Now Cooking - Hungry Hiro

There is this street in North Jakarta, inside a housing complex named Bukit Golf Mediterania, that slowly emerging as a culinary haven, mimicking Muara Karang, Kelapa Gading Boulevard, Kemang, Gajah Mada and the likes. Just in this month, I've seen at least five new foodplace opening and more to come. Hungry Hiro is one of them.

It grabs my attention with it's somewhat persuasive name and reminded me of my day-to-day meal when I was in Sydney, the ultimate go-to fastfood, Hungry Jacks.

Judging from the logo, brand, and design, I've carried a decent amount of expectation for this particular foodplace. Boasting themselves as the pro in Japanese don, I finally gave up being curious and give it a try last week. 

To my surprise Hungry Hiro was almost empty, and it was Sunday afternoon, a prime time for many of it neighboring foodplace. I started to feel a bit off, cause foodie in this area are very judgmental on new restaurant, you either make it or lose it. I uncover this hypothesis to be true in the next 15 minutes when the menu I ordered finally came.

Meet Beef Bulgogi Don, served in a plastic box. I repeat, plastic box. Yeah, you heard it right. I'm not against it, but it is such a turn off. Even fastfood like Yoshinoya use a proper solid glass bowl for the food.  That was the first minus point.

Second, the portion was a joke for someone who's still in puberty like me. In my cousin's words: "Hungry Hiro.. Right.., I'm still hungry after the meal. "

And third, the meal came out cold. I'm sorry, I just have zero tolerance for food not being served hot just as any meal should be. Don't you think so?

Trying to maintain my hopes up, I looked up on the other side of the plastic box. I got the Chicken Teriyaki Don.

Good thing the taste of these two were quite okay. Not in the 'special' category. Maybe more fitted into decent or average. But I personally like the saucing on the Teriyaki. It was the right amount of sweetness for my tastebud.

Right after I finished I still have the thought of coming back to try some other meal, but after learning the choices they have in their menu, this is probably the most interesting of them all. In other words, I have nothing more to expect from Hungry Hiro.

I really hoped that people who have the money and the opportunity to start up a new foodplace really take a serious effort into executing their concept. There's still a bunch of improvement that Hungry Hiro can do. Menu variety for one, ambiance for two, and a lot more.

Until then, I wish you well, Hiro. I really do.

Cheers (and I'm still hungry),

Fellexandro Ruby
Food Conversationalist & Photographer
Munch on my tweets @Wanderbites

Now Cooking - Ten Ten, Tasty Tempting Tempura

Holla Biters, how's your day? I've been having a series of fortunate events. It's almost as if the universe are conspiring for my favor. Its' a little exaggeration, but its close to what I feel lately. Opportunities keep coming by to do what I love, offer after offer, and to spice it all up, invitations to food tastings. =)

This one's alike. Thanks to Goorme for arranging such an intimate dinner at Ten Ten grand opening in Plaza Indonesia.

What I enjoy most from tasting is the convenience of meeting fellow bloggers. There were Jenz, Imel, Daniel, Umay, Lolo, Sara and Tommy at this particular event. It was quite a night, we had heaps of fun and ended up naming this little group of ours as Romantis (Rombongan Makan Gratis). =p

In case you're curious what we had while laughing along random conversations, here they are in one roll.
 

Ten Ten Hot Dog and Fried Sweet Potato as appetizers.

I remember noting down the taste in my memory as I munch on these two. The hot dog, although it appears revolutionary by the name of it, it does not adds new experience or flavor. The sweet potato however was well prepared, leaving a crispy outer texture that counter the sweet gooey interior. I like this one.

Ebi Tendon that comes with three different dressing for your liking: plain, spicy, and blackpepper. I went for spicy and blackpepper. It was again a fortunate decision. The blackpepper dressing was one of a kind. I'd choose this anytime over the other two. I also recommend this especially for those who prefer strong flavor on their meals. Go for it. 

Lemon Cheese Mouse and Ogura Kakigori. These two were the highlight of the night. I love how it was layered with soft creamy cheese and then follows with sour crumbles on the bottom. The mix of the two was a feast on the tongue.

As for you who prefers cold dessert, the kakigori or shaved ice might just fit your taste buds. It did well for me. In a way it reminded me of snow ice but a level softer.

Overall, it was a pleasant dinner. Having a handful of lovely company surely adds the flavor on each meal. I would surely come back to this place for their dessert. As for their main course, in my humble opinion, I didn't find it satisfactory other than to fill a variety gap. Maybe because I personally not a big fan of tempura. For me tempura is just another word for any-kind-of-deep-fried-stuff. And surely wouldn't pay over 40k for two pieces of fried shrimp and fried leaves on top of a bowl of rice. Other than that, I kinda prefer having tempura with the additional sauce for dipping which I didn't find here.You're welcome to disagree with me though.

Let me know what you think ;)

Cheers,

Fellexandro Ruby
Food Conversationalist & Photographer
Munch on my tweets @Wanderbites

Now Cooking - Hakata Ikkousha (Rumah Bahagia Pertama)

Having lived around Pluit area have a counter effect on me. I probably know less about food in this area that most Pluitans. Its the thought that "I can always come back whenever I want to since its very close" that hinders me from trying many new places. That includes Hakata Ikkousha or Rumah Bahagia Pertama (literally translated as First House of Joy). Only after passing through this place for more than a month that my curiosity finally builds up.

I love everything in this place that mimic a Japanese atmosphere. Starting from the woody interior, the low ceiling, the real Japanese staffs, up to the lousy translation written on their T-shirts. Oh, a little hint for you Biters, the chefs are those with blonde colored hair. The owner is the one who go and talk to everybody.

I, myself had a pretty interesting interaction with him. When I took out my camera and start taking photos, he came up to me and said "Hey sir, you like photography? My two Japanese friend over there said that if you can take their photo naked, which would you choose?" I laughed right then and there. Probably they don't actually welcome cameras, but I like how they convey it in a fun un-condescending way.

We continued chatting, and when the Tam Tam Pork Ramen that I ordered finally came, he suggested me to go take a quick photo and eat right away. He said that food are best enjoyed hot, and he want me to taste the best of their ramen.  And he also against ta pao / take aways. He said, the taste would be ruined once you opened it at home. He prefers people eat on the spot. So here's the only shot I took.

On the first bite, I fell in love with it. A very thick broth is probably the main reason for my liking. You can actually taste the rich meaty flavor resulted from long hours of heating in constant temperature. This makes any other ramen I tasted like skim-milk and this one is full-cream milk.

You get the idea right?

From what I learned, they lift up to what to my expectations. Hakata ramen is originated in Hakata city, located north west of Kyushu. Its distintive feature is the white thick soup made from pork bones. Also added to their specialty is the thin noodle characteristics.

Not stopping at that, I also liked the texture of the soft-boiled egg. It is quite rare to find a restaurant that serve and cook eggs in this particular way.

I simply couldn't waste any of it. It reminded me of a scene in the movie Tampopo. It says that to respect the chef, if you like the ramen you should finish the soup as well. So, as a respect to them, I ended up drinking all the soup and left nothing behind. Haha. It was so so goood, I can't stop tweeting about it.

It also came to my attention that they pay respect to local taste as well. In most tables, they will serve a small plate of chopped chili (cabe rawit potong) for Indonesian tounge who likes it spicier. Additionally, you can also add a splash of garlic using the table garlic press available on each table. I tried adding it nearing the end of my meal and it was flavorsome. Dang, I should've added it from the start. That's a lesson for your Biters.


Now enough of these mouth-watering talks. Go and taste them yourself. Make your belly happy. A happy belly will lead to a happy mind. =) And when you do, share it with me here.

Arigato Gozaimasu,

Fellexandro Ruby
Food Conversationalist & Photographer
Munch on my tweets at @Wanderbites


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Hakata Ikkousha (博多一幸舎)
Jl. Muara Karang Raya No.85
North Jakarta
ph. +62 21 66600255
fx. +62 21 66670588