This post—soon followed by hopefully other posts in this theme—is my way to reminiscing about the good old days I spent over 8 years at Central Jakarta. I'm gonna take you down a memory lane where I have the best food (at the very least, my version of the best) that I enjoyed with A or my dear friends. And this place is one of them.

I honestly don't remember exactly how Ata found this place, but one afternoon around six years ago, she asked me to stop by Suisse Bakery afterwork. It was just one traffic light away from our office—and the rest is history.

This is probably the no. 1 bakery I would keep coming back to in Jakarta. The old-school bakery took place in a seemingly humble place, but the customers didn't mind it. It doesn't bother to spice the place up with fancy decor, simply let the flavors do all the talking.

If you ever feel like taking a break from the endless parade of viral food trending on your instagram (which don’t always guarantee they're worth the money... or the time wasted standing in line!!), this is the place 😌.

I'll let the google reviews speaks for itself.

Whatever you do, don't skip the legendary risol ayam. If they happen to be frying it when you arrive there, trust me, just wait for it. It would be totally worth the wait.

Another favorite of mine is their roti kelapa and roti kelapa muda. But honestly, though, you could randomly pick anything on the display and I can pretty much guarantee (well... almost) that you won’t be disappointed 😜

Disclaimer: The review is entirely subjective and based on my personal preference; which leaned towards the creamy milk coffee that did not drawn out the coffee flavor *if that makes sense.

Last holiday was the chance for me to finally check my lists on trying out several milk coffees I have had my eyes on. List below is written from the most likely I would repurchase in the future. Starting off strong (now I felt like one of these youtubers 😎) with the last coffee I bought.. but my top favorite:

1. Harlan + Holden

I was hesitant to try this one—my friends who tried it weren't impressed, and the google reviews seemed to agree. But A insisted to at least give it a shot (especially it is our first visit at Kokas since only God knows when, even though this was the first place we met in person). From what I have read on google reviews, people tend to rave about the butterscotch latte, but I landed to unusual choice: the hazelnut latte. Turns out, it didn't disappoint me, at all. It was thick, creamy, yet did not drawn the coffee notes away. I seriously considered getting a second cup (since the first cup was shared with A) but it might look like I have a poor self control so I held it 😂.

2. Blu Shaak Coffee

Peanut-based dessert is not my thing really (they reminds me of the taste of bumbu pecel—I knoowww 😂) but this one is a game changer. The barista suggested to sip it layer by layer, but I find it better to stir first. Coming in a small plastic cup (150ml perhaps?), it definitely serves a punch. 

The milk foam is thick enough, the peanuts add the rich creaminess into it; while he coffee is bold and strong enough to make A's chest feel uncomfortable minutes later 😅. This would be my no. 1 favorite only if it comes in a bigger size cup. The place is not that spacey, I have to drink it while standing up on the other side of the pick up counter. Don't worry, you don't need to be seated to enjoy that—it only takes a blink of an eye to finish it. It is so upsetting when I only have several sip and the cup is already empty—yes it is that good and yes, the cup is that small. Somehow, Central Park is a place that we rarely get to hang out, so I don't know when I'll be back to enjoy this again. Another downside is the nightmare we have faced only to find a free space parking lot--and the struggle to just exit the mall (we happened to go there during big events).

3. Kurasu, Menteng

I ordered Maru--a combo of matcha cream, espresso, and milk, apparently available only at Menteng branch. The indoor seating is sophisticated, while the outdoor gives you an upgraded version of 'metal chair in front of Indomaret, watching KRL passing by' vibe--humid enough depends on what you wear.

 The matcha foam was light and subtly sweet. It came in a small glass cup, and I had high hopes for it to have the same Blu Shaak level kick—but unfortunately, the coffee was barely there. Some might say, the coffee's light and a safe choice for everyone, but for me, it just didn't have that wow factor.

4. % Arabica

Sadly, this was my least favorite. I initially bought this with A and ordered different drinks, but none of it left a lasting impression. That said, I do still want to try their soft serves and collect the enough stamps to get freebies. Priorities, right?

I sometime joke about this was the watery version of For* (I feel bad for saying this). The shop is available practically everywhere, and I happened to try it at PI, after standing in a long queue. Safe to say, I won't be lining up again anytime soon.

5. Honorable mention: Little Salt Bread

This was an unexpected attempt during our last visit to Blok M, a place that apparently we would avoid at all cost. We had some errands to run at that time and decided to join the infamous queue for the viral salt bread. It was so humid and I couldn't help to buy the iced coffee too although I already had one on another coffee stall. 

Hand drip with a splash of cream on top, their sweet Japanese iced coffee was so refreshing to have in a sweaty, polluted Jakarta afternoon.