[TAIPEI] 洋庭坊義大利麵 Pasta

Hi, everyone! Actually, we will try to keep posting regularly and I, personally, have to admit that it is quite hard. But, with the love of food and I kind of think it's a waste if I don't share with everyone (even if it's only just couple of person LOL), so here I go.

This time, Dwi would like to review about place to have a decent taste of pasta in Taipei. The place is near NTU Hospital station and just view walks from the Hot Pot place I've reviewed before. Just like almost every restaurants in the neighborhood, this place offers a quite packed place with just probably only 7-8 tables and I have to say that the space is narrow and you could easily bumped in to your next table. The menu is all in Chinese *sigh* and you should use your apps translator if you don't know Chinese language at all. You can't ask the owner as well, because they simply cannot speak English.

The selection is divided into 2 kinds of dish: cooked and baked, and actually they does not only offers pasta, but also rice! Yes, people you heard me, rice, not risotto.

First order is this kind of pasta. Actually, when I translated the name, it supposed to be Mushroom and Chicken with Tomato Sauce (120 NTD). Well, I could see quite a lot of breast chicken and mushroom here, but to be honest the sauce didn't meet my expectation. As you can see, it was way too creamy and runny and milky. Fortunately, the level of its cooked is nearly perfect al dente! The portion I should say that it was big enough, even I couldn't finish my plate. Comparing the size, taste, and price, I would like to rate it 4/5. The downside for me was just (again) its sauce.

Next one is my friend's order. She chose from the baked selection and have penne inside it! When translated, the menu was kind of Penne Baked with Ham and Cheese (180 NTD). As you can see that it was so eyegasm with the pull-apart cheese. If you are so into cheese, I highly recommend you this one. The penne was good, the cheese was there, yet not so-overwhelming. The portion was huge as well! This one is worth to be rated 5/5. It was baked to its perfection!

Another information to be added, expect for one-two lines whenever you came here at weekend, because I can see they are running out their business quite well. Despite the packed place, people love to eat here because I should say they have a decent pasta.

Restaurant: 洋庭坊義大利麵

Address: No. 15-2, Nanyang Street, Zhongzheng District, Taipei City, 100

Business Hour: 11 am - 9 pm

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[TAIPEI] 品森鍋物 Affordable and Nice Place!

Taiwanese people loves to eat hotpot so much, either it is hot and dry in the summer or even just in a cold winter. Dwi bumped into this restaurant accidentally, when strolling around Zhongzheng District. From the outside, it looks like an upscale restaurant compared to the restaurants surrounding. Fret not, all the dishes here are pretty affordable and the variant is quite vary.

What I love about this place is the space. Although it is not that big, you will be not easily bumped into the person at your next table. It also has a clean and neat table. Every person will have their own personal stove (errr yeah, you don't say...). It has two floors and their restroom is the cleanest restroom I've ever met so far in Taiwan! Even they have toilet spray (bidet)! Actually, it is quite important for Indonesian people. Let's review the dish!

I instantly chose the original broth since I was not in the mood to try another kind of broth like spicy broth, kimchi broth, or sweet and sour Thai broth. I just wanted to create my own personal taste, because I am very confident when it comes to it LOL. You can opt for beef or pork, and I go for beef. It only costed me 130 NTD. Here, you also gets 8 thin slices of beef, vermicelli (glass noodle), tofu, fish cakes, sausage, mushrooms, veggies, and some innards plus black pudding... (ew, I didn't touch it).

Since the soup is clear, you can taste almost nothing unless you put your own condiments. You can go to the bar in the corner to pick and create your own personal taste for the hotpot such as cuts of garlic, chillis, scallions, BBQ paste, soy sauce, and salty soy sauce. My recipe for the broth is 2 tsp of garlic, 1.5 tsp of chillis (yes, I like it spicy), 1 tsp of soy sauce, and so much scallions. As for the dipping sauce, usually I will just use broad bean paste, but since they didn't have it, I just create 3 tsp of BBQ paste and a little bit of soy sauce.

The beef is so thin, and it was not so lean, so I could chew the tasty meat (50:50 ratio of meat and fat). And by far, this restaurant is so generous in putting the glass noodle in your hotpot LOL. Oh, and if you like some additional in your dish, such as more set of veggies, ramen noodle, or even meat, you can just tell them and it will cost you extra. At the bar, you can also see the pot for refilling your soup and free flow of iced lemon infused water and cold tea.

Restaurant: 品森鍋物

Address: 100, Taipei City, Zhongzheng District, 信陽街6-2號

Business Hour: 11 am - 10.30 pm

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[TAIPEI] The Adventure of Finding the Best Zhenzhu Naicha (Part I)

Must eat when you are in Taiwan? Of course the famous Bubble Milk Tea (Boba Milk Tea or Pearl Milk Tea) because this is the mother land of those chewy balls in the sugary milk tea. Believe me that there are a lot (like freaking a lot) of bubble milk tea stores here where you can easily spot them, like you can easily find 7-11 or Family Mart, because they are just everywhere! That is why I put this post as the first part of my adventure finding the best bubble milk tea (珍珠奶茶; zhēnzhū nǎichá).

The first one is 50嵐 (read: Wu Shi Lan). They are famous for their selection of latte. Being different from another bubble milk tea store, they offered a small version of those tapioca balls (but Dwi's preference is their original size where you can chew with so much joy LOL). Some people said that they are just the same like KOI (you can find in Indonesia, especially in Jakarta) which is originated from Hong Kong. I have tasted their Matcha Green Tea Latte with Pearl, Oolong Tea with Pearl and Coconut Jelly, and Green Tea with Pearl. But all the best is the first one. Beside the sugar level and how much ice we want, they offered two size of cups as well, medium or go large. The price is ranging from 40 NTD - 50ish NTD.

 

The cheap one is Coco where you can get one tall cup of zhenzhu naicha for just 35 NTD! IMO, teir pearl is the best so far. Chewy with the right size. I also have tasted their Milk Tea with Grass Jelly, and The Three Gems Milk Tea (coconut jelly, egg pudding, and pearl). All of it are good especially the Three Gems where you can get different three toppings in just one sip! Coco is my favorite so far!

I promise that there will be another post dedicated for this must-drink-when-in-Taipei, so just stay tune!

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[TAIPEI] 3 Idiots Toast & Curry

Da'an district is quite popular for the variety of cute stores, cafes, and shops. Not really too far from the Taipower Building area, there is an alley which is filled up by vegan and vegetarian restaurants, bars, and cafes. One of it is this tiny restaurant in the corner of 4-intersection (further details, please read this through :p). Dwi came in the lunch time and it was quite full, even they asked whether we have made a reservation or not. Luckily, there was one space, so no need to wait for a seat.

They served an Indian cuisine which focused on the vegetarian food. All the main dishes are separated into 2 kinds: toast or rice. It was kind of hard to choose what to eat because the menu is so attentive and invited. They also have the combo packet for 2 people but I personally think the price is quite expensive, so we chose for a la carte. Beside the main dishes, they also have the famous Indian appetizers such as Samosa and Pani Puri.

Dwi chose for the Grilled Masala Mushroom Curry Wheat Toast (180 NTD). This is a grilled wheat toast with mushroom, spices, lettuce, tomatoes with a mozzarella and cheddar cheese. Because they are a vegetarian Indian restaurant, I believe that they should carefully choose what kind of the bread they use. It should be egg and dairy-free. But having said that almost all of the toast menu are came with cheese, I believe this is a lacto-ovo vegetarian restaurant. Fortunately, they are put every details of the food in their menu with 2 languages available, Chinese and English so people would not be mistaken.

The toast is quite thick and the outer layer was crisp enough. It came as a 4-pieces fresh and warm, completed with Indian condiments such as chutney. As for the filling, the mushroom curry is a little bit too plain and the spices/herbs they use were not that any help. If you expect the mozzarella would make your appetite spikes, sorry not sorry that would be quite a high expectation because they didn't put that much on it so you won't see any pull-apart-cheese-entertainment. What I like about this dish  was the bread they use and their chutney sauce.

Another menu that I tried is their Curry Rice, Alu Gobi (240 NTD) and opted for the combo packet B consisted of salad and 1 drink which is Masala Milk Tea Hot. The portion was huge. It consists of rice (which was cute because of the heart-shaped), 2 pieces of toasted bread, cauliflowers and potatoes curry, and the salad itself. I expected the curry sauce would be rich of herbs and the authentic scents of Indian food but not that much. They cooked a little bit too long for the cauliflowers so it was overcooked, but the potatoes was just right. Their salad was standard, cabbage and cherry tomatoes with walnuts, chestnuts, and edamames!

The Masala Milk Tea has gave me another experience of milk tea because I could feel some kicks of fragrant in there.

All the waitress and the chefs are Indian, they can speak English and Chinese very well! So kind and quite helpful for the first timer like us, LOL. Oh, they also offered free water even if you didn't order their beverages. But expect the hassle during lunch or dinner time because the space from each tables are quite narrow.

Address: No. 28, Lane 283, Section 3, Luosifu Road, Da’an District, Taipei City, 106

How to get there: Stop at MRT Gongguan Station and take Exit 3 National Taiwan University

Opening Hours: 11.30-14.30 (Lunch) and 17.00-22.00 (Dinner)

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Taiwanese Breakfast

Ni Hao~ Well, it has been quite a long time not to post anything here. Let's talk about food from Taiwan, especially the one that you will often find in the morning. There are quite a lot of people which are into breakfast kind of person and prefer to be like a boss at breakfast meal more than the rest of the day like lunch and dinner. And it goes the same like Dwi! Let's talk about Taiwanese breakfast!

 

1. Jianbing

Jianbing is freakishly popular among local people as a grab-and-go kind of breakfast. No need any utensils and you can just eat it freshly warm from the stalls (of course seller will give you a holder paper). It's simple and made from crepe, omelet, and chop of scallions, mixed it together on a hot pan. This one is my most favorite meal as a breakfast and one day I even ate Jianbing thrice for breakfast, afternoon snacking, and dinner. LOL. You can add condiments if you like such as vinegar, chilli sauce, or just leave it as it is (it's already good, I promise). It's very simple yet tasty, and quite fulfilling that hold your hunger until lunch time comes. The price is very affordable, ranging from 20-30 NTD for each of this yummy things.

 

 



  

2. Steamed Bun with Egg

Taiwanese takes their bun/bread seriously high. I, personally who love bread, is on heaven here. It's pretty ranging, you can almost find any kind of bakeries on the street, mall, or even on the small alley to your hotel. For breakfast, they usually served steamed bun, which often called as Mantao, and it comes as white or brown color. No difference of taste, though (IMO). To complete your morning hunger, it usually comes with fried egg or omelet as the protein. It is kind of grab-to-go breakfast as well. Because of its simplicity, the price is also very affordable, ranging from 10-17 NTD for each.

 

      

 

 

3. Peanut Butter Toasted Bread

I personally don't think that this one is a local breakfast, but I always find it at my favorite breakfast stall at Hsinchu and had it like couple of times. It is simple yet heaven to me, because two of my favorite things together in my mouth which is bread and peanut butter. Hehehehe. The crispiness of the outer layer of bread is just right on its level and the peanut butter itself is buttery but not very sweet, perfect to my liking! Aside from the peanut butter, there are another one, like matcha, milk, and cheese. I only get to taste peanut butter and matcha, but I personally prefer into PB more than matcha (and moreover I didn't get to photo that one up until this post was made hehehe). It costs you only 10-18 NTD!

 

 

4. Chicken Bread

I also don't have any idea what the mandarin name of this meal, but since this one is very very very tasty, I have to tell you! Actually you can choose between chicken or pork. Since I can't have pork, so I opt for chicken! It looks like a pastel which contains chopped of chicken breast, scallions, and omelet. The great thing is they added pepper into it, so the taste is becoming richer! No, it is not that spicy, you can have it enjoy, but the seller will give you an additional of chili sauce for you spicy lovers (me love it!) PS. Enjoy it while it's still warm!

 

   

 

There are another local Taiwanese breakfast that you should try as well. And actually, people here loves to complete their breakfast with black tea, green tea, or soy milk. It is cheap as well, like 10 NTD you can get one cup of beverage. If you will go to Taiwan, please do spare of your tummy for this meal (aside from your breakfast hotel buffet). You can find it easily in the street along the way you go. If you happened to be here, please do share what's your favorite breakfast on the comment section!

 

Bye bye~

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Pempek & Es Kacang Vico: Selalu Bikin Kangen

 

**Warning: Buat orang Palembang asli dan sedang merantau jauh, post ini bisa berakibat kangen rumah, pempek, dan cuko.

Since kita berdua adalah orang Palembang asli yang kebetulan sedang menetap di Jakarta, jadi pulang ke kampung halaman adalah hal wajib yang dilakukan paling nggak setahun sekali. Kali ini, Dwi akhirnya pulang juga ke Palembang dan langsung mampir ke tempat makan yang selalu menjadi tujuan nomor satu kalo pulang. Tak lain tak bukan adalah Vico! Tempatnya sebetulnya ada dua di Palembang, tapi hanya satu yang paling terkenal dan sering didatangi orang-orang karena letaknya di tengah-tengah kota, bahkan berseberangan dengan Palembang Indah Mall (PIM). Tempatnya emang kurang nyaman untuk berlama-lama ataupun nongkrong. Karena ini memang dikhususkan untuk tempat makan aja, makanya jangan harap ada wifi disini. Yang paling terkenal disini adalah pempek dan es kacang merahnya!

Pertama datang, langsung dihidangkan satu porsi pempek berbagai jenis yang isinya ada 10. Ada keriting, kulit, tahu, lenjer, pastel, dan telor (@3.5 K). Bisa customizable kok, kalo kalian hanya suka pempek telor dan kulit, bisa request kalo yang lain diganti. Cukonya? Mantep sekaleeee, kental, asamnya pas, pedasnya bikin nagih, dan ada sedikit hint rasa manis.


Mie Ayam Baksonya juga dahsyat! Mienya kenyal, disuguhkan dengan bakso 3 biji yang cukup kenyal, dan kuahnya meskipun sederhana tapi surprisingly bikin nagih.

 Selain menu yang berbau Palembang, disini juga ada Pecel. IMO, pecel mereka sangat biasa (enak banget enggak, enggak enak juga enggak), jadi ada baiknya mending coba menu Palembang yang lain, yang lebih worth to try.

Sebagai dessert, despite of Es Kacang, I decided to order Es Campur. Isinya campur-campur dan seperti pada umumnya ada kacang merah, tape, cincau hitam, dan cincau. Es serutnya menggunung ke atas dan diguyur dengan santan serta dilengkapi dengan susu kental manis putih dan coklat. Sumpah, ini guilty pleasure banget. Manisnya pas, segernya dapet, dan sangat bikin nagih.

Di tiap meja juga dilengkapi dengan jajanan pasar khas Palembang yang bisa dicoba, misalkan Srikaya khas Palembang. Tapi karena perut sudah keburu full, akhirnya gak nyobain. Tapi, buat kalian yang lagi traveling ke Palembang, gak ada salahnya untuk mencicipi kue ini.

Pempek & Es Kacang Vico

Jalan Letkol Iskandar, 24 Ilir, Palembang, Kota Palembang, Sumatera Selatan 30113, Indonesia
Opening Hours: 10.00 - 20.00

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Jejamuran: Semuanya Serba Jamur!!

Halo Foodies! Ceritanya liburan tahun baru kemarin Farisha ke Jogja, dan mampir di salah satu restoran yang cukup terkenal di kalangan turis lokal, yaitu Jejamuran! Restonya terletak di Jl. Magelang KM11 RT01/RW02, Desa Niron, Pandowoharjo, Tridadi, Kec. Sleman, Jogjakarta. Ini resto tuh katanya rame banget pas jam makan siang, sampe waiting list, padahal meja kursi nya banyak dan tempat makannya luas banget. Pas ke sini, ternyata memang beneran rame, rata-rata penuh sama keluarga sih. 

Setelah waiting list sekitar setengah jam, kita akhirnya dapat tempat dan memilih menu. Menu-menu di sini serba jamur lho! Harga-harga nya juga terjangkau banget. Ini menu-menunya:

Terjangkau banget kan? Oh iya, di sini tuh ternyata si empunya resto budidaya jamurnya sendiri, jadi mereka pasti ga bakal kehabisan jamurnya. Ya iyalah, menu utamanya jamur, hehehe. Dekor di depan restorannya pun serba jamur. Unik banget!

Sekarang, kita lihat makanan-makanannya.

Menu yang satu ini namanya Sate Jamur (Rp 16.000). Ini menu yang paling gak terlupakan, soalnya berasa kayak makan sate ayam, padahal ini jamur. Potongan jamurnya gede-gede pula, mantap.

Kalau ini namanya sop jamur (Rp 14.000). Kuahnya bening kayak sop ayam biasa, cuma isinya jamur, brokoli, bakso, dan wortel. 

Berikutnya, ada Jamur Merang Goreng Tepung (Rp 15.000). Ini kayaknya lebih enak buat cemilan, kriuk kriuk banget. Saking nagihnya, akhirnya bungkus lagi buat makan di perjalanan huehuehue

Selain jamur, ada menu-menu lain juga kayak ayam goreng dan karedok.

Untuk minuman, Farisha kemarin pesan Es Dawet Jejamuran (Rp 12.000), tapi lupa fotonya :(. Es dawet jejamuran ini bukan es dawet biasa loh, karena ada jamurnya juga di dalemnya. Seger banget!

Selain menu-menu yang Farisha pesan di atas, masih banyak lagi menu-menu serba jamur lainnya. Mabok jamur deh pokoknya kalau dicobain satu-satu! Yang Farisha suka, resto ini tuh tempatnya adem dan nyaman. Musholla juga tersedia, jadi para turis yang mampir ke sini bisa makan siang sekaligus beribadah.

Pokoknya, Resto Jejamuran ini wajib banget dicobain kalau lagi liburan ke Jogja. Selain menu-menu jamurnya yang enak, harganya juga terjangkau banget! 

Tertarik? 

Jejamuran

Jl. Magelang KM11 RT01/RW02, Desa Niron, Pandowoharjo, Tridadi, Kec. Sleman, Jogjakarta.

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