Campus canteen usually open around 9 A.M. in average, which is way too late for breakfast time when I have a morning quiz or exam. I need fuel to burn especially to do the exam right. That meant I had to find a proper breakfast spot before 8 AM WHICH didn't take me to pass Pasupati intersection either (Soto Seger Boyolali, I'm talking about you 😂)—the red traffic light waiting time is so long that I thought it is almost the same as Harmoni intersection's. A once warned me that me that Imah might not be for me. He was referring to the Kebon Bibit branch which he never got to try with his friends due to the packed place. Thankfully, the Tamansari branch was much more pleasant 😌. Checking their weekly menu every Friday morning (almost religiously) on their Instagram story became a habit that I and my friends develop 😂. My go to orders? nasi goreng kampung +telur, nasi balakutak, nasi goreng cumi sambel ijo. 

And the star of the place would be: pisang goreng. Whenever I felt under the weather, I ordered kimlo—it was once weekly menu but became permanent due to popular demand (the same goes with nasi balakutak).

it was always the three of us, the 'Teris' girls

2. Seliter Dago

This the closest stall from my place, and honestly, a week never passed without me stopping by. Whenever I felt defeated after class, I’d grab a drink, finish it while watching vehicles pass by, mentally reset my mood 😁. Just like how the famous Indomaret iron chair do for some people. Or simply I would have a take out after having my meal at Pak Tono (details about it below). I always brought my stojo tumbler along just because. My top picks would be their and Stroberi Histeri (both less sweet and no condensed milk). After trying Alpukat Melekat, I refuse to buy jus alpukat anywhere else, it is that good but no one seemed to not talk about it on social media—too bad I don't have the pic.

 

3. Takoburanko

 This was my go to post Saturday class snack, especially after pulling an all nighter to finish a report. I still can't decide between the takoyaki or okonomiyaki, since both are insanely good (with reasonable price!!). 

Mind you to be patient during the order because the line is always long. It is not available online so here's the trick: get to the register and pay first, and then walk around the area where you can visit Sari-sari, Oseebo matcha, Wanda's club, or any viral food around Trunojoyo or Gempol while waiting your oder to be made.

4. Warung Dalaraos

I discovered this place thanks to one of my cohort after she realized Saraga canteen just wasn’t for me.

Veggies? check.

Wide variety of proteins? check.

All you can eat lalapan? check.

3 choices of sambal? check.

To be honest, I would never get bored of the menu they offered, even though the sautee broccoli and gepuk were always my go to. Their terong raos is another level too. There's a saying: if Ibu-ibu PNS in sportwear flock there on Friday morning, the food must be legit. It is though, a solid 10 I must say 😆. The only downside of this place is the parking fee; Rp 5000 for motorbike, like, you guys for real?! thank God they eventually opened at the campus canteen but only for me to enjoy on my last month there 😢

 5. Gado-gado Teuku Angkasa

Hands down this is the best gado-gado I've ever had—and the closest one, in terms of taste, to the one from my hometown. It is on the pricier side, but the portion is HUGE. Another bonus point is I could stop by at es kelapa murni berkah near Fitness Park afterward.

6. Roasted Bar

To be honest I got inspired by my friend who pursue graduate school at Australia. I was simply curious on how he managed to be able to eat decent food while its almost impossible to do take outs or dine outside frequently, yet it would be a bother to cook every meal time either. His solution was that he bought rotisserie chicken at nearby store, stored it in the fridge so it could last for days. So I copied him—I bought a whole chicken at Roasted Bar (which, divided into 4 pieces), move it to a lock n lock container and store it in the fridge. I paired it with steamed bokcoy/broccolli that I bought on morning walk at Pasar Dago earlier 😏. They have a wide variety of dips, and it was cheaper online. Both Cimbeuleuit and Cilaki branch were relatively near to my place.

7. Wanda's Club

It is the sister brand of roasted bar. This started as A's favorite, but I don't know exactly when my friends grew to like it too. I ordered it so often it showed up as my no. 1 grab food menu order of the year (followed by roasted bar).

The packaging is convenient enough for me to eat on the way home. Most of the time I brought my stainless steel spoon along with me since the plastic cutlery is easily broke. Also, this dish is my opportunity cost payment to A for picking me up late at night from Jackal Holiday's Pool. Not to mention, he never skips to buy it whenever he was in Bandung. But mostly I had it with my friends during our study session at "belakang aer" communal space. My personal favorite would be Philly chicken rice to keep me full. Chili oil is not my thing, so I always ordered one which they didn't dip the chicken into chili oil.

Before I discovered all I mention above.. I indulge my appetite with this:

8. Dendeng Batokok Dago

9. Pecel Kediri Pak Tono

I used to be a regular to the point Pak Tono remembered my order: pecel telur dadar + mendoan. The downside? it open from 8 AM and sometimes it randomly closed. Also, I feared for my gout level too. It is also available on online delivery but I prefer to dine.

10. Sei Sapi Lamalera

Cheaper via online delivery—but once I learned that smoked beef wasn’t great to consume regularly, I stopped.

11. Anen Chinese Food, GOR Padjajaran

For someone who draw towards chinese food on daily basis, I once struggled to find one. MCCF located in Tubagus Ismail was one of the option, but it opens at 10 A.M and I have to take a farther turn to get back to my place if I stopped by there first. So I figured out this Anen Chinese Food at grabfood. I ordered this quite often through grabfood but at some point I felt my stomach start complaining—I couldn't take a large amount of flour + oil anymore. My favorites are mi tek-tek nyemek and mie goreng.

Honorable Mention: Kantin Dago

This is my life savior throughout my campus life journey. This humble place is run by Bu Chusnul and his husband that sells nasi pecel and nasi kuning in the morning, and various kind of home cooked meals after 10 A.M. Sometimes rawon is on the menu too. Located only one building beside Seliter Dago, I thought they only sell breakfast meal. One day Bu Chusnul said that she remained open throughout the day. Although I am more fond of Pecel Pak Tono, the nasi kuning is quite decent. I had to go here before 12 P.M. or else sayur bayam would be quickly sold out.

On his 3D2N visit at Bandung to bring me home for good, A can't skip visiting Makmur Jaya Soka every single day, along with two other spots that I'll tell later. I guess we're hitting the age where we are no longer excited to try out new restaurants. This is their newest branch which provides the largest, yet posh and cozy indoor seating area inside of a seemingly cultural heritage building. While in here, I beg you to not order the kopi susu makmur (I know they are kinda hard to resist); Why bother joining the queue when you can always have them kopsus makmur on takeaway or online delivery? Instead, try their signature drinks that exclusively sold here: Dirty Latte, Mont Blanc, or Not Latte.

The crews are friendly and the overall hospitality is better, compared to the Sawunggaling branch. The waiter is willing to explain further to my curiosity on their V60s menu and selected beans (I did not try their pour over coffee due to yesterday visit to campus clinic where the doctor said I should not drink coffee for a while yet I ended up in here #TMI). In addition, there's a mini bar where the visitors can see the barista make the pour over coffee.

They sold merch like t-shirts, keychain, and all but I fancied their coaster that sadly isn't available for sale.

It is better to go here early in the morning to avoid long queue. Use a motorcycle or online taxi to get here as it is located in a narrow alley, with limited parking available. A said the mushala and the toilet are kept clean, so consider it as a bonus.

Dirty Latte (right): served in chilled clear glass cup, now I get why people said it is the star of the show 💫. The first layer on the surface is the espresso, followed by the steamed milk; and just like that. It is BOMB 💣💥. There's no ice at all so you don't have to worry for the coffee to go watery anytime soon.

Not Latte (left): I think this is an option for those who did not like a certain level of kick on their coffee, if you know what I mean. I could notice a hint of savory aftertaste from the drink which I am not sure whether it is from the cacao or the coconut milk, but the whole presentation is so pretty 💕.

Montblanc (left): cold brew served with a lemon infused foam on top. So refreshing yet a little too sweet to my liking.

The tiramisu is okay, but the way it serves look like a sad food (considering the price, though). I guess when it comes to tiramisu, I would turn to yarraallday or maiku.

During our last visit to the dentist, the dentist mentioned that A's teeth was stained from excessive coffee consumption. Therefore on our recent trip to MakJay, he said, "I would allow myself to drink coffee only for Makmur Jaya, nothing else deserves the sacrifice." I can't 😂😂

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.

Back when I was a corporate employee, I had business trips at Bandung more than twice a year. I went there with bosses who some of them were in their 40s. The destination were always the same; after the business was done during one sleepless night, more often than not, we went to buy snacks at Primarasa Paskal. After that, we had late lunch at Bebek Kaleyo (although, the bapak-bapak tend to drew us to Padang Sederhana instead) right on the corner of the street before we went home. Pandanwangi? Bu Imas? Never heard any of that 😢.

But this time is different. I was pretty much well-literate than before *cough*, and considering I went back and forth to home quite often, I find cheaper alternatives on what to bring home. I felt like I was obliged to bring something along with me to make up for my absence to A 😜. and I don't feel like to prepare munchies the first day at home either (lol), so these lists were very personal but might help me in the future when I have biztrip at Bandung again someday *fingercrossed* 

I find it hard to choose a word that properly describe "oleh-oleh" in English so I use Japanese term お土産instead: (read: omiyage—local specialties that someone bought during business trip for family/coworkers). Credits to B who recommend all of this to me:

1. Bolu Pisang Bu Wita

It is available online delivery and their outlets are pretty much everywhere, so it takes one click away until it arrives at the doorstep. The bolu is decent and comforting; I can't help but to think that it gave the nostalgic feeling to the bolu that mum brought home when I was a kid. I should mention here that the taste was incomparable than the currently viral bolu pisang at Cilaki (not that I have tried it)—it gave off the 'tempoe doeloe' vibe compared to modernized banana cake at Cilaki's, if you know what I mean. Pricewise, it was fourth times cheaper than Cilaki's 😂. The only drawback is it doesn't come with a plastic knife, so it is not suitable to be enjoyed on the way back.

Pro tip: once I arrived home, I slice and store it to the fridge inside a secure lock n lock to prolong its shelf life and reheat it for 30 seconds with microwave. It is important to note that the longer you reheat it, the more it released weird smell (is it due to the heated butter or something (?)—dear home baker please enlighten me).

2. Bolen Lilit

While most visitors go to Primarasa or Kartika Sari for omiyage, I prefer this place.

It is less crowded, the pastries are fresher, and it's conveniently near Soto Boyolali and Takoburanko (okay this is very subjective indeed). They are available at Bandung train station too (with limited stocks, I think).

My favorite is the almond pastry—flakier and cheaper than the shop next door. The last time I bought one from the P shop, the flake were all over the place on the bottom of the packaging. Besides, my family prefer Bolit's version of almond pastry to the shop next door's, which, almost twice the price of the bolit's (although the gramation is different but still). Another favorite of this place is the springlee. I used to buy this springlee snack at Rezeki Freshmart, but in here they offered larger size! Also, my choice would not drift over their cheese bolen lilit—banana rolled in crisp buttery pastry. Yumm.

The keju lilit, on the other hand, isn't my cup of tea.

3. Roti Sisir Toko Liza

Another jadoel delicacies that shouldn't be missed. For the record, I never tasted the pia or other products. I come here just for their roti sisir—A's ultimate favorite. The waitress mentioned that ovomaltine flavour is the favorite among customer but I personally prefer the classic one like cheese and chocolate sprinkles. Since A is more of a savory person, I bought him the smoke beef and baso ayam (chicken meatball). According to their instagram, the roti sisir is sold on the train as well. Some people hesitate to buy due to the nonexistent halal-certified on it. As for me, I don't fuss about it as long as they stated that they don't use non-halal ingredients 😛 

4. Sarae Bakery

This is my personal favorite. Calling it a trending sourdough specialized bakery is an understatement. What I love the most about this shop is they opened at 6 a.m. in the morning—perfect for early riser like me 😜.

The buns are my go to for suhoor during Ramadhan. They are convenient to have—no need to cook or reheat anything, and it didn't seem to give me the insulin spike in the morning. I'd rather get enough sleep rather than prep a full meal for suhoor, so sarae's bun is the perfect choice for it #TMI.

Pro tip: If you're heading to the Dago branch, make sure to let the parking guy know in advance that you are going Sarae—not Jabarano—so you don't get charged higher parking fee 😂

My ex room mate LOVES walking. Every weekend, she could walk from Harmoni to GBK, back and forth—something that I did not really get, at all. What's the fun with sucking up all the pollution; while the morning heat was another thing to complain about.

But recently I changed my mind.

I used to walk a lot during weekdays due to commuting, that's why the first month moving to Bandung, my body was aching for no actual reason. One day my friend suggested we take a walk at Taman Hutan Raya, and by far it was the highlight of the year. The clean, fresh air and the green scenery were things I never enjoyed for a veeery long time. It reminded me that I got ispa due to how bad Jakarta's air quality was--it was kinda funny though. when I saw the doctor, I told him that the cough suddenly stopped once I entered the hospital (on one hand I did not want to be a covid suspect to my coworker, on the other hand I did not want the doctor to assume that I made up something just to get Surat Izin Dokter either 😂).

First thing that motivated me to 'hike' there along with a friend was to try out the famous perkedel, which, unfortunately, was closed due to the pathway renovation. But we kept going until we were that close to the Maribaya gate. If I let my intrusive thought on what-if-we-just come-home-by-grabcar-once-we-reached-the-gate win, we would've left the motorbike at Tahura entrance 😂

For the following weekend, my friend and I took a different route, by choosing Gasibu as a meeting point. Instead of going up north, I decided to walk down the south. I found life is somehow strange, I 'stranded' to another Ir. H. Juanda. But hey, how is that possible that both RM Sulawesi are located in Juanda Bandung and Central Jakarta? 😬 #TMI

To my surprise, Gasibu was always packed with people—I don't know but people here seemed to be highly motivated to do sport, which amazes me in a way. Yet later got debunked by my friend; she made it clear that the neighborhood that I live was actually the jogging route. It was like the weekend is for going out in the morning to get fit, nothing else. Honestly I can't tell though if it was the locals or Jakartans who currently took a short getaway here, but whatever. Instead of joining the crowd, we mindlessly walk and most of the time getting involved into a deep talk about our future.

And that is how it become a habit.

I promised myself to enjoy Bandung as much as I could, despite the struggle during the course. Apparently I felt like being thrown, once again, to the bachelor era—drowned in the project and the task and the quiz and the exam, and resulting in the allergy to rise. My eyes was once swollen. The sudden itch, reddened face and hands that sometimes appear whenever I was on the edge, were a subtle alarm to remind me to take a break.

My must-go-to: Cwimie Jl Lombok.

Fun fact, I know this place for the first time when A was the one who had important business here and happened to leave me at a cafe at Jl. Progo, and I didn't feel like to have lunch there. I want to eat like locals! So I searched on google and I found this place. I walked there and it was packed (lunch time) so I ordered take outs and went back to the hotel. On the next day I forced A to have this cwimie again before we left Bandung 😂😂 From then on I became a loyal customer 😋

A was once said that my immune booster was something that requires a lot of money. But hey, I confidently say that morning walks was my 'cheap immune booster' actually—depend on how much the food cost me though 👀. There was some time I did morning walk without company, and it was like going on a mini adventure, unconsciously memorise the Cihapit-Siliwangi area that was once confusing for me (don't get me started on how much I got lost 😂), and discover many things as well.