Continuing on my first post on Jakarta which happened approximately 3.5 months ago... I have more restaurants and cafes to recommend you guys who are heading over!

To me, Jakarta is all about the malls because we were a little hesitant about heading out on the streets... I mean we are 2 ladies wandering alone after all. A friend did bring us to this shopping area where the locals shop...and I cannot remember the name of the place because it's in Indonesian oops. Anyway, we did want to go sightseeing and visit landmarks but *ding ding ding* there's nothing interesting to see. Our local friends had nothing to recommend and I tried googling to no avail so... we went mall-touring hahaha.

The most popular (and huge) malls for everything you'll need are Plaza Indonesia, Plaza Senayan, Senayan City, Grand Indonesia, Pacific Place, Mall of Indonesia, and Pondok Indah 2. You can more or less find the same brands in each place but I guess some of us would travel for the food.

Lunch was at a local restaurant located at Level 4 (I think?) of Pacific Place. Food was nothing to rave about so you don't have to know what's the name of the restaurant (actually I forgot, not because I'm not willing to share okay hahaha).

Honeydew juice which was quite nice

#eggwasafailure but the fried rice was good.

Fatiha said her bowl of noodles was too dry

and the fish soup tasted odd.

Then we adjourned to Pannacotta Etc for iced coffees and panna cotta, of course.

They have a variety of interesting flavours but I'm not a fan so can't comment!

One thing I cannot comprehend is, WHY THE CHICKEN SO SMALL???

We had ayam penyet at food courts and restaurants, and the chicken was never enough to satisfy.

Or is it our Lucky Plaza ayam penyet too big??

Some deep-fried corn thingy which was yums!

Eh I've no idea what's the name of this restaurant or where is it located 

'cause our friend drove us there!

The samba was super spicy and shiok though!

Another pretty cafe *heart-eye emoticon*

Or rather, not just another pretty cafe because the food was awesome!

The Indonesians do serve pretty mean iced tea and this lychee tea 

from The Goods Cafe was beyond good!

This started my iced tea frenzy haha

I was so satisfied with my portobello burger!

The mayo was perfect with the big, fat, juicy portobello and don't get me started on the bread...

I could eat it on its own as there's a slight sweetness to it.

My meal was perfect :D

Everything we ordered tasted pretty good so this is one cafe worth a visit!

You can find The Goods Cafe at most of the major shopping malls I mentioned above ;)

Gunawarman Street is like a hip area with fancy standalone restaurants/cafes.

We spent the afternoon at Le Cafe Gourmand 

which is better known as the colourful ice-cream cones parlour. 

Famous for their desserts so I guess it was a bad choice to order their savoury dishes 

because their eggs benedict was a huge disappointment.

Save some stomach space for the sweets if you ever visit!

Pyjama pants kinda day

And the last restaurant we visited was highly recommended by our friend and now, me.

It's like a Indo-Western fusion restaurant?

Food was good and price was reasonable bordering on cheap.

We ordered a dinner set each which consists of a drink, an appetiser and a main course, 

and it was only S$10 per person!!

Please visit Mangia at Grand Indonesia Mall level 5.

Of course I ordered lychee iced tea again!

This corn fritter thingy (appetiser) and the sauce were so yummy

And my mushroom and mayo (appetiser) were so addictive

My bowl of spicy chicken with fried rice and some fried bits was so good also.

Very generous portions and we had difficulty finishing everything 

even though we wanted to because too yums.

And then one day after dinner, we went to queue for nitrogen gelato 

at Ron's Laboratory (Grand Indonesia Mall)! 

Cornflakes, nutella swirls and a syringe filled with strawberry syrup, I loved it!! 

The cornflakes gave a very nice crunch and it was just...perfect :D

Sorry I took so long to share about the food in Jakarta but I hope you guys have fun there!!

Xx

What happened in Jakarta

I was in Jakarta in June and I already had lots of plans in mind weeks before my flight there because hellooooo, I was going to the city of cheap hair washes, yummy food and also, crazy traffic jams. My friend, Fatiha and I stayed at a friend's apartment and we heard about how dangerous the city can be that's why we only took taxis everywhere (meters start at 70cents WHATTTT). Anyway, it helps to have friends there too because during the peak hours, it is almost impossible to get a cab. 

I also learnt a little or two about the culture there like how cars are so freaking affordable (you can get a Toyota SUV for <S$20,000) and the Indonesians who are doing not too bad have at least one personal drivers for the family. I love this personal driver culture and I couldn't stop raving about it to H hahaha. There are so many chauffeurs there, the big malls actually have a room with TV for them to rest and wait while the boss(es) shop! What an awesome job, it's stress-free and easy money.

Food wise, NEVER eat at their food courts because 99% of the time, the food tastes bad and it is extremely unhygienic though cheap. I'd advise you to top up a few bucks for a more satisfying meal at a local restaurant.

On the first night, we went to Pancious and had desserts for dinner because we had a not-so-fantastic late lunch at the food court.

I ordered the apple crumble waffle which was okay 

and it would taste better if they actually have some sweet sauce over it 

because it was a little dry. 

Or maybe I should have ordered a scoop of ice-cream with it.

Fatiha's caramelised banana crepe cake with vanilla ice-cream which was yummy!

The cream was very fresh and light, even the ice-cream was good.

Actually, the savoury items all looked and sounded extremely delicious 

and we vowed to go back again for lunch/dinner but we never made it back 

because our schedule didn't allow 

and there are many other good cafes/restaurants to check out!

After a long day out on the second day, we went for a hair wash at a salon near the apartment.

The mall was EpiWalk and the salon was located at the top level.

I didn't notice what was the name of the salon, sorry!

Wash + Blow costs around S$7?

So damn cheap and the curls last for dayssss (with no hairspray)!!

And their head massage? NO WORDS.

Just look at these curls.

Achieved with your regular hair brush + hairdryer and a super talented hair stylist.

I was in awe.

No wonder the Indonesian tai-tais always have amazing hair with so much volume!

Oh yes, you can also thread your brows (S$5) upper lips (S$3) at this shop 

located on the same stretch as the hair salon.

Cheap!

We didn't feel too hungry at dinner time again so we ordered sides to share at Kafe Betawi.

I forgot the name of this dish but it is some fishcake thingy with satay sauce.

I loved it!

Sate Ayam (Chicken satay)

Tahu Telor

Actually all the food we ordered were good!

3 dishes + 2 drinks at <S$15 I think!

Moving on...

I picked out 2 pieces of apparel from Fashmob which are gorgeous!

Met my girlfriends for high-tea in the Colosseum Monochrome Midi which got me many praises!

I chose to dress down with a pair of sandals since I was at Gardens by the Bay before this 

and I think I looked just as presentable haha.

I'm wearing size S but XS would be a better fit :)

Brought the Donna Playsuit (Pink) to Perth with me 

because I knew this piece was gonna be perfect for the weather!

It was hot and sunny in the day and the chiffon was light and airy to wear.

When it got windy, I just threw on my jacket 

and there I have it, the perfect winter-approaching-spring outfit.

Fashmob (http://shopfashmob.com) always have all these classy, edgy and feminine pieces 

and I am sure you are bound to find something you fancy.

Have fun shopping ;)

On a sidenote, I love Perth's clear blue skies and lush greeneries so, so, SO MUCH.

Cannot wait to be back in Australia!

Wait for my blogposts on Perth okay? :D