Imanuel Arnold @imanuelarnold

Gue awalnya tau tempat ini dari seorang coffee addict (@tantengopi) di sosmed. Kebetulan gue udah lama gak lewat daerah cikini, jadi tertariklah gue untuk coba tempat yang katanya menghadap langsung Stasiun Cikini ini. Singkat cerita, suatu sore di hari Minggu terbersitlah ide dari seorang teman untuk ngopi disini dan gue iyakan. Ternyata memang tempat ini menghadap persis Stasiun Cikini, tepatnya di deretan toko emas yang biasa disebut menteng prada, kalo dari arah bubur cikini tinggal maju sekitar 200 meter. Gramasi Coffee ini terbilang mungil dengan fasade yang terlihat modern dan hangat walaupun menempati bangunan yang bisa dibilang vintage. Aksen lampu dengan warna yang warm dari tulisan GRAMASI COFFEE pada fasad depan juga memberikan unsur chic dan edgy. Memasuki kafe ini, nuansa minimalis industrial terasa dari ubin semen dan dekor dengan unsur kayu dan besi. Ruangan terbagi dua, jadi begitu masuk kita disambut dengan ruang non smoking sekaligus kasir dan area bikin kopi, tipikal lah. Ada sekitar 3 meja dan ada juga1 meja panjang yang nempel di tembok ala bar gitu yang menghadap jendela keluar. Di sebelah kiri dari pintu masuk ada ruangan yang sepertinya smoking area, karena terdapat jendela-jendela kecil buat sirkulasi udara ke dan dari luar. Ukuran smoking area juga ga terlalu besar, mungkin hanya terdapat 4 atau 5 meja. Gue pesan Hot Black Coffee seperti biasa, karena hot black coffee adalah kunci dan juga pondasi buat gue untuk menilai suatu tempat. Overall gue suka dengan tastenya yang earthy dan bold pada bodynya. Secangkir kopi hitam harganya 27 ribu rupiah termasuk pajak - dan juga service kali ya- yang sebenernya masih terjangkau, tapi gak murah juga. In short, this place got some nice ambiance and coffee, so I definitely look forward to spend some afternoon for a quick coffee talks with some pals.

And oh, I usually give you an update (or two, or more) on where I'm dining at, so feel free to follow me on Instagram: @imanuelarnold and hit me up if you got queries regarding one of the places I've had visited

I came here thanks to their social media ads, their offer on AYCE dimsum was so intriguing. "Why not?“ so I said. First of all, theis social media game was on point: cheeky yet cheap humor, fast response in direct messaging, and follow up call the day before my reservation day. The spot is located on the back area of The East building. My first impression was this place utilizes such a compact and simple area with almost no partition, so basically it's like a small hall with chinoiserie decor. The there was a (supposedly) ground-level mini stage with PENTAN neon art on one side, and small bar area on the other side. And I need to mention that the olace has two entryway: one from the outdoor area, and the main entrance is from the office building area. Besides their AYCE dim sum promo, their cocktail and beer selection was interesting. I underestimated their Truffle Bao which in the end turned out to be one of my favorite. My note would be that their dumpling variants felt a little 'dough-ey' like there's a trace of slightly undercooked flour in their dumpling skin like ha kao, siu mai, and xiao long bao. Please keep in mind that I was one of their first customers on that Saturday. Made a 11 AM reservation for that day. On a different batch of order, their xiao long bao's skin was perceived to be slightly overcooked that made the skin fragile when I was taking the dumpling out of the paper lining from the steamer basket. So I hope they can work on their quality control and consistency. Taste wise, the dishes were all good! Although some menu are not available for the AYCE promo, there were still many that you can pick. My recommendation would be their seaweed hakau since it was nicely cooked, not undercooled nor overcooked, and also the texture of the skin was softer as well with that jelly-like texture for the skin. Another highlight would be their truffle bao with (supposedly) sprinkled truffle powder on top to let you know which one is which. The filling was rather savory with of course truffle notes followed by a hint of garlic as well as diced mushroom inside. Don't get me wrong, it's not that thei siu mai or ha kao was a failure, it's more because they've got some point to be improved, but I can assure you that their siu mai and ha kao, and practically any other dumpling were tasty. And oh, you can find chili oil on tour table just like any other chinese dim sum restaurant would provide as a condiment. Let me tell you something: that made everything better. Not only it being mildly hot and savory, but you can also notice something like dried shrimp, or better known as Ebi that gave the chili oil a twist. As for the service, the staffs were all great and responsive. They've managed to accommodate our expectations of what a dim sum restaurant should be, in a more contemporary approach. So kudos for the great work!

I usually give you an update (or two, or more) on where I'm dining at, so feel free to follow me on Instagram: @imanuelarnold and hit me up if you got queries regarding one of the places I've had visited.

Despite the name getting around so often, I get to try this place on a Saturday night with a group of friends. Situated in Blok M 'Little Tokyo' area, alongbthe same street where Golden Boutique Hotel Melawai is, you need to pay attention to the signage. If you see wooden stairs heading upstairs, you're on the right way. It was packed with youngsters crowd that night with a 45 wait list to finally get to my name.
Interior was nice with mostly wooden elements and warm lighting and japanese lanterns on one side. I wonder how do those young crowd get to know this place, and more importantly, what makes this place so special.

The menu was extensive, and it didn't have descriptions on each dishes, so I need to google on the dishes that looked appetizing to me. I ordered Maguro Katsu wich practically Tuna Katsu and Syake Chahan that is Salmon Fried Rice. Tuna Katsu aka Maguro Katsu was nice, and I was glad that it wasn't being fishy nor smelly whatsoever. Katsu came in a nice portion, not a satisfying portion, but enough. And it came with a sauce that I guess some kind of Teriyaki sauce, and the sauce escalated the taste of the fish katsu quite dramatically. As for the Salmon Fried Rice, it came in a personal portion, approximately one small bowl which is enough for me. Otherwise I can always explore anothe dish to fill me up. Back to the Salmon Fried Rice, is was a great taste came from such a simple package. Fried rice lightly seasoned with also some egg and shredded salmon. A friend of mine ordered Chicken Nanban that looked good I probably order it on my next visit. And oh, I tried a gyoza that my friend ordered. The taste was great, with supposedly minced chicken, shrimp, and green onions although the dish came in small portion and the pocket being only being decently filled.

To wrap up, this place is not a fancy Japanese restaurant you might expect, but rather a humble Japanese diner that again, not giving you exclusive and top notch experience. It tries to replicate that humble japanese casual dining vibe

I usually give you an update (or two, or more) on where I'm dining at, so feel free to follow me on Instagram: @imanuelarnold and hit me up if you got queries regarding one of the places I've had visited.

This japanese fusion restaurant basically offers numerous hamburg patty-based dishes. Nestled in posh shopping mall, Plaza Indonesia level 5, you can only spot their entryway from outside. Through the aisle, then you can find spacious dining area with mostly huge glass window that enables you to see the cityscape outside seamlessly. The interior was rather classic with contemporary twist, a mix of glass, wood, and black matte steel made this overal posh ambiance. Service could be better i guess, since this kind of place has specific target market, i was expecting more helpful staff, and a tad bit friendlier. Not that I mean the staff was rude, no. But for a restaurant at this level, I was expecting a more customer oriented service and overall dining experience. Food was at its absolute best, I had Hamburg and Hamburg Katsu set along with their original sauce. Hamburg was thick, and the katsu was nice, crispy outside, moist and delightful inside. Plus, the sauce complimented the overall dish with its salty umami flavour, like a good concoction of mirin and worchester sauce with a hint of teriyaki notes i guess. All mixed tigether pretty well with the pasta and mashed potato of my choice, as well as corn and long beans as side dish. I would definitely come back here for more!

Rawon Bar ini hadir dengan konsep yang mengusung rawon modern dan juga lebih bersahabat dengan muda mudi masa kini. Seolah pesan yang mau disampaikan adalah kalau rawon gak hanya makanan indonesia tradisional yang umum dinikmati baby boomer, tapi juga bisa relevan dengan para millenials. Gue akhirnya nyoba rawon daging yang jadi andalam mereka, kalau pesan online semua bahannya dipisah, jadi semua bisa kita racik dengan rapi. Mulai dari sambal, toge (atau kecambah ya?), jeruk limau, bawang goreng, sampai rawon dan juga nasinya lengkap dengan sebutir telur asin dan kerupuk. Gue pribadi prefer nasinya langsung dituang rawon yang sebelumnya udah gue campur dengan toge, sambal, dan jeruk limau. Setelah itu baru deh taruh telur asin diatas. Harus diakui rawon adalah salah satu comfort food when it comes to indonesian cuisine dengan citarasanya yang medok. Di rawon bar ini, rasa rawonnya pasti sudah familiar dengan lidah kita, walau bukan tipe yang kental akan nuansa rempah dan herbs, rawon di rawon bar cenderung lebih mild yang bisa masuk ke selera banyak orang. Gue suka dengan rawon mereka, apalagi potongan dagingnya juga cukup generous mengingat nasinya juga lumayan bikin kenyang, sedangkan kuahnya suka gue seruput apalagi kalau badan lagi berasa kurang fit dan butih asupan sup hangat yang berempah.

Selain itu juga ada nasi goreng rawon, nah yang ini unik nih. Basically nasi goreng yang menggunakan bumbu rawon dalam formulanya. Hasilnya adalah nasi goreng kehitaman, tapi tidak sepekat nasi goreng yang menggunakan tinta cumi untuk pewarnanya, lengkap dengan potongan daging dan telur dadar yang diiris sebagai toppingnya. Rasanya bisa ditebak, nasi goreng dengan aroma khas rawon, namun kali ini diperkaya dengan aroma smoky dengan tekstur yang kering seperti nasi yang digoreng dengan wok. Gue pribadi suka dengan nasi gorengnya, lebih ringkas dan praktis karena lebih gampang untuk dikonsumsi. Lebih cocok buat dibawa atau konsumsi orang-orang yang mobile dan go-getter. Rasa nasi gorengnya juga gak umum gue temukan dalam bentukan nasi goreng, dan eksekusinya cukup berhasil bikin gue terkesan.

Well it's not really a secret that Gelato Secrets is pretty much one of the best Gelato chain in town. It's not that their gelato is so special and superior among others or anything, but it's rather because they simply deliver a nice-looking and tasting gelato backed up with their cozy outlets. There's another plus, algthought a bit gimmicky they seem to take sustainability to mind with their campaign and partnership giving you this eco-conscious image. My favorite would be their bamboo charcoal with its slightly grainy texture. Another favorites are vanilla, green tea, and salted caramel. Oh and they have sorbet too! I always opt for their fruity sorbet for the hot days.