Marugame Udon, Grand Indonesia, Jakarta, Indonesia

What this restaurant reminded me of was Mappen here in Brisbane. So, when we decided to eat here, I was intrigued and was very interested in trying and how it would match with the ones I've tried in Aussie. A very similar concept is used such as the food selection and the way you pick your own Tempura and having free tempura flakes and chopped spring onions available. The only difference was that in Indonesia, since everyone loves their chilli and spicy food (except me that is..), they also have finely chopped red chilli to allow for those spicy eaters to be able to adjust their own spiciness level and add chilli to their own dishes.

'Ontama Udon' (IDR40k = ~AUD$4) is one of their classic serving their Udon with Bukake Dashi broth with your choice of the broth being warm or cold. It is then topped with spring onions and half boiled egg as well as a scoop of tempura flakes.

'Tori Baitan Udon' (IDR45k = ~AUD$4.5) is quite different in a way that instead of using Bukake dashi broth or pork broth, it uses Chicken broth which surprisingly was quite thick and creamy which I wasn't expecting. Topped with 3 pieces of chicken meatballs as well as spring onions. These chicken meatballs simply reminded me of Bakso, the traditional Indonesian Meatballs but these were smoother and tender in terms of exterior which means that they used more cornflour or flour to make them.

The meatballs itself was flavoursome, working well with the creamy chicken broth. It will suit any chicken lovers definitely. The chicken broth was quite salty but not overly salty but the fact that the chicken meatballs had some sweetness in it, there was balance between the two.

As for the Tempuras, you simply pick the ones you want and place it on your plate and when you are finished choosing what you would like, the person in the counter will simply add up what you have on your plate and add the prices of each Tempura with your Noodle or Rice dish. As for us, we didn't want to order too much as we didn't want to get too full afterwards. With around 10 kinds of different Tempura available, it will suit anyone who wants vegetables or beef or chicken etc. They do differentiate the usual regular Tempura selections with their Premium selections. 

From L to R as follows; Kakiage, Beef Croquette and Ebi Tempura.

'Kakiage' (IDR11k = ~AUD$1.1) which is a deep fried vegetables tempura shaped into a ball for easy grabbing as well as shaping it into a bunch. Though it can get abit hard when you do try to bite into it. Having a mixture of carrots and onions as well as some greens, it allows you to feel somewhat healthy eating fried food. Don't forget to dip it into your soy sauce dipping sauce. 'Beef Croquette' (IDR12k = ~AUD$1.2) is different than what the usual potato croquette or crab croquette you would get in other Japanese restaurants. This was a croquette filled with beef which I found to be quite delicious as well although it matched better with the original and plain Udon and not too much of the Tori Baitan Udon since that itself already had a strong chicken flavour. The croquette was nicely cooked and was very hot when we grabbed them to our plates. It definitely would suit better with a less thick and less creamier broth udon as it is quite heavy by its own. 'Ebi Tempura' (IDR15k = ~AUD$1.5) is always something you will be able to find in most Japanese restaurants, if not, all restaurants. The overall taste was okay, just the typical Shrimp Tempura.

Again, similar concept with after you have finished eating, you are told to return your used trays to the designated area. I think these kind of self-service restaurants allows diners to have a sense of cleanliness as well as a common sense giving a helping hand to the society. Of course, there will be waiters to clean your table or to wipe any access or mess but then, it is nice to see that maybe the Indonesian community are able to learn a thing or two in regards to etiquette, cleanliness and respecting workers. As most other countries may be very familiar with this concept as an everyday thing, in Indonesia, many are spoilt with the help when it comes to eating or service as it very uncommon for diners to have to take back their used bowls or trays.

Ikkudo Ichi, Grand Indonesia, Jakarta, Indonesia

Ikkudo Ichi is one of the many Ramen places you can dine at Grand Indonesia Mall in Jakarta. It is quite a small area inside but fits a decent amount of diners, though you might have to wait for a bit sometimes when they do have a queue. I would say though overall that the ramen here reminded me of the ramen back here, but it just had a more Street and casual feeling..

As you can see, the restaurant itself is quite small and we arrived here after work quite early so it wasn't right on dinner time allowing us to get our table quickly and by the time we finished eating, there were so many diners coming in. When  we sat down, we were offered drinks and we ordered both a 'Hot Ocha' and 'Cold Ocha' (Both at IDR9,8rb - AUD$0.98). It's nice to see when Japanese restaurants serves their green tea using real tea leaves, and not just tea bags.. Quite dissapointing if they do. Gladly, they used real tea leaves as you can taste a bit of the residue as you get to the bottom.

'Age Buta Gyoza' (IDR28rb - AUD$2.8) are Deep fried Pork Gyoza in which a portion gets you 6 pieces which I found was a normal amount in Japanese restaurants. It was rather small than I thought it would be but not too much. It was fully deep fried and there are also grilled gyoza if you would like a healthier option on the menu.

I found that just a simple light soy sauce as a sauce was a nice dipping sauce instead of a sweet chilli or a chilli sauce given along with the dumplings. It was very hot when it arrived so be careful when biting into it. The filling was delicious with the pork broth oozing out a bit as you bite through it.

All ramens are served with either chicken or pork charsiu, spring onions, sliced mushrooms and soft boiled golden egg. We both ordered the same which was 'Tori/Buta Signature' (IDR49.8rb - AUD$5) which was their Signature ramen served with either Chicken or Pork Charsiu in which of course, the choice of meat would be obviously Pork Charsiu.

The first thing that you see when you get a big bowl of ramen on your table is its presentation, then you see if the soft boiled egg is done right, then you check if they have given you a sufficient amount of charsiu, then you take a spoonful of the broth, sip and taste it, try their ramen noodles... then judge and comment.. well, that's the way I eat my ramen usually. Soft boiled eggs were cooked nicely, the broth reminded me of your Tonkotsu base but it seemed to be a bit thicker compared to the lighter version. Full of flavour, the seasoning and spices has been balanced out well, the ramen noodles were chewy and cooked through well.

One of the best thing you get here where you won't get anywhere else (even in Aussie, I haven't been to a Ramen place where they would offer this..) is that they serve you fresh garlic along with a wooden skewer and a garlic press. Why? So that for those garlic lovers, like myself... is able to mince your own garlic whilst inserting it into your ramen, as much or as little as you would like. What a fun but also very garlicky way to eat your ramen. Although not all ramen is good with garlic, or may not suit it as well as it being how it should be, having a few garlic cloves is always so gooodd I reckon.. And yes, with just being the two of us dining, we did finish the whole garlic portion given in the bowl.

One of the nicest, humblest Japanese Ramen places to dine at, I would come back here again and try their other Ramen.. Maybe their Curry ramen or their Tsukemen..

Kkuldak, Grand Indonesia, Jakarta, Indonesia

I've walked past this shop numerous times but never really got my head turning for it, other than I realised there was always a line which I usually can't be bothered to wait for.. However, since my sister recommended it to me one day and told me to try it when I have time, so, I did. We were quite full from lunch, wanting to go for dinner but since the time was still quite early plus we were quite bored of walking and shopping around, we decided to just try it as I mentioned it to him as we walked past it..

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