboni Ristorante in Kota Kasablanka is offering you selections of great Italian cuisine with reasonable prices! There are two divided areas in this restaurant, the outdoor area with wide white couches for a more casual dining experience, while the indoor area is the more private and in a way *ahem* romantic. Make sure to try out their "Deviled Chicken Pizza" (75k) and "Mushroom Ravioli" (105k). Eating here for will probably cost you around IDR 250k-300k for two. Pretty reasonable.

C's Steak and Seafood
Grand Hyatt Hotel Jakarta, 4th fl.
Jl. M.H. Thamrin Kav. 28-30
Jakarta Pusat 10350
021 - 2992 1234

This renowned Steak specialist probably needs no more introduction. It's declared one of the best restaurants to have steak by many. I used to visit C's to try out their Asian Wok promotion and they were decent, if you are curious of their famous IDR 500k Lamb Fried Rice, then you should go here and dig in! For Christmas, I heard they will be serving Halibut and Turkey courses.

Chateau Blanc
Jl. Senopati No. 38
Kebayoran Baru, Jakarta Selatan
021 - 521 3626
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Chateau Blanc is a new French restaurant joint in Senopati and promise me, this one is going to be the talk of the town like real soon! The peeps from Harvest cakes are behind this restaurant, starting from the awesome interior (one of the prettiest in Jakarta), the music and the food, everything was just awesome and top notch! You might wanna dress yourself up and be amazed by the awesome luxury they're offering here. Reservation is important! During weekends, the restaurants are packed.

Emilie French Restaurant
Jl. Senopati No. 39
Kebayoran Baru, Jakarta Selatan
021 - 521 3626

Not one or two, but a lot of people declaring Emilie as the best French restaurant in town and for this year's Christmas, they will be serving their signature "Christmas Degustation" set menu for IDR 900k++. This menu set will be available starting today!

JJ Royal Brasserie
Lotte Shopping Avenue (LOVE) LG Fl.
Jl. Prof. Dr. Satrio Kav. 11
Jakarta, Indonesia 12940 
021 - 2988 8980

JJ Royal Brasserie is one of the hippest places to hang out at the moment, I personally always sit myself at the area near the window glass because I just love the direct view to the road (even though what you mostly see during lunch is an awful traffic jam scene), during the day, it's a nice place for lunch and during the night, the ambiance is pretty decent for dinner, however, more like gathering, if you are expecting a romantic one, then this might not be for you, better go here for lunch since it's more quiet. However, the main star must be the food. I think JJ Royal Brasserie is serving awesome food. Surely not to miss!

Kahyangan Teppanyaki Restaurant
Wisma Nusantara 28th fl.
Jl. M.H. Thamrin No. 59
Jakarta Pusat
021 - 3190 7012

Located at the 28th floor of Wisma Nusantara, eating here feels like having Teppanyaki in the sky! There are four private rooms for Teppanyaki dining with your loved ones and a private chef will cook everything for your eyes only. If you are couple and you want a private dining indulgence, then you could go with their Premium Set for IDR 2.5million/set for two people. For a pretty generous portion of "Foie Gras" dish and M9 grade Wagyu Beef, I am on board!

Le Quartier
Le Quartier French Restaurant
Jl. Gunawarman No. 34
Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta
021 - 7278 8001

Le Quartier means "The Neighborhood" in english but this one is not your average neighbor, located in Gunawarman, this French casual fine dining restaurant has a lovely vibe for a romantic dinner! I had an awesome experience dining in here: the service was terrific and the food was amazing, proudly declaring it one of the best meals of 2013! I knowyou guys are waiting for the list, right? *wink*.

Lyon
Mandarin Oriental Hotel Jakarta, 2nd fl.
Jl. Kebon Kacang Raya
Jakarta Pusat 10310
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Lyon is undoubtedly one of the most famous French restaurants in town and for Christmas, the Executive Chef Thierry Le Queau will be serving fantastic spread of French buffet festive dishes for IDR 988k++/person or additional IDR 528k++/person for free flow of wine and beer.

Mama Malaka
Grand Indonesia, Level 3A
Jl. M.H. Thamrin Kav. 28-30 No. 1

I don't think I would finish this list without putting Mama Malaka in the list. My visit back in April actually opened my eyes that there is finally a satisfying joint that serves Malaka cuisine. I have visited this restaurant twice and tried out probably half of their menu for a big family gathering and none disappointed me! Even my mom who is a lot more critical than me when it comes to food actually loved this! Make sure to order their Mamak Mee Goreng, and Pandan Fried Chicken!

Otel Lobby
The Annex Building, Bakrie Tower, South Gate Entrance
Jl. Epicentrum Tengah
Kuningan, Jakarta Selatan 12940
021 - 2994 1324

Otel Lobby is a restaurant owned by Chef Maya Aldy and Gaby Bakrie, and when you know that Chef Maya is behind all of this, you know you're in good hands. I have been here three times and not yet regretting my visit (hopefully never). My favorite menu from Otel Lobby must be the Slow Cooked Salmon and Salmon Pizza, not to mention their Pastas are also decent.

Potato Head Garage
Jl.Jendral Sudirman Kav. 52-53
Jakarta Selatan 12190
021 - 5797 3330

photo credit: yenny widjaja

Dining here doesn't stop at you "paying" for the decent food, but to the awesome ambiance as well! Potato Head Garage is one of the most beautiful restaurant's interior. I could imagine a relaxing warm dinner here :). What's recommended here is probably their signature burger and steaks, they're pretty decent ;).

Rosso Italian Restaurant at Shangri-La Hotel Jakarta
Shangri-La Hotel Jakarta, lvl. 1
Jl. Jendral Sudirman Kav. 1
021 - 2939 9580

This list won't be completed without the arrival of a strong contender in Italian cuisine: Rosso! The very recommended menu here must be the tenderloin steaks made by the executive chef, Oriana Tirabassi, she owns magic hands and I am happily declaring her creations as one of the best steaks I've ever had in my life. The interior of the Rosso is also great for either couples romantic dinner or humble family dinner.

Prepare around IDR 1million for two. The food might not be cheap but they're really good, plus they have terrific service!

Satoo/Satoo Garden at Shangri-La Hotel Jakarta
Shangri-La Hotel Jakarta, lvl. 1
Jl. Jendral Sudirman Kav. 1
021 - 2939 9580
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Another joint in Shangri-La Hotel Jakarta that made into the eatandtreats list is Satoo/Satoo Garden. For those who are not aware of Satoo Garden, it's actually the same as its sibling "Satoo", only Satoo Garden is its extension which offers you a more earthy (read: outdoor) dining experience. Satoo recently got voted as one of the best restaurants in Jakarta for 2013, well, no wonder, they have seriously great range of buffet food with decent quality :).

They have an ongoing promotion for Friday called "Friday Seafood Night Buffet" for IDR 398k nett/person! and for Christmas and New Year's celebration, there is a special buffet for IDR 700k nett/person.

Taste Paradise
Plaza Indonesia, 4th fl.
Jl. M.H. Thamrin Kav. 28-30
Jakarta pusat 10350

Taste Paradise is undoubtedly one of the best Chinese restaurants in town as well as the prettiest. One step in and you know you're in a restaurant that serves great vibe, rings expensive (kinda know it upfront from the first step as well) and serious! The food was really good, I love their beef creations and their Swallow nest cuisine. They also have the VIP room which looks like a dream (so so luxuriously awesome!), but definitely you need a little fortune to be spent, around IDR 500k++/person, I remember the capacity is around 18-20 so I guess it's around 11 million to spend if you want to experience dining in the exclusive VIP room.

The Cafe at Hotel Mulia Jakarta
Jl. Asia Afrika Senayan
Jakarta Selatan 10270
021 - 575 3270

The Cafe at Hotel Mulia Jakarta is one of the best buffet restaurants in town! Picture above is the VIP room for more private gathering but there's a certain minimum payment to have to settle. The Cafe is known for its stations where they divided everything according to 5 elements of the earth and each elements represents the stations. The Japanese station was probably my favorite one, the seafood was incredibly fresh. Dinner here will cost you around IDR 378k/nett.

Wilshire at The Foundry 8
The Foundry 8 at SCBD Lot 9
Jl. Jendral Sudirman Kav. 52-53
Jakarta Selatan
021 - 5140 1018
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For me personally, Wilshire is so far in my top 5 best restaurants of 2013, again, the prices of the food in this restaurant might not be cheap, more like expensive actually, but they're serving you food with great quality. Make sure to order their "Foie Gras Sushi" and the "55 Degree Slow Cooked Premium Wagyu Beef".

I also love the ambiance of the restaurant, might not be extremely spacious in terms of area but the vibe of the venue was just friendly and heartwarming, great for gathering.

Fiuhh! I spent around 4 hours reading my old posts and creating this post. It's a pretty long list, but these are the best and the potential ones for me. I actually imagined myself with my family or friends sitting down in these restaurants above before I decided to put them in. Okay, I know that the prices might be overwhelming for some of you but it's Christmas and (almost) all restaurants are making promotions and jacked up the prices (that's natural), but again... it's CHRISTMAS, something that comes once a year and therefore you're not only paying the food, but for the moment and eventually might be worth it.

Or imagine, this Christmas, you're sitting down with your girlfriend/boyfriend in a fancy restaurant, holding hands,probably you're end up getting proposed and married soon! These are the kind of moments that's unforgettable, right. Sometimes there's a good fortune to spend on a special moment, but I wish all the best for you guys in this Christmas, hopefully you're not blasted with some emo Christmas crap like broken-hearts. Tsah!

Anyway, looking back to my old posts made me realize how crappy I was when it comes to editing my photos few months ago and the gut to actually upload them. I had watermarks that were as big as my thumbs! (literally measured them), totally WTF-was-I-thinking moment. But surely I've grown and I think I shot *ahem* awesome pictures now and more appropriate looking watermarks!

Do whatever makes you happy, I couldn't wait to hear your stories, if you also have inspiring DIY (Do It Yourself) Christmas moments, please share your moments with me, I'm going to give a special gift for my most inspiring and favorite story.

Have a great day and cheers, gotta rest these fingers ;).

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[RECIPE] Double Chocolate Candy Cane Cookies

Was in the mood to cook something yesterday and eventually baking some delicious chocolate cookies! Trust me, I am not an expert in cooking but I just love the idea of it and beside, what I made was super easy and very little possibility that you're gonna fail, you just need to follow the measurements and instructions correctly, but I honestly was not 100% following all the rules of cooking, I added or subtract some of this and that using my sense.

The cookies turned out to be delicious, yummy, and moist. I just don't like my cookies to be extremely dry, I like them moist and chewy like the ones from Famous Amos. Since I am an avid lovers of Chocolate, I guess I should be making something chocolate crazy! I used candy canes to live up the Christmas ambiance, Christmas is truly an inspiration.

You could find the recipe anywhere at the holy internet and this recipe was the mixture of watching some YouTube videos and reading some blog entries, one of them was this inspirational cooking blog, Sweetapolita. Trust me, you're gonna love this blog and maybe gain 10 pounds just by looking at the mouthwatering pictures!

I was disappointed because it's so freaking hard to find candy canes in Jakarta. I went to three supermarkets and they're running out of candy canes, so I eventually went to a candy shop and buy candies that look like Candy Canes, but the flavor and the look just were not quite there yet. I was hoping the flavor of the candies to be a little sour as well as the glass-like texture :(. Better luck next time.

Preheat the oven to 180 degree celcius before baking. Don't forget to give a little space, around 2 inches in between the cookie dough. Each of the cookie was around one table spoon measurement. Bake around 8-10 minutes for a fluffier consistency, more if you like your cookies to be dry and crunchy.

Fluffy chunky cooked cookies!

As for the chocolate garnish, I was using Nutella or you can just make your own chocolate jam by simply melting the chocolate compound! 100 grams of milk chocolate is going to be enough and approximately 2 minutes in 200 degree celcius to melt the chocolate. Let me spoil you a little secret/habit of mine. When I melt the chocolate, I always give one teaspoon (sometimes one table spoon, depending on the amount of melted chocolate) of olive oil and one tea spoon of butter.

I hope this DIY chocolate cookies trial inspire you! So easy to make, you should make your own and be creative with it, the world of food is such a playground.

So, have you baked something for Christmas? I am thinking about creating some more easy cakes for Christmas hmm... let's see!

Shoo for now, enjoying my cookies! Christmas is clearly near!

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JJ Royal Bistro Senayan City

A little teaser given by a friend who is also the head barista in the JJ Royal group: Ian Consulta, led to an inner private excitement and just today I finally got to visit JJ Royal Bistro which happens to be another venture from the coffee giant: JJ Royal, along with Gulaku (for the record they're in the same group). A little story to tell, it was such a tiring day today, I went to a famous chocolate factory out of town (not going to spoil everything until I release the post), what I thought would be a relaxing day somehow wasn't as pretty as what expected! The traffic jam was super irritating!!!

But since I am such a devoted blogger (no, actually just having the diligence at the moment), I couldn't wait to share this and actually writing this post at 2 AM! Blame my insomnia too, I should really take care of my sleeping hours :(

There's not that much significant difference with its brother JJ Royal Brasserie, only that it's located in a slightly bigger venue, inside a mall and more urban like, but if you ask me which one's better to hang out, from the moment I walked in, I knew JJ Royal Brasserie is more my kind of place, I love restaurants with great outdoor view and the feel of natural daylight :). The exact difference between the Bistro and the Brasserie is probably the mini bar in the middle and more main courses selection in JJ Royal Bistro (especially Indonesian), but don't worry, for a sweet tooth like me, the desserts are still available, there are even new creations coming!

Mango Iced Fruit Soda

IDR 35k

Refreshing sparkling beverage with great balance in sourness as well as sweetness from the half-ripe mango, don't expect this beverage to be like a sparkling water with additional mango syrup, this ain't that. This is fresher, more natural and in a way, unique. This one is recommended.

Left: Iced Lychee Tea - IDR 35k
Right: Iced Mango Tea - IDR 35k

Garang Asem
IDR 65k
I went here with two of my lovely fellow bloggers and we're craving for hot soups, but with touch of Indonesian culinary for our tummy! Yum! So we went with some of their recommended menus. This one is their Garang Asem. One thing I DO LOVE about JJ Royal restaurants is that they really do know how to cook appropriate meals, not to mention the Indonesian food. I was really fond of this one! The soup has awesome balance of the meaty flavor, sourness, a little hint of sweetness and all blended together creating this vibrant friendly flavor to the tongue. There was a little problem with the meat, it was a little hard but when we pointed this out to the manager, they're willing to change the meat and actually cut them for us. Gotta give it to the service!

Soto Pak Kumis
IDR 65k
Another decent loveable dish! One sip of the soup and I knew I couldn't stop and probably won't share any (just kidding). This is not your average soto mie, executed with fresh ingredients resulting a fresh flavor as well. This one deserves my thumbs up! Recommended!

If you like it hot, add chili to live up the flavor!

Pumpkin Ravioli
IDR 60k
The ravioli was cooked al-dente enough, the sauce was interesting: tomato puree sauce with strawberry, love the play of texture from the pine nuts. The idea of having this was to eat the whole elements together.

Winner Winner Chicken Pizza
IDR 80k
Was super fond of the perfect crispiness and the generous filling, but other than that, this pizza was not out-of-the-world good.

Some cakes rolling out of the display cabinet!

In a nutshell, I feel like I probably am falling in love with JJ Royal restaurants, it's just that the food they're having is really-really good. I have been to their restaurant several times and probably have tried 1/4 of the whole menu so far and they were all great! Points to add, the impeccable service! Frankly speaking, the price of their food is not exactly cheap, but it's still affordable and most importantly: worth it. If you haven't visit their outlets, then you should really go. You'll probably hooked on the first visit.

Cheers and happy weekend!

JJ Royal Bistro
Senayan City LG fl. Unit L-06 B1
Jalan Asia Afrika Lot 19
Jakarta Selatan 10270
021 - 2932 9262

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