Holycow Steakhouse: Camp Bonjer and Camp Senopati

Meat, meat, and meat. Once again, this shallow tummy went in search for the best affordable meat in town. And there it was! With a slogan "This is where wag(Yu) belong", Holycow offers a comfortable eating space where the customers would feel like they're home already. Like they belong here. The price range itself is completely affordable compared to other brand in its genre.

Though to be honest, I was kinda disappointed with their camp in Kebon Jeruk. The camp Kebon Jeruk is much wider, with more humanely tables compared to the ones they have in Senopati. With a lot more comfortable parking lots as well. The food on the other hand, was a little bit of a let-down. My friend ordered her meat well done, and it arrived, well, well done on the edges, but super raw on the core of the meat. My order was fine, but the meat was a little bit too hard to chew. I like the food in camp Senopati better.

Anyhows, what I like about Holycow is that it offers various choice of sauce, and you can have them as much as you want. They have mushroom, barbeque, black pepper, Buddy's special, and the recently created sauce, W sauce. I found the latter one interesting. For some people it might not suit their taste (as to what my sister said, it was too salty), but for me it works just fine. It's green and you can taste some herbal spices in it. I'm not really sure what they were, but this smart-ass tongue thinks it tasted mint and thyme in it. Ha. But hands down, it still cannot beat two of my favourite sauces, mushroom and Buddy's special. We're talkin' about garlics and creamy mushroom here, baby. The other thing that I like about it is that it offers free refills for tea. That includes lemon tea, green tea, and blackcurrant tea. Generosity never kills, baby (Okay, pardon me, just how much exactly am I going to say 'baby' again? It's just all this talk about meat and steak makes me feel like a hot baby!).

In general, Holycow offers you a whole new level of steak experience. Meat lovers, you are welcomed to drool yourselves all the way down here.

 Prime Rib Eye (with Buddy's Special sauce)

Camp Bonjer

IDR 82500

Prime Tenderloin (with Mushroom and BBQ sauce)

Camp Bonjer

IDR 87000

Wagyu Rib Eye (with W and Mushroom sauce)

Camp Senopati

IDR 127500

Sirloin Young Beef (with Buddy's Special and Mushroom sauce)

Camp Senopati

IDR 87000

Personally, I prefer beef than wagyu. It's hard to explain but you'll understand when you eat it. They're not really different, and even at some point, you'll find the wagyu meat harder to chew. My personal recommendation for you would be Sirloin Young Beef and Wagyu Rib Eye. Also make sure to try ALL the sauces. Why? Because they're free! Why else would it be? :D

Sincerely yours, shallow tummy. Godspeed!

Rumah Makan Baji Pamai and Rumah Makan Marannu: Authentic Ujung Pandang Food

Last week, I was wandering around Boulevard Street Kelapa Gading and texted my friend: "Do you have any recommendations of food worth-trying here?" And she replied: "Just try out anything randomly. Everything on that street is guaranteed delicious." It's true indeed. This area is considered to be one of so many Jakarta's food paradiso. Seafood, Japanese, authentic Indonesian, Chinese, Malaysian, all genres of food, you name it. They're here.

Being an insecure tummy that I am, I decided not to try out on anything new and went to two of my subscribed restaurants: Rumah Makan Baji Pamai and Rumah Makan Marannu. Both  serve authentic Ujung Pandang food. I've been a loyal customer in both restaurants since I was in kindergarten. Lately, I haven't visited in a while.

First, I went to Rumah Makan Baji Pamai. Located on Boulevard Street, next to Nasi Kenanga. Its specialty is Bakmi Ujung Pandang. I saw the place had been upgraded here and there. The design is way cleaner and more modern, and how I love the bathroom. The closet's been upgraded with seating and eco-washer, like those you would encounter in big malls. It's kinda out of topic, but I really appreciate restaurants that provide comfortable bathrooms for the customers. Hygiene first!

Bakmi Spesial Kecil

IDR 26000

Bakmi Biasa Kecil

IDR 24000

The  noodles was like nothing you ever tasted. I couldn't recall any kind of Chinese noodle that has an alike texture. This noodle was big and thick like spaghetties, but chewy and curly like Chinese noodles. It's unique in all of its entity. I ordered Bakmi Spesial and Bakmi Biasa. They were just the same, only that the Spesial had more pork toppings and the chicken toppings was the breast part, while the Biasa was the thigh part.

One portion is served with three dumplings and you can ask whether you want 'em all to be fried or boiled. Or you can have both, boiled and fried. For me personally, the small portion was already fulfilling enough. Probably it was the noodles, because they're so thick and chewy.

Next, I went to Rumah Makan Marannu, still on the same street, but it's on the other side of the street, across Indomart.

Es Pisang Ijo

Coto Makassar

Konro Bakar

I forgot all of the prices and didn't keep the receipt either, but they were probably ranged from IDR 20000-50000.

The Es Pisang Ijo wasn't really like the modern version that you would find in booths or food stalls, it is more of the traditional kind, only consists of banana, shaved ice, vla, and syrup. No other overrated toppings such as cheese, or chocolate, etc. The smooth texture of the green coat; the sweetness of the vla, banana and syrup all combined in one bowl is a heaven-like combo.

The meat in the Coto and the Konro Bakar was cooked just right. They might look too small at first, but after finishing it, trust me for regular tummies, you would be full. In the right amount. The Konro Bakar was served with peanut sauce (almost satay-sauce like) and a bowl of coto soup, which I found pretty useful to neutralize all the greasiness from the meat and the savory from the sauce.

When planning to visit Marannu, I suggest that you don't wash your hair first, and try not to wear your best outfit, because it would be such a waste. The whole place will be covered with smokes from the roaster and the griller, and they will patched onto your body instantly.

Overall, if you want a good ol' dose of Ujung Pandang food in Jakarta, make sure to visit these places. In my opinion, Marannu still serves the best Konro Bakar in town. Nothing can beat it, so far. So if you have anything in mind, that could probably beat Marannu to second place, just lemme know!

Have a great day, and enjoy your meal wherever you are now! Godspeed :)

Bale Raos: Eat Like A King (Literally)

As an Indonesian, of course you know that Yogyakarta has its own kingdom, and it's called Keraton. The current ruling King is Sultan Hamengku Buwono X and his Queen is GKR Hemas. That, we all know.
But little did I know, after 22 years of becoming an Indonesian citizen, and an admirer of the simplicity and elegance of Yogyakarta, there is this awesome restaurant just right in the yard of the Keraton. Bale Raos, a royal cuisine restaurant. Here you can enjoy the King's and Queen's favorite dishes. In short, eat like a king slash queen. Now tell me, with a tagline like this, who cannot be tempted to dine here?

The restaurant is located in Kagungan Dalem Kemagangan area, claimed to be the closest access to Kedaton area, the main Keraton area. The place was simple and neat, and it was outdoor so you'll probably feel like you're eating on a house terrace. A really neat and cool house terrace. And do you know that feeling when you look at a dish menu, and you just know that you would love the dishes? That was the kind of feeling I got when I look at the menu. The dish title was completed with description written underneath, and price. Menus with descriptions and prices. Now that, is a menu.

I visited this place twice during my stay in Yogya, but I only got the chance to cover the second visit, so maybe I won't be able put up photos for some dishes I'd write here.

My family wasn't really the appetizer kind of people, so we skipped the appetizers and go past the main course and dessert.

Paru Ragi

IDR 20000

Lombok Kethok

IDR 22500 

Garang Asem

IDR 22000 

There was another meal that I tried out on the first visit, but I don't have the picture here. It's Urip-urip Gulung, rolled catfish fillet, served with Mangut sauce. I really love it! First, because it was catfish. Second, because it tastes like Unagi. Talkin' about food twist!

And then there came the desserts..

 Manuk Nom

IDR 7000

Tapak Kucing

IDR 7500

 Rondo Kepomo

IDR 7500

Puding Gulo Gosong

IDR 7500

My sister had three plates of Tapak Kucing all for herself. That's how good it was. And do you notice how affordable all the dishes were? Our second visit's bill was not more expensive than IDR 150.000ish. Three main courses, seven plates of desserts, and a few glasses of cold drinks. Mineral water is on the house. For dessert, I recommend you to try Manuk Nom and Rondo Kepomo. The first is a pudding made out of fermented rice and eggs. The texture was smooth and you can't smell the fishy egg smell at all. The latter is something similar of caramel pudding, but it's not caramel. I forgot what  it was made from, but I'm pretty sure it involved cinnamon and Javanese brown sugar. The taste was sweet with a just amount of bitterness from the burnt sugar, enough not to make you feel sugar-sick.

As a non-drinker, I was interested to try the Beer Djawa, because it doesn't contain alcohol. It's made of spices and natural ingredients, it makes the drinker feel warmer, but not too drunk. It was surprisingly nice! I personally recommend to add some sugar, otherwise it'll feel too bland. But maybe that's just because I like sweet. If you don't like sweet, then not adding sugar is okay. 

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Beer Djawa

IDR 14000

The one word I can use to describe this place and the dishes was: neat. The food was simply made with heart, with simplicity yet definition. It is a your-momma's-cooking kinda dish. The prices are highly reasonable and affordable for a "King's Food", you wouldn't feel being ripped off at all. I would simply come back around for more. Till' we meet again, Yogya!

FARC Goes To Bogor!

Hari Minggu lalu, seujug-ujug saya dan teman-teman memutuskan untuk pergi ke kota hujan untuk jalan-jalan kuliner alias jalan-jalan rakus alias jalan-jalan yang bener-bener cuma buat makan-makan doang. Setelah para lelaki bersiap memakai celana ala Tupac Shakur dan para wanita memakai celana ibu hamil, akhirnya kami pun berangkat ke Bogor! Yay!

Saya sebenarnya ga tahu sama sekali tentang perkulineran Bogor, selain Pia Apple Pie yang tempatnya semakin gorjes saja dan Kebun Raya Bogor (maaf, kenapa ini masuk divisi perkulineran ya? Apakah saya makan rumput?). Mumpung ada teman yang mengerti tentang dunia Bogor, saya langsung mengiyakan ajakan jalan-jalan kali ini.

Tujuan pertama kami hari itu adalah Jalan Surya Kencana. Setelah galau banget sekitar dua detik, kami memutuskan untuk makan di tempat di bawah ini.

Kadang-kadang menggelar menu di depan toko secara grandeur seperti ini lebih efektif untuk mengundang orang untuk masuk daripada memajang foto. Penggiat bakso dan mie ayam pasti akan sangat tergugah untuk menjelajah ke dalam. 

Bakso Malang + Bakso Kotak

IDR 10000

Untuk yang mampir ke sini wajib banget mencoba bakso demitnya yang entah kenapa kok tidak berhasil saya temukan di menu yah? Bakso demit ini bakso urat biasa, hanya saja di dalamnya dimasukkan cabai dan sambel bakso. Lain dengan bakso kotak dan bakso rudal yang dagingnya sudah tergiling dengan lembut, serat daging di bakso demit masih agak kasar. Menjadi suatu sensasi tersendiri mengunyah serat daging dan cabai dalam satu suapan yang montok. Sesuatu lah pokoknya. Uuuugh jadi pengen nyanyi 'abang tukang bakso mari mari sini saya mau beli!' sambil senam sehat ala Vicky Burki deh!

Secara umum, ya rasa bebaksoan di tempat ini enak dan patut dicoba sih, namun yang kurang suka asin bisa tambahin kecap manis lebih banyak karena kuahnya asin di atas rata-rata. Entah hari itu saja atau hari-hari lainnya juga. Bahkan bagi saya yang pencinta asin, menurut saya itu sangat asin. Dari segi porsi dan rasa, 10000/porsi amat sangatlah worth it.

Beranjak tidak jauh dari DQ Putra Arema, ada juga restoran soto mie yang kata teman saya sih enak banget. Setelah diiming-imingi bahwa di situ juga tersedia 'ketidakhalalan' maka saya semangat dan riang gembira pergi ke situ.

 Nasi Campur

IDR 25000

 Mie Babi Panggang <3

IDR lupa

Sebagai seorang keturunan Cina dan pencinta makanan Cina (dan segala macam makanan sih sebenarnya), saya selalu merasa gembira setiap kali bertemu makanan-makanan semacam yang ada di atas ini.

Kunci dalam setiap nasi campur Cina-Peranakan (menurut saya) ya adalah nasinya. Nasinya harus pulen, berani, nantangin, dan lebih yo'i lagi kalau ditim. Kalau boleh jujur nasi campur si restoran Agak Pedih alias Agih ini agak mengecewakan buat saya yang berharap bahwa nasinya akan berupa nasi hainan atau nasi tim. Pasti lebih tsedap, kapten! Namun berbagai macam lauk yang tertata dengan imut dan manja di atas nasinya tidak mengecewakan. Untungnya. Semua dagingnya termasak dengan empuk. Nilai plus plus plus bagi saya yang memiliki gigi kecil nan rapat layaknya orang yang lagi pedekate, yang selalu mengundang daging untuk nyangkut dengan betah di sela-selanya.

Mie babi panggangnya juga gak kalah enaknya. But then again, saya jarang menemukan orang Cina atau restoran Cina yang menjual mie yang tidak enak rasanya. Jarang sekali.

Setelah puas membabi-buta, kami mencari sesuatu yang bisa memuaskan hasrat sweet tooth kami. Teman kekeuh ingin mampir ke Surabi Duren di Jalan Sukasari. Sebagai bukan pencinta duren, namun pencinta lelaki, saya pun ngikut-ngikut saja. Tempatnya seperti layaknya warung-warung tenda kaki lima biasa, terletak di jalan Sukasari, hampir mendekati tikungan.

 Kurang lebih gini tampilannya dilihat dari sisi dalam. Mobil Mirage putih itu namanya Alberta. *ga ngonteks banget sih tapi dapet titipan suruh nyantumin nama si Mirage cantik itu di blog ini,so here it goes :')*

 Selain surabi duren ternyata ada juga rasa-rasa lainnya. Namun karena tempatnya kurang yo'i untuk hangout ataupun menunggu terlalu lama, kami hanya memesan surabi duren saja.

Surabi Durian Polos

IDR 6500

Ada beberapa pertanyaan di benak saya, seperti: Mengapa di banner tulisannya 'duren' tapi di menu 'durian'?  Mengapa ada menu 'surabi durian oncom'? Mengapa saya hidup? Ah entahlah, lupakan. Yang pasti selain surabi duren biasa, ternyata masih banyak rasa-rasa lainnya yang disediakan, termasuk surabi nangka dan surabi mayonnaise. Ada juga roti bakar, indomie, colenak dan pisang bakar.

Surabinya agak terlalu tebal untuk ukuran surabi, lebih tepat disebut bakpao mini mungkin. Saya memberanikan diri mencoba makanan ini for the sake of reviewing, and it was not that bad. I can barely taste the durian. But it was actually the downfall for my durian-loving friends. Esens atau perasa duriannya terlalu mengganggu bagi mereka. They actually hoped the sauce would be made from real durian meat. Well, that's what you get from expecting too much from a durian. Moohahaha.

Tujuan berikutnya adalah Jalan Pangrango. Di mana di situ kami mengincar sebuah restoran yang terkenal akan pizza bakarnya, Kedai Kita. Karena perut yang masih lumayan penuh, kami mengaso sebentar di Pia Apple Pie yang terletak tepat berseberangan dengan Kedai Kita.

Saya pernah mampir ke situ sekitar dua tahun yang lalu, dan sekarang tempat itu sudah berubah menjadi tempat hangout yang asik dan nyaman sekali. 

 Mini Cheese Pie

IDR 5000

Mini Apple Crumble Cake

IDR 5000

 A super duper affordable range of menu, consisted of pies, pie crusts,

and apples-contained dishes!

Ever since I tried out Blacklisted's (a coffee shop in Puri Indah Mall, you should try out that one too) apple crumble pie, I got a little bit too obsessed with apple crumble pies. So of course I had to try the one they're selling here! And it was really goo-hood.. I even bought the regular portion to be served at home as a sweet complementary to my morning milk :)

The cheese pie was good, only to those who love rum, because it contains rum (it's not written on the menu but I can taste it on the first bite). I have really low-tolerance for rum. Not that I drink alcohol that much, but compared to other alcoholic drinks, I get warm up more quickly and easier on rum. Shame on me. So I didn't really enjoy the cheese pie, but I'm sure you would!

Setelah sebatang-dua batang, segelas-dua gelas, dan sepiring-dua piring, kami beranjak ke tujuan terakhir kami malam itu, Kedai Kita. The service was kinda suck, and it has never changed since the last time I went there, which was last year. Considering that it was weekend, they should've anticipate the crowd by, I don't know, maybe hire some more employees? Duh, entrepreneurs these days. Di tempat ini tidak ada seating system atau waiting list. Yang ada hanyalah rebut-rebutan dan cepet-cepetan dapet meja. Untungnya pesanan-pesanan kami tidak datang terlalu lama malam itu, itu semua karena kami secara konstan terus menerus memanggil dan mengingatkan pelayan manapun yang lewat akan pesanan kami.

BBQ Smoked Beef Pizza

IDR 47000

Margarita Pizza

IDR 47000

The pizza has a nice taste of woodfire (as promised) to it, and the crust was really crunchy. Smokey and neat, if I might say. Our favorite that night was the Margarita Pizza. It is basically a cheese pizza and has nothing to do with the cocktail Margarita. The taste was simple yet solid and dignified. Asek.

For me, a culinary trip is not a trip unless you go with the people you love and comfortable with. It would be  better to go with your best friends. You know their taste and what they usually eat and like, so it makes it more fun and easier for you to mix and match your orders.

A culinary trip is all about sharing and experience the foodgasm together in a blissful condition. Maybe it's like weed, with more fat. There FARC went to Bogor. Enjoy your meal wherever you are right now, and.. Godspeed! :)

Bonus pics:

 Akang Surabi KW Super

All the happy tummies :)