"What to eat in Jakarta???" - Part 1

To travel is to eat (Photo source: Google.com)

There were so many varieties of food available at my hometown in Jakarta (both local and international flavour). And yet, there was only limited time and stomach space available, minus off the delicious home-cooked food that my parents prepared, and the lost of appetite due to the cough and flu that attacked me during the first one week of my stay. Nevertheless, despite all that, I still managed to enjoy the following food as per list below:

1. Kedai Bu Djoko was my favourite place to go. The location was not too far from where I stayed so when there was no private transport available, I could reach the place easily by Bajaj (the three wheel transport commonly used in Jakarta - very similar with Auto in India). There were few things I loved from the stall.

Bakmie Kangkung Bu Djoko

First, Bakmi Kangkung or Morning Glory beef yellow noodle soup (IDR 35,000 or SGD $3.70). It tasted so delicious. The broth was dark brown and sweet. The leaf of the morning glory was crunchy as you bit among the soft yellow noodle. Slurped the soup together with the beef pieces and the fried red onion.. hmmmm.... nyummy!!! ^^

Second, Ketoprak (IDR 30,000 or SGD $3.20) - a vegetarian dish, a mixture of rice vermicelli, fried tofu, boiled vegetables, boiled egg with peanut sauce. Too bad it was sold out when I was there. My mom bought Asinan Sayur or assorted raw vegetable pickles in peanut sauce instead, served with Kerupuk Mie (cracker noodle shape) in small size (same price with Ketoprak).

I ordered one piece of Kerupuk Mie (IDR 10,000 or SGD $1), which was served with peanut sauce - my favourite snack!!! As drink, I ordered Es Pala or fresh nurmeg drink (IDR 20,000 or SGD $2.10) while Mom ordered Es Bangkok - mixture of coconut, sago jelly, etc. with coconut milk and ice, at the same price.

Address: Jl. Blok R II Selatan No. 1, Muara Karang, Jakarta Utara

2. Ayam Goreng or fried chicken H. Mardun Martinah. After shopping at ITC Mangga Dua, suddenly Mom asked me if I wanted to eat there. The location was not too far from the shopping center. You could hire Taxi, Uber, or even Gojek (motor taxi using apps) to reach the place. The restaurant location was near the Mangga Besar railway station.

Ayam goreng H. Mardun Martinah - Jakarta, Indonesia 

The name sounded so familiar in my ears but when I entered the restaurant, I could not recognise the place. We used to visit the old restaurant, which was no longer there. The long tables used to be set in rows and very crowded. When we reached, it had already passed the lunch time so it wasn't that crowded.

My mom loved the taste of their fried chicken. She ate two. Don't be surprised because the size of the chicken was not big as they used kampung chicken. We ordered mix of rice and fried vermicelli that tasted so good - like those served on the wedding dinner during old times :) They served peanut sauce as the condiments for the chicken, added with kecap manis or sweet soya sauce, yellow cucumber pickles, and raw small red onions.

Usually they would put double quantity of the chicken on the plate and if we couldn't finish, we only paid what we ate  (so no obligation to finish all what they served). They would serve fried tofu on the plate too. Hmmm... the overall food really reminded me of olden days. Mom used to bring us there when we were small. Very nostalgic feeling!!! :) I forgot to check the price of each item. However, total paid for 3 pcs fried chicken, 2 plates of half-rice and half-fried rice vermicelli, plus 2 glass of coconut drinks were IDR 133,500 or SGD $14.

Address: Jl. Mangga Besar Raya No.90A, RT.13/RW.1, Taman Sari, Jakarta Barat

3. Bakso Belitung at Bandengan. Belitung was an island name in Indonesia, at South East of Sumatera. The island was famous for its fish produced items just like the fried fish cake we ordered (picture right below) and fish balls (picture left below). The bowl next to it contained Songsui or pork organ soup cooked with ginger, salted vegetables and red things. The soup tasted sweet and spicy. I loved it!

Bakso Belitung at Bandengan

They also sold Chinese style dishes. I saw people at other tables ordering it. Looked delicious!!! My dad ordered Mie Goreng or fried noodles. Hmmmm... It tasted so nice!!! Very homey and nostalgic. Smelled so fragrant :)

As for me, I ordered Bakmi Belitung or the island's specialty noodles. It contained fried bits pieces of something haha... I couldn't say, prawns? There were cucumber and boiled potatoes, both were cut in small pieces, with fried Emping or belinjo crackers on top. It reminded me of Singapore Mee Rebus actually hehehe... :) How much? Mom paid the bill and I forgot to ask ^^

Address: Jl. Bandengan Utara No 14E, Jakarta

4. Kok Tong Kopi at Pluit Village Mall. If you read my previous blog post regarding my trip to North Sumatera, Medan, I stopped at Pematang Siantar town and had an iced coffee at Kok Tong coffee shop. Yeah, this was the original shop that selling the same coffee. But the one I attended recently was in Jakarta, their branch.

Coffee and snack from Kok Tong at Pluit Village Mall :)

After shopping groceries at Carrefour inside the Pluit Village Mall, my sis was asking me if I wanted to have a coffee. I said yes! And she brought me there. It's just located outside the other entrance door. If from outside, you could see it next to Starbucks, not directly, but within walking distance. I ordered hot coffee or Kopi-O  (without milk or cream), while my sister ordered Iced Coffee. We both shared a plate of Pisang Goreng Coklat Keju or fried banana with chocolate and cheese. Hmmmm..... It tasted delicious lah!!! Perfect with my Kopi-O after added with sugar in such lovely evening!

Beverage menu - Kok Tong at Pluit Village Mall 

Food menu - Kok Tong at Pluit Village Mall 

I attached the above menu for your info. Fyi, the price above was exclude of 10% Service Charge and 10% Tax. We paid IDR 73,000 or almost SGD $8 in total.

Address: Pluit Village, Ground Floor
Jl. Pluit Indah Raya, Pluit, Penjaringan, Jakarta Utara

Read the part two here :)