Dessert: 10 Best Places for Dessert in Jakarta

Is there any sugar addict here? Not a big fan of dessert? Maybe you will be after all these list of places with yummy desserts. It won't be on this list if it is not outstanding (to my picky standard). Dessert in the Hotel buffet is not on the list. But there are some hotel buffet that has outstanding desserts too. Honorary mentions: Hotel Mulia and Hotel Ritz Carlton Mega Kuningan.

These are the list;

1. Cacaote
Address:  

Jl. Senopati No. 80, Senopati, Jakarta

Recommended:

Dark Chocolate and Hazelnut Cake (45K Rupiah)

Dark Chocolate with enough sweet for those who has sugar rush needs. ;-p

Beautiful decoration on the cake, crunchy popcorn on the side. Yummmmm

Zomato Review 4.1/5

2. Djournal / Collette&Lola
Address: Grand Indonesia, West Mall, Level GF and Level 3A/4

This is one of my husband's favorite coffee place. He actually made friend with the expert Barista from Europe who worked there. Seems like they share huge love for coffee. Djournal also served desserts from Collette&Lola from level 4. I prefer to eat the dessert here as it won't be as crowded as the new Collette&Lola in level 4 Grand Indonesia.

Recommended:

Chocolate Pecan Pie

Sweet cake with crunchy nutty topping.
Zomato Review 4.0/5

3. Popolamama
Address: Grand Indonesia, Food District, Level 3A/4

This is actually a pasta related food restaurants. Their desserts are limited. But I have to put it on the list as their 'Hazelnut Dark Chocolate' taste really really really good.
Recommended: Who am I kidding!? It has to be the Hazelnut Dark Chocolate

Ahhhhhh yummmm... I want some of this again. The smooth chocolate glazed, crumbly chocolate cake inside, and nutty hazelnut creates a heavenly taste on my mouth.

Zomato Review 3.8/5

4. Ganesha Ek Sanskriti
Address: Center Park Building, BRI II, Lantai 9, Jl. Jenderal Sudirman

Not to many people know that Indian has a lot of variety of sweets and desserts. It might not look as fancy as European pastry, but it sure doesn't disappoint my taste bud. Surely different style and different decoration on the desserts too, yet as delicious as the fancy pastry.
Recommended: Try the mix Sweets Combo

I forgot the name of these desserts. I only remember Ladoo, the round one on the right bottom. 
Zomato Review 3.9/5

5. Chureria
Address: Grand Indonesia, West Mall, Level UG

Recommended: Churros Classic with Dark Chocolate dip is my go to menu. But everything with churros won't be a let down. Oh btw, I think they serve the best churros in Indonesia.
Try their Churros Filling, 3 different fillings on 1 plate (coffee, peanut butter, chocolate)

Churros Filling

Churros Fondue

If only they served the hot fondue instead of the cold one. This fondue will be even better.
Zomato Review 3.9/5

6. J-Co Donut
Every where.
I got to say, I prefer J-Co compare to the other 2 competitors. J-Co has more variety for flavors. Their beverages taste great too.
Since Cronut (Croissant Donut) became trend in Indonesia, their cronut has been my all time favorite.

Recommended:

Chocolava

My favorite flavor; Chocolava. Crunchy and not to sweet, also has a salty croissant pastry flavor.

Tira Miss U

Zomato Review 3.7/5

7. Bakerzin
Address: Plaza Senayan Level 2

Recommended:
Ahhh tooo many to mention. Love their Blackforrest Macaroon. Can't find this flavor anywhere else. Trust me, I tried.

Napoleon Cake, husband's all time favorite

Zomato Review 4.0/5

8. Monolog
Address: Plaza Senayan, parking lot

I like this all day breakfast place. They have several awesome breakfast menus and they opened really early too. 

Recommended:

I forgot the name of this menu. But this chewy nutty donut was really yummy. There is also Oreo Chocolate cake. Unfortunately I forgot where did the picture go. I might ate the cake before taking any picture.

Zomato Review 4.0

9. Jittlada
Address: Senayan City, Level LG

There might not be chocolate nor milk involved on their dessert, but Thailand dessert is definitely not any less than other desserts too.

Recommended:

Mango and Sticky Rice with Coconut Milk Topping

Classic yet almost always sold out. Unfortunately this is seasonal dessert. We can only get it during mango season.

Durian Ice Cream

Zomato Review 3.7/5

10. T.W.G Tea Salon&Boutique
Address: Plaza Senayan, Level 1

TWG is a fancy place for high tea. Their place decoration always looks fancy and high class. So did their dessert.

Recommended:
Macaroon Series
No picture yet. Will be uploaded soon.

Zomato Review 4.2/5

Review: The Cafe at Hotel Mulia

Last Sunday, me and my partner went to The Cafe at Hotel Mulia for their Lunch Buffet. I have heard a lot about them, mostly about the dessert place. They said The Cafe has dedicated room for only dessert. How fancy!!

These are foods from our plates;

My 1st Plate; Texas BBQ, Onion Loaf, Beef Croquete, Roasted Herb Potato

 I didn't finish the beef, both of them as it is not really suit my taste. I am sure they taste great. I just prefer my meat to be induced on so many flavors and spices, instead of a bland one. The onion loaf was sooooo delicious. I am not a big fan of onion, but I ate a big chunk of it anyway. Roasted herb potato dipped in chili sauce was super yummm!

His 1st Plate

 He seems to really enjoy his first plate. He said the bread was fluffy and chewy, a good combination with garlic sauce.

My 2nd plate; Safron Rice, Aloo Kulcha?, Dal Tadka, Butter Chicken, Pappadams

 For Indian food in hotel buffet, I would say this is good one. I would not say that this is one of the best Indian food. Because Indian food dedicated restaurant might have better authentic taste. But I still enjoy The Cafe's Indian foods too, especially the Dal Tadka (Yellow Dal/Mung bean soup).

His 2nd Plate; Crackers and Variety of Cheeses

The Cafe has an outstanding cheese collection. They have at least 15 different type of cheeses; parmesan, mozarela, gouda, blue cheese, cheddar, etc. My partner said (He loves cheese, all kinds of cheese) The Cafe might be one of the best buffet with excellent choice of cheeses and those cheeses are grade A quality. 

My 3rd Plate: Dal Tadka again, Garlic Naan, Smoked Beef

I was stunned as turned out The Cafe has a fancy meat section too. All kind of smokey to tapas looking meat are available. I took a slice of whatever that is, my guess would be smoke beef. For Muslim fellow,  they have pork too there. So make sure you read the sign to find out what kind of meat you are about to eat. I had to get another portion of Dal Tadka. I love it.

His 3rd Plate: Cheese Naan, I called it Cheesy Naan

He was so happy with his 3rd Plate. He said there is so much cheese inside. Just look at how chewy looking is that cheese that came out of the naan. Yumm!!!

My 1st dessert; Chocolate Bar with Vanilla Cookie

His 1st dessert: Napoleon looking dessert,

His 2nd dessert

his 3rd dessert. He actually ate this 2 selections twice. Coconut Pineapple and Coconut Oreo

My 2nd Dessert: Floating Island

This one!!! This is it!! The one!!! Spongey Meringue floating on top of cold drippy chocolate sauce. My highlight of that day!!!

My 2nd Floating Island topped with pistachio. This is just keep getting better!!! 

Overview;
Food        : 9.0 (me) 9.3 (him)
Service    : 9.0 (me) 9.0 (him)
Location  : 7.0 (me) 7.0 (him) It was tooooo crowded.

Make sure to call and book a seat as it might be super crowded.

The Cafe, Hotel Mulia
Jl. Asia Afrika Senayan, Jakarta Selatan, DKI Jakarta 10270, Indonesia
+62 21 5747777

2014 My Favorites

It is December 2014 already!!! 2015 is coming up. Are you ready with your New Year Resolution?

I have never posted my Favorites on blog before, because I just started blogging this year. This will be my first and I will cover everything that I am crazy about during 2014. Some of these products you might already seen it in my previous post. The second part of this post is coming up soon.

Here they are, 15 of my favorites;

1. Smash Box: Vivid Violet
Gosh...I got a lot of compliments on this one. A random stranger in New Orleans, a friend (barely friend) on Facebook, some friends on real life, some friends on Path, boyfriend (the one who bought it for me).

2. LBD (Little Black Dress)
This year I bought 3 extra LBD. Got some from New Look, H&M, and Zalora. I already have more than enough now.

3. Nachos and Dips
Tried the authentic one in US and absolutely in love with it.

4. Flowery Pattern
I have more than 10 dresses/tops with flowery pattern.

5. Pancake
Ever since I got back from 2 weeks vacation to US, I have been crazy over Pancakes.

Monolog's Blueberry&Choco Chip Pancake

Huddle House Pancake

6. J.Co Chocolate Cronut

7. Wedding Dress
Since I will be a bride soon in 3 more months. Yeay!!! Ready to say bye to my fun 'single life'.

Dress Fitting in Huntsville, Alabama. Dress chosen by the Groom-To-Be

8. Leather shorts
Found this short in Forever 21 and I am Forever happy with this short. (For now)

9. My Compact EM Life Palette

10. Indian Foods
This year, I ate a lot...like a whole lot of Indian foods.

11. Wine
Usually not a big fan of wine, but this year I tried some pretty good Wines.

Riesling Kabinett, German Wine

12. Thrift Shopping
I adopted this habit on my last vacation to US

13. Boots
Yes yes yes Boots!!!

14. Beignet from Cafe Du Monde
Absolutely delicious, mouth watery, sugar heaven kinda food.

15.  Intercontinental Hotel
Had some memorable events here and memorable foods too.

Jimbaran Lounge 

Jimbaran Lounge

2 Minutes Easy Bake Chocolate Mug Cake

Have you ever have that craving for super gooey chocolate cake but it can't be satisfied by a regular chocolate cake from your nearest or favorite bakery? I have that craving once a month before the 'full moon' (If you know what I mean ;-p )

I decided to try on a new 2 minutes recipe. Really easy to make and to bake, plus it doesn't require a lot of ingredients.

Here is my Gooey Chocolate Mug Cake;

Did you see how gooey it looks like? It tasted even better.

You will only need 3 ingredients. Yup that simple.

1 Egg, 2 spoons of Sugar powder, 1 and a half spoon of chocolate powder
Tools: 1 mug, 1 spoon, microwave

Put the egg on a mug along with the rest of the ingredients. Mix it with spoon until it blends well. Bake it for a minute in microwave. Yes, only a minute should be okay. But I prefer 2 minutes for a drier inside texture.

Once it is done, you can eat it from the mug or put it in a small plate like what I did. And If you have any fruits or chocolate sprinkle, you may want to garnish it to make it look prettier.

There goes your 2 minutes easy bake Chocolate Mug Cake. I baked it in the office because it was that easy. You can bring the ingredients on your LocknLock or Tupperware and move it to a mug and bake it in the office for an afternoon tea time companion.

Personally, I like to eat it with a glass of wine. Bitter sweet companion.

 Enjoy!!!

Social Travel 101 with Peeta Planet

Hi guys,

I am glad to tell you that I was being invited by the coolest Social Travel show ever, Peeta Planet, to their small get together in Intercontinental Hotel Jakarta. They were visiting Jakarta for their finale for Season 2 of Peeta Planet trip. I guess saving the best for the last, huh? ;-p

Spoiler: Peyman visiting Coffeewar in Jakarta

I was surprised that they would invite me, because I rarely wrote my blog nor do I have a lot of followers on my social media. Turned out they also invited Jakarta cool people, I guess I was one of them then. (Shut up, let me have this moment!) Yes, I am a cool Jakartan.

Anyway, Mohammad and Peyman introducing us to a new cool way of traveling which is 'Social Travel' in the event. I have a lot of curiosity. I am not sure what 'Social Travel' means, not even sure it was a fun way to travel. But after a while, I learned that 'Social Travel' might be a best way to travel. I mean being a tourist is boring right? Following the group leader here and there, visiting same places with all other tourists and they were everywhere. You can't even enjoy the awesome place you want to visit because tourist were everywhere. So, why not try a new way of traveling. Don't be a tourist, Be a Social Traveler!

Oooops I haven't told you what 'Social Travel' is? Well, it is about time you should know. Social Travel (in my understanding) is a way to travel while connecting yourself to the locals. You will find place to stay, to visit, and what to do by asking locals recommendation. Why I think it is nice? Well, for a long time, traveling has become a way out of our regular boring life (boring job, boring school, or whatever it is that you want to get away from for a while) and a way to satisfy your curiosity of the outside world. But, would it more satisfying to travel through the eyes of the locals? They know the best place, they know the best food, they know the history, that's what makes it interesting. We get to connect with random people with various background. We open up to stranger and we might learn so much for them. That's just screaming 'Awesome' in my ear. I got to do this someday, very soon I hope.

Now that you know about Social Travel, did you know Peeta Planet? I am sure you did, but if you don't know them yet, you should totally check them out. They have a really cool Travel show on Dubai Television. Here is the link to their website and YouTube page; peetaplanet.com and YouTube Peeta Planet

I accidentally find out about them when I was looking for video about Seoul on YouTube. They were filming about Seoul through the locals eyes. I have been to Seoul before and I love it so much. I was so glad that they didn't just show us a tourist destination, they took it to the next level. They visited a startup small time company too. I was so immersed when they were doing fabric painting scene. The only time I saw that was on Arirang culture related show. To actually see it in travel show is something new for me. Refreshing, don't you think?

Are they boring? Definitely not boring at all. They have good sense of humor. Muhammad and Peyman are brothers, not just fraternity brothers. They will find a way to tease each other and they do it quite often. It was adorable. They are also the most down to earth person I have ever met. Always smiling, polite, and nice. Who would not like those combination? I also love their outfits. Somehow they manage to pull it out in a very manly way.

Sometimes, when you watch something on TV or YouTube, you feel disconnected with the MC. But Peeta Boys will not make you feel like that at all. They are super friendly, super warm to people, and pretty cheap in giving away smiles. All Peeta Planet crews were very friendly and down to earth personality. I adore them so much for this good quality traits. That's what makes them the best at social travel show, they know how to connect with people.

So guys, if you are not hooked yet by what I said about Social Travel. You should definitely check out their videos on their YouTube channel or their website. They will show you how fun it is to do Social Travel instead of being your regular tourist self.

I wish they would do an episode in India, or a lot of episodes, I won't mind. I wanna know how they will show India from their point of view. I am sure it will be great. It will be a great intro for me and a  way to encourage me to finally visit India, a place that I always feel longing to go (not just to meet Shahrukh Khan, I promise).

Enjoy your weekend, Happy People! Stay Safe, Stay Awesome!

Suci Park

PS; Picture of Tapas Collections from Intercontinental Jakarta who hosted the event. Drooling time...slluuuurp!