Mummynista!

Looking for great western food with a bit of an interesting twist? And also a less horrifying bill and a nice ambience?  Check out Koi Kemang or Koi Mahakam, and you won't regret. It's been a month since I arrived in Jakarta, and I would say Koi Kemang is one of the best restaurants in Jakarta and also my personal favourite. I like here way better than Union . Pretty art pieces filled up the textured walls. A great selection of wine. I like the classy yet laidback ambience of the restaurant; the couple times I went it was also full but not overly noisy so it's a great place to relax, have a good conversation over great food. My personal favourite is the Melted Brie on Beef Bacon and Potato Crisps Salad(below), the combination is simply amazing. It is great as a starter for sharing. I don't have the pictures here but the Escargot on Pastry starter is great as well, if you like snails like I do. You have to try this. Melted Brie on Beef Bacon and P

We were craving for something soupy the other day; Indonesian food is mostly fried. We decided to check out the ramen store- Ikkousha. We went to the branch in Senayan City but they have couple of outletsIt is supposed to be a franchise from renowned ramen chain in Japan. I was feeling a bit skeptical of halal ramen-  you know great ramen broth is usually stewed from pork bones. The ambience is pretty nice and its attempt to make it look japanese is not bad. Miso Ramen Some spicy egg broth ramen, surprisingly tasty! Chicken Karage The outcome? I was surprised that it was pretty good! Of course it lacks the oomfph of the usual thick pork broth but they got the taste as well as the ramen right. I found the spicy egg broth really delicious and satiable to my soup craving; it's quite spicy though. The prices are also reasonable, costing about 80,000IDR (8USD) per bowl. Since we live only couple minutes away, we will definitely be coming back here quite regula

Thanks to Jakarta100bars ,  I managed to find a Chinese Restaurant that serves authentic Chinese cuisine here in Jakarta. I was really excited as I always loved Szechuan food and was not too sure if we could find it here in Jakarta. Since our friend Deena, who is heading back to New York soon, also loves Szechuan; it was a perfect excuse to drag G for Chinese food. After half an hour ride, we finally approached an area that has couple of dark alleys with tiny restaurants appearing occasionally along the way. Just when we were afraid that we could have just missed the place, a Ancient-Chinese inspired looking building emerged at the corner (just across brightly lit O-Town Coffee). We found our Chinese haven.  It looks just like this. ( Credits: Openrice.com) When we arrived, the restaurant was a bit empty( with a large troop of servers) so we weren't sure if it was really as good as it was reviewed. However we decided to take the risk. Stir-fried Chinese Spinach. (Sauté

We went there the first time last week and I was back again today. Not sure if you realised but groceries are considerably pricey in Jakarta; as compared to the overall living standard.  I find that meat in Ranch Market and even Carrefour/Lottemart to be more expensive than Singapore. And less fresh. And thank goodness we found Indoguna through Ana's blog   and can attest that it was a great recommendation as the prices were almost half of Ranch Market and twice as fresh. It is not a big shop but you can find most of the cuts you want (beef), some lamb, salmon, mackerel and sometimes even lobster! So this is definitely the place to go to if you want some great and cheap meat in Jakarta! Apparently Indoguna supplies to all the major supermarkets here, hence the lower price; and I've checked out that they do also have a presence in Singapore. Entrance of the meat shop. Some of the purchases today. I've got 6x ribeyes, 2x tenderloins, 0.5kg ground beef, salmon

The last that I checked, I am not a hermit, at least I don't look like one so...I kept myself surprisingly busy by trying to find myself some new friends in this new city. I think meeting like-minded people is one of the most important thing for someone new in town especially if you are a stay-home-mom or temporarily not working. As much as I love Alex, it is a one way conversation; at least at this point of time. And talking too much to Alex's nanny or the apartment's concierge is also not the best thing either. I realised I needed friends (of the same frequency)..if you know what I mean..so that I can sustain my sanity in this lovely yet crazy place. And I also know that I don't possess some super magnetic powers that I could just sit at home and people will come knocking on my front door, "Hi C, I am your new friend." So I decided to take a proactive approach to this and here's couple of channels that I've used or reached out to: 1. Fri

I was meeting someone there and he suggested Djournal. I went there for the first time and I fell in love with it. So I brought G there after Church yesterday. I love the rustic blend of contemporary and vintage. Mint Mojito Coffee. Very interesting flavour and the blend of coffee is fragrant.  I just love, love, love all the little details they put into the decor. G had a chicken wrap. I had the Aglio Olio. G is an avid Starbucks fan and he agreed that this cafe is indeed very nice in many ways. Coffee is quite fabulous and I like the Lychee Tea (I'm not a coffee drinker). What I like about the place is that it is kind of hidden; not too busy and have a wide selection of drinks as well as some cafe food.  It is a great place to have some alone me-time and also a lovely hang out place with friends. It is a self service place so you don't get interrupted by rude waitresses or feel any pressure to not linger too long. Overall 9/10. Awesome

I suggested to G that we should go clubbing...however backed out as I was feeling too tired after a long day. We decided that we should still do something on a Saturday night and stop behaving like an old married couple- like surf some net, make out and then sleep. As we didn't do any prior research of where to go, we headed down to concierge and asked them for some recommendations which are nearby. Couple minutes later... we are at E & O (Easter & Oriental), just across the street and also one of the hippest places downtown. How did we missed it? Staying just a block away?! Beats me sometimes. Anyway, I decided to skip beer this week and try a cocktail. I asked the bartender to make me something according to my preference- like not too sweet or sour. Modern chic interiors.   Friendly bartender mixing the drink. Final shake. TAH-DAH! Think it is called Pink Lady. G had Erdinger on draft and we both went on for one more round of whisk

We were visiting the cute barber shop  around Blok M when we realised that the Japanese Grocery store, which another Japanese expat-Kaho blogged and recommended before, was just a minute walk away. Was so delighted to spot this. The frontal of the shop. A small mart but with all things Japanese you may wish for. I was really excited to see the various Sashimi available at reasonable prices. We didn't get much as it was our first time shopping here and we wanted to try out the freshness of the products.  Remember to ask them for Wasabi and also ice to keep the Sashimi fresh if you are going to travel a while in the car. We arrived home after an hour and half later (as we proceeded to shop at Indoguna Meat Shop); I quickly sliced up the salmon Sashimi and dug in with G. It was really not bad at all! In fact better than what we had in Ritz ( read more here ) the other day. We will definitely return again for all our Japanese supplies :) COSMO Jalan Bul

G needed a haircut and I was curious about the vintage barbershop that was featured in Honeycomber s ...so we decided to check it out right after brunch today.  So full of nostalgia! It's as if we've time-travelled. Before the haircut. Remember these chairs? The haircut, including the barber's very conscientious effort and a finishing shoulder massage, costs only 50,000 IDR ($5usd~) . We gave the barber quite a huge tip as we kinda felt bad that it costed so little for almost 40mins of his effort.  We wouldn't say that it was a fabulous haircut(no it didn't make G look any closer to Ryan Gosling) but it will be good enough for a male who just wants a basic and neat haircut. And of course it is worth a visit for just the fun and nostalgia factor.  There's also lots to eat around there, with a Japanese Grocery Store- Cosmo nearby where you can get fresh Sashimi and other Japanese stuff.  BLOK M Branch  Gedung Resto Ayam Bulungan,

The Jakarta Women and Child Clinic (JWCC) Alex was sick few weeks ago when he turned one, hence we weren't able to get him his one year vaccination back in Singapore. We went to Kinder Clinic in Paragon where Dr Kenny Ee is practising. He was Alex' PD since childbirth and has been under his excellent care for the past year. I told Dr Ee that we were moving to Jakarta and he recommended the Jakarta Women & Children Clinic which is a subsidiary of Kinder Clinic and a Pediatrician called Dr Lineus. The procedures are pretty similar to Singapore's; Register at the counter, get baby's height and weight measured and wait for your turn. We asked for Dr Lineus as he was recommended by Dr Ee; he can speak very good english for an Indonesian therefore communication wasn't a problem. He checked Alex quite thoroughly too and asked about his development. He isn't as friendly as Dr Ee and Alex didn't take to him as he did with his former PD so we are probab

Sadly, most of us don't wake up looking or even..feeling like this. A more realistic one is like this. Credits:  http://www.seattlewolf.com/Hate-Waking-Up- It's one of THOSE days when you just feel like wearing your PJs all day; or perhaps feel like a bloated hippopotamus because of too much sodium the day before. A girl, however, needs to stay pretty so this is the perfect outfit for you when you are feeling anything shitty... like me right now. *humming Bruno Mars' Lazy song* Batwing sleeves ensure no one sees your flabby arms, shorts to create illusion of a silhouette and of course one will always need a centre piece, which will be your latest designer bag or a new favourite necklace. Helmut Lang petite top lagarconne.com Forever New scalloped lace shorts $65 - forevernew.com.au Tory burch flat toryburch.com River Island brown bracelet $40 - riverisland.com MAC Cosmetics lip gloss macys.com

I was going through all my posts and realised that there isn't a single one on fashion. It's a little cliche since the blog is named Mummynista... Hence I decided that I should probably start blogging a little more on fashion and beauty and not just food. Otherwise, I might just need to change the blog name to Fatmamanista. *cackles* If you've read ' About Me ' or knew me personally back then, you would probably know how much I used to dress up. Everyday WAS  'I need to be fabulous' day. However since pregnancy and giving birth, my fashion laziness just escalated. Nevertheless, I need to reinforce the emphasis of still looking good. Even as wives, we still need to stay competitive...if you get what I mean. I go by these subconscious rules nowadays: 1. Buy clothes that does not require ironing. Have at least one body flattering jeans. 2. Scarfs are my best friends on lazy days. 3. To look like I've put in some effort dressing up- wear sandals i