PARDON MY FRENCH

Brunch is one thing that always attract me. I have several favorite breakfast spots and spending the time there is becoming my weekly routine. Last week I saw a post from my blogger friend about this new cute finding in Menteng area, Pardon My French.

Pardon My French located in the busy street between Tanah Abang and Mentang which is perfect to attract the crowd. The parking space is also spacious (you know how those restaurants nowadays with tiny parking lot) and the service was very good. They help me park and refuse to get the parking tip for me.

A combination of classic blue, white, and gold dominate the room. It's a mixture of French-Japanese ambiance that I get here. Very comfortable. It's not a busy day for them when I came in, so happy to be the early bird to enjoy the atmosphere. 

So I ordered cappucino, iced tea, and es kopi susu my mother (I now that's the name!). Es kopi susu was way too sweet for me, felt like having a melted candy. The coffee was okay though. However, I really love the serving of their coffee. The pastel colors won my heart easily.

Chicken Pesto Sandwich was also an interesting dish to try. I'm quite a sandwich person so finding a decent sandwich is kinda hard nowadays. The baguette was crispy with good seasoning of pesto and chicken with some greens. I might under estimate this one at first, but turns out it's an enjoyable one!

Half Roasted Chicken was surely one comfort meal that never fail. The chicken was tender with good seasoning. The portion was quite big and could fit 2 people without any hesitation in portion. The mashed potato also had this interesting flavor which could elevate the dish itself. You nailed it!

Been having a thing with good croque madame and I was quite surprised that their croque madame was beyond my expectation. The bread was hard kind of bread, with delicious cheese everywhere, filled with meat inside. The highlight of the dish was surely the delicious and generous cheese which made me could not stop to dig in. The only thing was the bread was too hard for me (I am more like a fan of moist and thick bread), however it's only about personal preference.

Squid Ink Pasta, which came in black colors turned out to be very enjoyable. The pasta was al dente, seasoned well, with lots of anchovies on top. This might be too salty for some, but mix it well would solve the problem. One hearty dish for sure!

One does not eat well without dessert and I believe in that. Actually this one came from their brunch menu, not the dessert list, but still can do. Tempting presentation of French Toast with corn flake, but unfortunately I did not fall for this one. The bread was too hard and sweet for my liking. The chocolate and condensed milk was everywhere. A guilty feeling right after I tried it (sorry belly!)

Oh hey, Mr. Bear and I!

Overall Pardon My French is quite promising. The location is strategic with chill and comfort ambiance. The staff is quite helpful with good knowledge about the menu. The food is decent and generous, with some personal preference here and the, could be a better one. I did enjoy my time at Pardon My French.

PARDON MY FRENCH

Jl. Wahid Hasyim no 154-156, Jakarta Pusat

(021) 29627721

pmfjkt.com

@pardonmyfrench.jkt

Opening Hours: Mon-Thu: 8am-11pm/ Fri-Sun: 8am-1 am

Best regards,

Jessica Christy Limanjaya

PORT FIVE SIX

Brunch is totally my thing. Sunday and brunch is such a perfect partner to have my weekend right. Sipping good coffee, enjoying my french toast or pancake or waffles, I can really have that on my kind of Sunday everyday.

So I heard that this new cafe, called Port Five Six, located in Serpong area, offered good quality of brunch. Heading to Gading Serpong area has been a weekend ritual with my brother, so I don't really mind to drive those miles to try something new here.

Port Five Six is pretty. I can say that since my first step here. I really like the ambiance accompanied with their dim light and natural sunlight from the window. They also have this comfort corner where you can spend hours in their lazy pillow. Everything is so instagenic!

This coffee shop corner honestly reminded me of one comfy cafe in West Jakarta area.

HOT CAPPUCCINO-IDR 29k

One cup of cappuccino to start my brunch. It was not strong like the way I liked and the texture was kinda watery. It was not my best cup for sure. The price was kinda surprised me, with 29k, I guess they are not meant to be specialized in coffee.

CHICKEN WAFFLE-68k

I could say I fell in love with the presentation. Waffle was looking good, not to mention the appetizing egg and chicken. The waffle was fluffy kinda waffle, and I did not mind to have that, since some people prefer to have it crispy. Egg was yummy and beautifully cooked. I really loved the sweet aftertaste they have in the seasoning. I guessed it was the hoisin sauce that made it good! I wished they give it more generously to make it more flavorful!

EGG BENEDICT-IDR 73k

At first I did order egg shinjuku which contained salmon on it. Too bad they ran out of it and they offered me to have egg benedict instead. Coming in such a good presentation, I did have high hope on this one. The bread was good, egg was cooked perfectly,but I thought the flavor was kinda under seasoned. The flavor was slightly bland for me, made me tempt to add a pinch of salt and pepper on it.

I was temped to order another waffle, which had Peanut Butter and Jelly on it (major sucker for PB and J). Too bad I was too full!

Good lighting made one happy blogger.

Overall I had one quite satisfying brunch here. Place was pretty and effortless to take any pictures while all the food came in such a good presentation. The food was alright, but I did not think it will make me back for more. Price was kinda high for Serpong neighborhood, I spent around IDR 250k for all the food and coffee. But still, Port Five Six is a good place to chill!

PORT FIVE SIX

Ruko 1B, Blok BH10 No. 5 - 6
Jl. Kelapa Gading Selatan, Gading Serpong,Tangerang

021 54200918
Best regards,Jessica Christy Limanjaya@jechristy

YELO EATERY BOGOR

Hello from Bogor!

Yes, I took my day off to visit Bogor because apparently reaching Bogor is quite easy with train (Sukabumi-Bogor) which happens to leave 3 times a day, within 2 hours trip. This is my first experience with train and I find the executive class is somehow comfortable (50k on weekdays) while it's quite crowded at the economy class (20k). 

So I visit this fun and humble eatery called Yelo Eatery, finding this one excites me much because God know, I miss brunch! I can not say living in Sukabumi is not fine, but they do not this kind of food which is my favorite. I google through Yelo's menu and give me thrilled when I see 'all day brunch' on the menu!

Fun colorful wall is one main attraction here. Yellow and blue are surely a good match, expelling young and energetic atmosphere. They have good lighting, too! The big window give the hot ambiance to this place, but I still love it tho. 

So apparently I am lucky to visit them because currently they're having promo buy 2 get 3. Buying 2 main courses will give you one free meal they've chosen for you ( they have french toast, salad, etc). Such a good deal! I am having quite a hard time to decide what to try because honestly everything looks good by their description on the menu. 

HAMBURG ON POTATO-50k

My friend is a big fan of Rosti and she loves it! It is entertaining my taste bud as well! Australian beef patty is tender and thick, with melted cheese and egg on top. I am not a big fan of beef, I do not have any complain with theirs. Everything taste really really good on each other. I find their rosti is quite oily but seasoning is nice. So it's forgiven I guess. Portion is generous too! This kind of goodness for only IDR 50k is such a good deal!

GRILLED CHEESE SANDWICH-40k

Yeah I am big fan of grilled cheese and by looking at it on the meny drolls me much. They're using this thick wheat bread (may be for healthier effect) and tasty cheese inside. The thick bread somehow really make me full, eating two pieces of it can stop me from eating anything else. I prefer thinner bread with thicker cheese, but still. this one is alright!

FRENCH TOAST-40k

I find their french toast is a bit weird. Tasty fried eggy bread, topped with maple syrup, but having scrambled egg on top! French toast supposed to be sweet, so the scrambled egg kinda confuse me a little bit. I end up eating it separately, having the egg with the tasty strawberry jam and caramelized apple and eat the scrambled egg with addition of salt and pepper to make it better. So here's my advice: sweet and salty do not work on this plate.

So after all Yelo Eatery is one enjoyable eatery with and bright ambiance. Love love all the vibrant colors, good food, and service too. I know that eateries in Bogor city is developing, many new cafes are popping here and there, I believe that they, with this consistency, will surely survive. 

Ps: Will definitely come back to try another menus. 

YELO EATERY

Jl. Pajajaran Indah Raya no. 5 Bogor Tengah, Bogor

West Java

081802799127

Opening hours: 10am-10pm

Best regards,

Jessica Christy Limanjaya

@jechristy

FAVORITE CROQUE MADAME/MONSIEUR IN JAKARTA

As some of you know, I really am a sucker for brunch. I really love the idea of starting the day with delicate breakfast. My favorite so far is Australian type of breakfast. I remember my visit to Sydney and Melbourne several years ago, while brunch was surely something new for me. I did fall in love with it, how pretty the presentation was and those fragrant waffle, pancakes, baked eggs really had me on the first bite. The only downfall is brunch might be quite pricey, mean to be enjoyed occasionally. The thing is having it occasionally make me loving it even more, looking forward every weekend to have one good brunch to start the day.

Waffles, pancakes, and any kind of bread are always my priorities when it comes to brunch. I do not really fancy meat, steak, and anything heavy on my brunch. Thing that always on my consideration is croque madame and croque monsieur. I really love how the all the ingredients blend on my palate. Quick info, croque monsieur is actually baked or fried boiled ham with cheese sandwich. Add the fried egg on top, and here comes the croque madame.

I've tried some croque madame and monsieur in some brunch places, concluded that these 3 places served the best croque, at least for me!

ps: I am a fan of soft bread with gooey and thick cheese filling, Using thing and crispy bread for this favorite dish of mine can't turn me on ;)

1. Maple and Oak 

De Ritz building, Jl. HOS Cokroaminoto no 91, Menteng, Central Jakarta

full review here
IDR 83k

The best croque monsieur in town so far, even my brother agree with me! Baked thick sourdough filled with beef pastrami, red cheddar, and thick mornay sauce. I really love love love the thick sauce with its dominating flavour, sink in every cell of the bread, enrich the taste. Cheese is so generous with pretty and messy mozarella on top. Bonus of fries on side really make me happier, too! Writing about it right now really making me drool!

2. Koultura

Jl, Taman Ratu Indah no 33, Grenville, West Jakarta
IDR70k

Never thought their croque madame would be one of my favorite before, but theirs is surely worth the calories. Sourdough toast, bacon jam, mozarella, and bechamel sauce is surely good dancing partner on the palate, but adding the crackling pork ham on the bottom of the bread is real genius! Imagine the crackling tasty sound with deep scrumptious combination of all those ingredients. Koultura, you have me at hello!

3. Crematology

PX Pavilion, Jl. Puri Indah Boulevard blok U1, West Jakarta
IDR 78k

Favorite coffee spot on my neighborhood, not to mention the cool instagenic place and very attentive staff here. Their coffee is one of my favorite and their brunch menu is quite wide. Their croque monsieur, with generous smoked ham and generous cheese could easily stole my heart. The twist is they're using this onion jam, sweet touch aftertaste to make it unique. Have it with fries and salad, too!

So here is the list of my favorite croque monsieur / madame in Jakarta. Tell me what's yours!

Best regards,

Jessica Christy Limanjaya

@jechristy

MAPLE AND OAK

As you guys know I am a big, big, big fan of Australian brunch. I did remember the first time I had my first brunch in Syndey back then in 2011, way back when brunch was not a hype here. I remembered having Bills in Sydney, it was so memorable and hoping that I could get easy access to that kind of food in Jakarta, and voila: many brunch spot was popping up here, but little that won my heart. So when I heard that Maple and Oak by chef Odie Djamil opened its door for public, I was really excited to give it a visit. Moreover I heard some good reviews from my fellow blogger.

Maple and Oak reminded me much of homey brunch spot in Australia: tiny but comfy. It resides on the same building with Por Que No, Menteng area. Place is not spacious, but it somehow welcomes you heartwarming-ly. Staff is friendly and very knowledgeable, an overplus for Maple and Oak. It may get pack at brunch hour at weekend and they do not take any reservation in those days.

HOT LATTE-35k

Coffee was not bad, quite a kick to start my Sunday. Something I would not complain since it's not a specialty coffee shop.

CROQUE MONSIEUR-83k

My favorite so far! I did order this because I am such a sucker for croque monsieur whenever I see it on the menu. Unfortunately is not their suggestion on the first place. I do suggest to you Maple and Oak (of course if you don't mind) to put this to your favorite suggestion because it was SUPER YUMMY! Bread was in perfect thickness, which was using sourdough anyway. Mornay sauce fitted perfectly with beef pastrami, and the mozzarella and red cheddar made it even better! It was like a feast in my mouth and I kept digging it to the last piece!

Ps: Their croque monsieur did bolt to my top rank in Jakarta!

EGG BENEDICT

WITH SALMON-83k

WITH BEEF PASTRAMI-73k

Egg benedict is one dish that can truly give a first impression of one brunch spot. Maple and Oak, however, did a good job on it. Presentation was pretty. I really loved all the plates they were using, anyway. Egg was good and cooked perfectly, Hollandaise sauce was well seasoned. It was something you could not say no to!

MAPLE BUTTER BRIOCHE-78k

Their signature maple truffle butter, served with toasted brioche, combined with maple syrup was something humble yet satisfying. The scrambled egg was creamy and scrumptious, beef bacon was okay. I could not decide which one was my favorite on the plate because everything just enhanced each other well.

Overall it was a satisfying and pleasing brunch. It did cure my longing for Australian brunch a little bit, but Maple and Oak surely gonna be my top list whenever I'm craving for a good brunch spot in Jakarta. Best of luck, Maple and Oak!

Maple and Oak

De Ritz Building, Ground floor

Jl. Hos Cokroaminoto no 91, Menteng

Jakarta Pusat

(021) 3906757

ANTEROGRADE JAKARTA

Brunch has became one of popular destinations for people in Jakarta. While getting brunch menu was quite an effort in last few years, it is not hard to get one right now. Brunch was used to be a popular spot in South Jakarta, especially in those places where most expats are residing. For now, even people in North and West Jakarta are able to get this easily.

Introducing Anterograde, one tiny shop at North Jakarta, Kelapa Gading area to be exact, one of many restaurants that serve brunch menu. They actually also serve Asian dish like fried rice and pad thai, typical Jakarta restaurant that have it all in one stop.

Anterograde is located in Kelapa Nias street, aligne with Hey Nature and newly renovated Fat Bubble. The place itself was not too spacious, remind me of brunch spot in Sydney or Melbourne that packed and small.

TAGLIAELLE ARABIATTA

Spicy tomato sauce, prawn, barramundi

RACLETTE

Melted cheese, mix salad, 63 degree egg with roasted potato

PAD THAI

Rice noodle, tamarind sauce, with prawn and tofu

GNOCCHI A LA GENOVESE

Potato dumpling, salsa verde, 63 degree egg

EGG BENEDICT

63 degree egg, spinach, english muffin with hollandaise sauce

Overall it was not bad, but I really hoped to have stronger flavor to all the dishes. Above all my favorite was egg benedict: pretty presentation with palatable flavor. I could find several flaws like consistency in pasta flavor, bland pesto sauce, but somehow I found that tolerable. However Anterograde could be your choice to try humble brunch menu in quite an affordable price.

Anterograde

Jalan Raya Kelapa Nias, blok GN-1 no 7, Kelapa Gading

Jakarta Utara

(021) 4530812

Opening hour: 10am-10pm