The Slow Kitchen and Bar

The Slow is one of the trendiest and hippest boutique hotel that is located on the coast of Batu Bolong in Canggu, Bali. Other than providing a beautiful accommodation, The Slow also has a well-known dining service called The Slow Kitchen and Bar as well as an art gallery next door connected to the space. Founded by Australian fashion designer George Gorrow (of Ksubi) and his wife Cisco Tschurtschenthaler, one of The Slow’s main intention is to encourage visitors to slow down, relax and enjoy the space.

I first visited The Slow Kitchen and Bar back in 2017, a couple of months after the hotel’s building completion. Since its grand opening, the place has received rave reviews from visitors, including many of my friends who have went and stayed at the place. So during my trip to Bali, I decided to check the place out and went for a visit to its restaurant (since I’m not staying at the hotel). It was a sunny day and I arrived at the hotel around 3 pm in the afternoon. First thing that amazed me was the lighting around the space. The bright sun light actually lit up the whole area really nicely. And living up to its hype, The Slow is absolutely beautiful. Decorated with concrete surface, warm wooden furnitures, lush greeneries and contemporary arts, the combination gives off this modern tropical vibes to the place. The natural lighting and the open area that allows gentle breeze to pass through also give that relaxing ambience that definitely encourages you to slow down and enjoy the space.

“The interior concept is in line with the architecture, using raw and minimal material palette such as timber, concrete and painted plaster wall. The grid module timber ceiling and wall creates strong shadow pattern which becomes the character of the space which is complemented by the lush landscape.”
— rafaelmiranti architects

“The hotel, described by its owners as an exercise in “tropical brutalism”, was designed in collaboration with local architect Rieky Sunur of GFAB architects. Every detail at The Slow has been designed with intentionality, to coax bustling tourists into relaxation, and encourage guests to take full advantage of the beautiful space.”
— theinnbox.co

“Self-described as ‘a place to rest your bones, stir your senses and expand your mind’, the hotel was inspired by Gorrow and Tschurtschenthaler’s personalities amongst the tropical island environment. Natively-sourced, sustainable timber and stone form the foundation of the design, paired with locally made furniture and crafts and artwork from the couple’s own collection.”
— Melia Rayner for estliving.com

Note: Photos were taken before the pandemic.

Update:
On Google, it says that they are temporarily closed, although the hotel itself seems to be open and taking reservations for room bookings. I suggest you contact the restaurant prior to your visit.

 

The Slow Kitchen and Bar

Address: Jl. Pantai Batu Bolong No.97, Canggu, Kec. Kuta Utara, Kabupaten Badung, Bali 80361, Indonesia
Telephone: +623612099000 | +628113899009 (WA)

Instagram: @the.slow.kitchen.bar

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Sanmotungi • 산모퉁이

Sanmotungi (산모퉁이) is a mountainside cafe in Buam-dong (부암동) that offers the view of Inwangsan (인왕산), Bugaksan (북악산) and a glimpse of the Seoul Fortress Wall (서울 한양도성) in the distance. The spacious cafe is also well known as one of the filming location of the famous K-drama “Coffee Prince” which attracts a lot of fans of the drama to come visit this place.

Getting to the cafe wasn’t that easy. I remembered taking a bus and then transferring to a village bus before having to trekked up the hill to get to the cafe. It was quite a journey. If you’re planning to visit here with friends, taking a taxi might be worth avoiding the hassle, especially during a hot summer day or a cold winter day. Or if you don’t mind the hike, just make sure you wear comfortable shoes and clothing.

The cafe is housed in a building that looks like someone’s house whose owner perhaps has a hobby of collecting vintage items seeing all the different things scattered around the front yard. One of the most eye-catching item’s probably the yellow Volkswagen that’s parked near the gate, which I have to say, definitely adds to the charm of the place.

The cafe itself is divided into a couple of different areas since the place is quite big. The first area that you’ll step into has this one corner decorated with paintings of the casts of “Coffee Prince”.

Then there’s this deck area where you can sit outside and enjoy the view of the mountains, some fresh air, as well as looking down to the backyard of the cafe where there are more outdoor seatings available.

There are a couple of areas for the indoor seatings as well, which is nice because you get a lot of options depending on where you want to sit.

I moved around quite a bit but ended up sitting at this spot the longest because this was the quietest spot that still has the view (there were quite a lot of people when I got there but the crowd kind of dissipated after the lunch hour rush has passed).

The backyard area on the lower ground is nice as well. They have plenty of seats that are spread out around the space. Although seeing the view from here while sitting down might be a little hard since you’re almost eye level with the bushes surrounding the area (or maybe I’m just short). I personally think the upper deck is a better spot to enjoy the view.

The menu of the cafe itself is nothing special, but I mainly came here to check out the view so I just considered buying a drink as an admission fee to the place. If you’re looking for an outdoor cafe with a mountain view and fresh air, this place is worth checking out. It’s pretty calm and serene out here. Also, I saw some photos online that they have cherry blossoms too during spring. So maybe if you visit in spring, the view might be prettier.

 

Sanmotungi • 산모퉁이

Address: 서울 종로구 백석동길 153
Telephone: 0507-1354-4737
Hours: Daily 11:00-19:00

Instagram: @sanmotungi.coffee

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Genbu Premium Katsu & Bar

With the many, many Japanese restaurants in PIK area selling delicious menu focusing on different Japanese cuisine ranging from sushi, ramen to donburi, there is one category that is still missing from the numerous already established restaurants, the katsu category. Enters Genbu Premium Katsu & Bar, a newly opened Japanese restaurant in PIK that focuses on premium katsu as their signature menu.

I visited Genbu with my friend, Winda (@munchandsnap.jkt), early last week a couple of days before their grand opening on June 10th. We went for an early lunch on a Monday so the place was pretty quiet when we got there. I think we were the first patron of the day since no other patrons were there when we arrived.

The Ambience

First off, I love the interior of the place. The high ceiling Japanese inspired space is decorated with modern wooden furnitures and designer lantern lamps hanging on the walls. There’s also this huge beautiful Japanese artwork that is displayed on one side of the wall of the main dining area. The whole warm wood and neutral colors combination really give a nice modern cool vibes to the place.

Also, a couple of other things that I appreciate, first, they have these light panels installed on the roof of the main dining area which create a soft lighting for the space. From photography perspective, this is like the best lighting set up to take pictures of your food. I got some awesome shots with the lighting of this place with my camera and my iPhone.

Secondly, I noticed despite of the high ceiling, the place has the right temperature. It wasn’t too hot or too cold (although the weather was kind of cloudy when we were there, but still, it was nice inside), which is always appreciated because sometimes places in PIK can get pretty hot inside.

After we got seated at our table, they gave each of us a welcome drink. A small cup of cold refreshing hojicha that tasted pretty good. Very earthy and smokey. A properly brewed hojicha I would say.

The Food

Now let’s talk about the food. We tried a couple of different things from the menu (which has a really nice photography by the way).

Croquette à la Crème (IDR 99) | 8/10

Starting with the appetizer, Croquette à la Crème (Prawn Cream Croquette). A day before my visit, one of my cousins actually posted on his Instagram that he had dinner at this place and loved it. So I messaged him and asked what are the things I must try from the menu. He liked the pork katsu he ordered, but then he LOVED their croquette. Apparently it’s one of the best thing from his meal, so we ordered the croquette.

The croquette comes in three fairly big pieces that each is sliced diagonally into two pieces. I’m usually not a big fan of croquette, but after I took my first bite, I understand why my cousin gushed so much about this croquette. The breading is light, crispy and flaky. And when you bite into the piece, it’s definitely different than the usual croquette that I’ve had in the past which usually consist of thick mashed potatoes and feels heavy. This one is light and creamy (but not too creamy) and you can definitely taste the prawn mixed in the sauce. It was really good and tasty. On a side note, the portion of the croquette is surprisingly bigger that what I expected. If you’re eating alone and want to order this as an appetizer, the portion might be a little big. But I think it is perfect for sharing with 2-3 people if you come in a group.

Galician Sirloin Tonkatsu Set (IDR 179) | 8/10

For the mains, first up, we had the Galician Sirloin Tonkatsu Set. The set comes with cabbage salad, rice, potato salad, japanese pickles, and akamiso soup. The pork meat is Spanish Galician pork, imported from Spain (most of the meat used for their menus are imported from Japan, Spain, or US apparently).

Again, the breading is light, flaky and crispy. It’s the type of crispiness that won’t hurt the roof of your mouth after your meal. Later on I found out from the owner that they actually make their own panko and how it absorb less oil which is why the breading came up light, flaky and crispy without being too oily. The meat is well seasoned and perfectly cooked. It has the right amount of tenderness and juiciness to it, cut just in the right size and the portion is pretty generous. It was a good, solid tonkatsu.

For the sides, the rice is perfectly cooked (I love a good rice). The akamiso soup (that’s red miso soup if you’re not fluent in Japanese like I do) was flavorful. It has a slightly richer and thicker taste than regular miso soup. The potato salad was good. They use potatoes with carrots for the ingredients. Although it was more like a potato puree/mash for me. Texture wise, it was too smooth and too much of a puree. But the owner said he might change it up and add bits and chunks of the carrot into it so the potato salad will have more texture to it. The Japanese pickle was also good. When I eat it, I can feel that they put a lot of thought and effort into the flavors and it doesn’t feel like they just have pickles for the sake of having pickles, you know.

They also have their own sauces that they developed in-house. The first one is their tonkatsu sauce that’s recommended to be mixed with ground sesame for the dipping sauce of the tonkatsu cutlet. Texture wise, it’s a little bit on the thick side for me. I wished it was a little less thick. Taste wise, it tasted okay. It’s not bad by all means, but it’s not something unique that I haven’t tasted before either. I think they use tomatoes as a base if I’m not mistaken (thus the more reddish color) and the flavor kind of reminded me of barbecue sauce to be honest. It’s just alright. The owner did say that they’re still refining the sauce because he himself is still not too happy about it. So maybe now there’s a different version of the sauce.

For the salad, they have two dressings, the Wafu-Yuzu salad dressing which has a more sweet and citrusy flavor, and the Goma-Dare salad dressing which has a more creamy and nutty flavor. These two were pretty good. Depending on your preference, you have good dressing options for your salad.

Divine Dragons Ebi Furai Set (229k) | 8.5/10

Next up, we have the Divine Dragons Ebi Furai Set which consists of 3 huge pieces of Black Tiger Prawn furai and comes with tartar sauce, cabbage salad, rice, potato salad, Japanese pickles, and akamiso soup. This was probably one of the most satisfying ebi furai that I’ve had in a long time. The size of of Black Tiger Prawns were big and they were meaty (they are really generous with their portion, truly). The prawns were nicely cook with, again, perfect breading. The tartar sauce was also nice, light yet rich and creamy and complimented the prawns wonderfully. I might be a little biased since I was also craving prawn that day but I think this was the menu I enjoyed the most during my visit. (And now writing this post at almost midnight and thinking about this made my stomach growl.)

Sirloin Gyukatsu SET (IDR 249) | 7/10

Last of the mains is Sirloin Gyukatsu Set which consist of US Sirloin cutlet with the sides of cabbage salad, rice, potato salad, Japanese pickles, and akamiso soup.

Okay, right off the bat, I need to say that I don’t think I’ve had any good gyukatsu in Jakarta that is comparable to my favorite gyukatsu in Seoul (Izawa is still my favorite so far. And I haven’t tried Motomura, but some friends who have said Izawa is better. So do with that information what you will). And that record seems to be extending even after I tried Genbu’s sirloin gyukatsu.

The biggest problem I have with gyukatsu in Jakarta is that their breading always came off of the meat when grilled. For some reason, it sticks to the grill instead of the meat and thus making the whole appearance of the gyukatsu cut unappealing after being flipped on the grill (maybe it' has something to do with the panko and how they cut the pieces? idk).

Unfortunately, the same case happened with Genbu’s gyukatsu as well. The breading fell off the meat and stuck to the grill, which make the whole grilling and eating experience a little inconvenient and visually unappealing. The meat is also cut too thin/narrow and weirdly at an angle that made it hard to keep the meat side staying flat on the grill. I just realized now too that the way our meat was cut is different than the picture on the menu, so maybe this was a mistake? I’m not sure and honestly, I didn’t ask since the falling out breading was the topic of discussion with the owner after we gave them our feedback about our meal.

Having said that, I got to say, their meat was really good though. I recently had gyukatsu at one of Jakarta’s popular sushi place (the place where they play the same playlist on all their locations. iykyk) and Genbu’s meat cut is definitely superior than the other restaurant. The meat was nice, tender and juicy, which kind of made up for the breading issue. Honestly, I would really order this menu again if I could just do the gyu without the katsu.

Also, one of the thing that made me gave the gyukatsu 7/10 and the chance to reorder this menu again is their dipping sauce and salt. Oh. My. Gosh. Let me talk about the sauce first (it’s the middle one on the sauce dish next to the gyukatsu and the ebi furai in the picture below). The gyukatsu sauce is probably one of the most unique sauce I’ve ever tasted so far for a gyukatsu. It has sesame oil, a little citrusy flavor and other secret ingredients (the owner’s words, not mine) that are mixed into it.

When you eat the meat with just the sauce, it’s really good. I remembered being pleasantly surprised after my first bite when tasting it. And then I went in again, now dipping the meat with just the salt. And what do you know, the salt is also super nice! I don’t know how to properly describe this salt, but it’s definitely better and more delicious that regular salt you find at barbecue restaurants. And then I went in again, this time dipping the meat in the sauce AND the salt. And it was just, wow. A new flavor combination was born from the combination of the two. It was really, really good. And just because my little experiment of mixing the sauce and salt went so well, I added the wasabi to the mix as well. And what do you know! Another layer of flavor was added to the mix! It was such a good delicious bite honestly.

So as much as I don’t really care for the breading of the gyukatsu, the meat and the dipping sauce really made up for that and that’s why I think it deserves another chance for reorder in the future.

Signature Cocktail

Emperor's Heirloom (140k) | 8/10

One of Genbu’s signature cocktail is Emperor's Heirloom which is made from Roku Gin, pear nectar, and chrysanthemum flower. I took a sip to try and it was sweet, smooth and definitely strong. I’m not much of a drinker in general, so my rating for this cocktail is based on how much I enjoyed the flavor, which is very I should say.

Desserts | 5/10

For desserts, I tried their Hokkaido Pudding (IDR 30) and Houjicha Mochi Ice Cream (IDR 30) since that were the only two options available then. The pudding and mochi ice cream are outsourced and they tasted alright. The Hokkaido pudding tasted like any other Hokkaido Pudding at other Japanese restaurants. The mochi was nice and chewy and the houjicha flavor was really strong. They have now added parfait as new dessert options to the menu so that might be something to try on my next visit.

All and all, it was a really good meal. Everything was tasty and delicious. The price of the menu is on the higher side but considering the premium ingredients and the generous portion, I think it makes sense. The servers were friendly and attentive and the service was great.

We also had a chance to chat a little bit with the friendly owner after our meal and gave our inputs and feedbacks. Since it was still during the soft opening period, he told us that they’re still making adjustments to the menu according to the feedback received. So now that they have officially opened for the public, I’d imagine there are probably some changes and improvements to the food/menu.

If you’re looking for a great katsu restaurant in PIK area, I’d definitely recommend trying this place out.

 

Genbu Premium Katsu & Bar

Address: Rukan Beach Boulevard Blok B No.28, Golf Island, Jl. Pantai Indah Kapuk, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta 14470, Indonesia
Telephone: +62877 9848 1110
Hours: Everyday 11am-10pm

Instagram: @genbu.jkt
Menu

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Gyeongju Sikdang • 경주식당

During one hot summer day in June, I was craving Korean bbq meat and rice. It was lunch time, which means all my friends were either at work or at school, which also means that it’s another one of my solo meat eating session. And so, I decided to visit one of the places from my to-try-restaurants list, Gyeongju Sikdang (경주식당), that serves individual bapsang menu (because this time, I just want to eat one portion of meat and not two like I did at Oneunjeong).

Gyeongju Sikdang (경주식당) is a Korean restaurant that is housed in a hanok located in one of the alleyways of Sangsudong (상수동). Stepping into the spacious courtyard of the hanok feels really refreshing, especially after walking up the narrow street leading up it.

The restaurant is divided into three seating areas (actually four, if you count the table outside in the courtyard) and decorated with vintage tables, chairs, lamps and decorations that match the warm wooden interior of the hanok. The place definitely gave me a nostalgic feeling, like visiting your grandmother’s house kind of feeling. 

I ordered their 목살정식 (Pork Neck Meal) which comes with a side of grilled veggies, rice, doenjang jjigae, and 4 kinds of banchan (kimchi, Korean pickled onion, anchovies and one other thing that I don’t know the name of). The meat kind of hit that middle ground texture that still has a bite to it without being too tough, which was pretty nice. Everything was actually cooked and seasoned well and felt home-cooked. It was a great solid meal for me and my craving was definitely satisfied.

Fun fact:

Gyeongju Sikdang actually appeared on Blackpink’s documentary ‘Light Up The Sky’. This is the restaurant where Blackpink had their meal during the ending scene where Jisoo, Rosé, Jennie, and Lisa talk about where they want to live in the future and what they would be doing twenty years from now. Jisoo & Lisa also actually mentioned that they have been coming to this restaurant since they were still trainees and the server remembers them.

Watch the clip below:

 

Gyeongju Sikdang • 경주식당

Address: 서울 마포구 와우산로13길 49-7
Telephone: 02-322-1674
Hours: Everyday 11:30 - 23:-00 (Break Time: 15:30 - 17:30)

Instagram: @gyeongju_bistro

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Cafe Gongmyeong • 카페 공명

With the abundance of cafes in Hongdae (홍대), you would think that finding a spacious and comfortable cafe to catch up with your friends or do some work at will be easy. But no. Based on my experience, finding a spacious cafe with the right vibe (which for me means a place with nice interior, at least decent if not good non-coffee drink options, plenty of seatings, ample breathing space and moderate noise level) in Hongdae is actually pretty hard.

Since most cafes in Hongdae are small or medium sized and usually have more of a hip vibe, I was actually pleasantly surprised when I first came across Cafe Gongmyeong (카페 공명). This cafe is actually spacious and has the right vibe. I first saw this place when I accidentally saw a glimpse of their coffee bar through the window of the bus I was riding when it passed by this place at night. If it weren’t for the bright yellow lights emitting from the coffee bar, I wouldn’t even noticed that there’s a cafe there because the exterior of the building just seems like any other building in Korea.

After I looked up what’s actually inside that building and found out that Cafe Gongmyeong (카페 공명) occupied the space, I initially visited the place days later solely to check out their intriguing coffee bar. The canopy like structure that houses the coffee bar is made out of wide horizontal wood panels that are lined with lights emitting from the edge of each panels, creating a feeling of being inside some sort of a wooden spaceship (at least for me). There are also a couple of different things that are pretty cool inside this cafe including a projector that is set up facing the wall next to the coffee bar that plays old movies and two big book shelves next to the front windows that definitely add more character to the interior of the space.

They printed their menu items on the spine of books that are displayed in front of the cashier and I have to say this is probably one of the most creative and memorable menu display I’ve seen (took me a second though to realize that the book titles are actually the menu). I ordered their Cacao Latte (카카오 라떼) which was pretty solid. I came only a couple of weeks after their grand opening so their dessert selections were still limited. Although looking at their Instagram, it seems like they have now expanded their dessert menu and definitely have more selections compared to my last visit. And it seems like people are giving good reviews about them so maybe I’ll try their desserts on my next visit.

The place has plenty of seatings that have a good distance from one to the other, which works very well if you want some privacy while talking to your friends. It also has a big long communal table with power plugs that’s perfect for people who come to the cafe to study or to do some work. I originally wasn’t planning to stay for long, but after I finished taking some pictures and sit around for a while, I actually enjoyed the vibe of this place and ended up staying for almost two hours longer sitting there sipping my hot cocoa while reading. 

Note: These photos were taken before the pandemic.

A little fun fact, this cafe is also one of the shooting locations of the Korean drama Thirty-Nine (서른, 아홉) starring Son Ye-Jin. You can see the appearance of the place in episode 3, where Son Ye-Jin’s character, Cha Mi-Jo, visited the cafe with her love interest, Kim Seon-U.

Korean Drama: Thirty-Nine (서른, 아홉) Ep.03 | Photo Courtesy: JTBC/Netflix

Korean Drama: Thirty-Nine (서른, 아홉) Ep.03 | Photo Courtesy: JTBC/Netflix

 

Cafe Gongmyeong • 카페 공명

Address: 서울 마포구 연희로 11 1층 카페 공명
Telephone: 070-8869-6304
Hours: Everyday 10:00 - 22:00

Instagram: @cafegm_

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