Donut Of Curiosity

Donut Of Curiosity is the newest donut shop in Jakarta that just opened last Sunday (Sep 8) at Ashta District 8 and will surely be the talk of the town (at least for the next few weeks) because of their unique store concept. Adopting a more simplistic approach, the store is decorated with just one artistic artwork inspired by the shape of donut dough being mixed. The enormous floor-to-ceiling knot-like concrete pillar structure that stood tall in the space is surrounded by concrete walls, soft pink carpeting and it also serves as a display for their donuts that are exhibited like artworks in a museum. The whole store screams modern and artistic and definitely invites curious gazes from the passerby. Although this kind of donut store might be the first of its kind in Jakarta, I have to say it also reminds me (in a good way) of Gentle Monster stores and Nudake cafes which adopted similar design concept and vibes.

Other interesting fact that I found out was Donut Of Curiosity is created by the same team behind the famous Scarlett’s brand. It’s said that it took the chef 1.5 years to research and develop their current dough recipe, which apparently uses 3 different kinds of flour for the mix resulting in their soft and chewy donut texture.

Currently, they are offering 10 different flavors—2 savory and 8 sweet options—for their donuts:
• Maple & Beef (32k)
• Truffle & Garlic Butter (32k)
• Valrhona (32k)
• Earl Grey & Milk Choco (30k)
• Brûlée & Yoghurt (28k)
• Lemon (25k)
• Pistachio (30k)
• Matcha Strawberry (28k)
• Smoked Vanilla (28k)
• Salted Honey & Kinako (25k)

(11 Sep) An update from one of the owners regarding the current ordering system:
Ordering system is split into 3 batches per day.
Batch 1 — 11:00 am
Batch 2 — 2:30 pm
Batch 3 — 6:00 pm

For those who lined up before the opening time, you can purchase donuts right away from Batch 1 until it’s sold out.
For Batch 2 and Batch 3, you can line up to place your order and payment anytime and then come back to pick up your order at 2:30 pm and 6:00 pm respectively.

If you don’t want to go back and forth, you can try to come near the time when the donuts are being restocked but availability of flavors is not guaranteed (while if you place an order prior to Batch 2 and Batch 3 time slot, then your order is guaranteed. At least this is how I interpreted the message that’s posted on the owner’s IG story. I’d suggest you to double check with the staff during your visit to make sure that the rules still apply just in case they make any changes to their ordering system).

Maple & Beef (32k) | 8.5/10

I tried one of the savory options—the Maple & Beef—which is also their recommended menu. The donut is soft and chewy. The sweetness from the maple glaze and the savoriness from the beef bacon were very balanced. And the arugula and mayo were nice additions to the overall flavors. A solid 8.5/10 from me. Also, would definitely recommend to consume these donuts right away.

The store has no seating so you can only do take-out for the donuts. There are round height tables available in front of the store where you can eat your donuts standing if you choose to. 

Also, special thanks to @munchandsnap.jkt for taking me to the pre-opening and getting me an early access to these donuts.

 

Donut Of Curiosity

Address: Ashta District 8 (UG Floor Unit 07), Jl. Senopati No.83, Jakarta Selatan, DKI Jakarta 12190, Indonesia
Hours: 11a.m-Finish

Instagram: @donutofcuriosity

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KT Pre-Paid Sim & Wifi Rental at Incheon Airport T2

There are a couple of places that sell pre-paid SIM card and Wifi rental at Seoul Incheon International Airport. All of them offers similar products and packages but I’ve been using KT since the time I was living in Korea, never had a problem with it and works well every time so it just stuck with me until now. 

There are three locations at Incheon International Airport, 2 locations at Terminal 1 arrival hall and 1 location at Terminal 2 arrival hall. (See map below for the exact locations and operational hours) 

Source: KT Website

Most of my flights usually arrived at Terminal 2 so the following pictures are from the KT counter at Incheon Airport Terminal 2 arrival hall (1F), between exit 4 and 5. 

First thing you want to do is get a waiting ticket from the machine. Select the red ‘SIM • WIFI’ button on top and the machine will print out a ticket with your queue number on it. If there’s no line, usually the staff will call you right away. But if there’s a line, you can track the queue number on the screen behind the counter. Sometimes the staff call out the numbers in Korean which can be confusing if you don’t speak Korean, so the screen does help with that too. The staff do speak English so communication shouldn’t be an issue. Things that they’ll need from you for making a purchase are your passport and your credit card/cash for payment. 

For the Data Packages, there are 8 options available to choose from, depending on the validity of the Sim Card. 

For the Wifi Router rental, there are only 2 options available at the counter (although there are 4 options available via online reservation). Wifi Router rental might be a better option if you are traveling in a group and the group for sure will stay together all the time. But if you’re not going to stay together all the time, then the sim card option might be a better option for flexibility, just in case people in your group need to split to go to different places. Plus with Sim Card, you can top up the call/text plan which comes pretty handy for ordering Kakao Taxi through the app or for restaurant/cafe reservations (most places in Seoul now have the queue machine where you can put your phone number and it’ll give you a text notification when your table is ready so you don’t have to wait around at the restaurant). 

I usually just buy the sim card because it’s more convenient, I don’t have to bring around yet another extra gadget in my bag and I don’t have to return it before I fly out. Since I usually stay for a month during my trip, I usually get the 30 Days Data Plan (₩71,500) with the additional ₩5,500 Call/SMS top up (see the pink boxes on the picture below). If you ran out of balance and want to top up or extend your plan, you can conveniently do it online on their website, sparing you the hassle to have to come back to the airport.

If you want to save some money, there’s a 10% discount if you reserve your Sim Card (and Wifi Router) online. They have more options for the packages too that’s not available at the counter as well as eSim option if you choose to get one.

After you make your purchase, they’ll give you the Sim Card in a small plastic pouch with a Sim eject tool included. You just have to switch the sim card with the one that you have on your phone, restart your phone and everything should works (but just in case it doesn’t, I would recommend you to test the sim card before you leave the airport just to be safe). And with that you’re set to go. 

Seoul Angmusae Yongsan • 서울앵무새 용산점

Seoul Angmusae Yongsan (서울앵무새 용산점) is a bakery cafe that’s well-known for their wide selections of colorful sweet and savory baked goods and desserts. They had their grand opening in May 26, 2023 two years after their first Seongsu flagship location that was opened in March 21, 2021. The Yongsan location is definitely bigger than their flagship location, seeing how it occupies the first three floors of a five-story building in the middle of Yongnidangil (용리단길), one of the more recent up and coming areas in Seoul that is filled with new cafes and restaurants. The orange facade with colorful illustrations of their parrot mascot (Angmusae means parrots in Korean) definitely attract attention and make passerby’s heads turn. One of the reason contributing to their popularity (I believe) is because their visually pleasing desserts Instagram Reels went viral and were shared over and over on social media (as I’m writing this post one of their Reels has an impressive 91.5 million views).

The first floor of the cafe is where the bakery is. You walk in, get a tray and a tongs and start walking towards the display area to pick your choice. It’s hard to make one I tell you since the choices are pretty overwhelming. From savory buns to sweet desserts, you have plenty of things to choose from. This is also where you place your drinks order where you can pick it up on the second floor. 

The second and third floor are where all the seatings are. The place is pretty big with plenty of tables and chairs available. The interior is filled with eclectic modern furnitures and colorful, vibrant decorations, giving a trendy contemporary energy to the space. One side of the room is covered with folding windows that were fully opened since it was a cloudy summer day and the weather wasn’t too hot when I was visiting. The tables next to the opened windows are a perfect for people watching since you got the view of the street below. 

Black Sesame Latte 흑임자 라떼 ₩7,000 | 6.5/10

I ordered this not knowing they put coffee with the latte. Since I’m not a coffee drinker and the coffee in this drink was pretty strong, it tasted just okay to me. The black sesame was (I believe) in the cream/froth part on top which was served with cacao powder sprinkled in shape of Seoul Angmusae’s mascot. I asked if they could make the Black Sesame Latte without coffee and they said they can’t. Too bad. 

Chicken Basil Soft Bun 치킨바질소프트번 ₩8,500 | 8/10

Chicken, Cranberries, Basil Pesto, and Sweet Sun-Dried Tomatoes.
치킨과 크랜베리, 바질페스토와 쫄깃하고 달콤한 썬드라이 토마토의 상큼함이 조화를 이루는 맛.

The Chicken Basil Soft Bun was pretty good. There’s a good balance between the savoriness from the basil pesto and the sweetness form the cranberries and sun-dried tomatoes. It was a pretty satisfying flavorful bite. 

Smoke Duck White Bun 훈제오리화이트번 ₩7,500 | 7/10

Smoked Duck, Pickled Onions, Lettuce and Honey Mustard.
훈제 오리와 절인 양파의 상큼함과, 허니 머스타드의 달달함이 조화를 이루는 맛.

The Smoke Duck White Bun was more on the savory side. They nailed the smokiness of the duck meat, the texture is not tough but it’s a bit dry for my personal preference. So did the bun for that matter. It was a bit dry on the outside but fortunately the inside is pretty soft. The honey mustard sauce was pretty good and it paired well with the duck. It was an okay dish for me.

Also, I do wish all the buns were warmer (since they put everything out on display, everything was lukewarm).

Angmusae Egg Madeleine Vanilla & Lemon ₩4,800 each | 7/10

Bought the Vanilla and Lemon Angmusae Egg Madeleine to go and the packaging is pretty cute. Taste wise, they’re a little bit on the dry side for me, but flavors were pretty good and not too sweet.

I went to the third floor to see what the place looks like and it’s pretty much giving similar vibes to the second floor. The difference is probably there’s only one sofa (instead of three) on this floor but there are more chairs and tables available.

The music playing in this cafe when I was there was the Top 100 Pop Hits playlist and almost all the English pop songs that were playing I actually recognized or familiar with. Noise level was medium to high I’d say, depending on how busy the place is. With how big the cafe is and the wide variety of menu that they have, I think this is a good place to hang out at.

 

Seoul Angmusae Yongsan • 서울앵무새 용산점

Address: 서울 용산구 한강대로62길 55 1, 2, 3층
Telephone: 0507-1350-4710
Hours: Everyday 08:00-23:00

Instagram: @seoul_angmusae

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Yukmian Yeonnam • 육미안 연남점

Yukmian Yeonnam (육미안 연남점) is a meat restaurant specialized in grilled beef ribs. Located on the second floor of a building in one of the alleys in Yeonnam-dong (연남동), the restaurant is also well-known for their yukhoe (육회) which uses grade 1++ Hanwoo beef.

I found this restaurant when I was searching Naver for a dinner spot to meet up with my friend at. Honestly, the pictures of the torched meat looked really delicious so I asked my friend to go and try this place with me. It was a weekday when we went for dinner and we immediately got a table as soon as we arrived. The interior of the restaurant is quite different than the usual traditional meat restaurant in Korea. It’s definitely more modern and simpler. There are about 26 seatings around the place and the place is pretty noisy with people talking quite loudly on different tables. 

Yukmian Salad 육미안 샐러드 ₩3,000 | 7/10

Fresh arugula, tomatoes, olives with shredded cheese.

The salad came with the signature beef ribs that we ordered. It’s a pretty straight forward side dish that goes well with the meat. 

Signature Beef Ribs 본갈비 (250g) ₩27,000 | 8.5/10

Yukmian’s signature beef ribs (2 servings minimum).
육미안 대표 '시그니처' 진갈비만을 사용 (2인분 이상 주문 가능).

So we ordered 2 servings of the signature beef ribs since 2 servings are the minimum. They served the thick cuts of meat on the plate, already grilled (or maybe half grilled). Then the server torched the meat again table side to get them to the right level of doneness. The sight of the torched meat was pretty mouthwatering. 

They also gave us this stone plate with wasabi, salt, and mustard on it to dip the meat into. The meat itself was as good as it looked. It’s thick, fresh and juicy and very satisfying. The three dippings were also great but I like the salt the best out of the three.  

Snow Crab Innards Fried Rice 대게내장볶음밥 ₩11,000 | 8/10

Fried rice mixed with snow crab innards.
대게내장으로 범벅된 볶음밥.

To complete our meal, we ordered the Snow Crab Innards Fried Rice to make sure we’re full. The fried rice was rich and tasty and definitely didn’t taste like an ordinary fried rice that I commonly found at other meat restaurants. I think the snow crab innards gave the dish an edge over other fried rice out there. 

Overall, I think this place is pretty good spot to go to if you want to have some meat without having to grill them yourself. There are lots of good reviews about their yukhoe as well which make me curious to try it (maybe for my next visit). Noise level at this place is pretty high so you might have to shout a bit when talking to your companions if you come during their busy hours. I also happened to pass by this place a couple of times after my visit during the weekends and the line was pretty crazy (didn’t know that this spot is that popular). So if you want to avoid the line, I’d recommend you to go on a weekday or maybe make reservation first if you’re going on a weekend. 

 

Yukmian Yeonnam • 육미안 연남점

Address: 서울 마포구 동교로38길 5 2층
Telephone: 02-332-3430
Hours:
Mon-Thrs 12:00-22:00 (Break Time 14:30-16:00. Last Order 21:55)
Friday 12:00-23:00 (Break Time 14:30-16:00. Last Order 22:55)
Saturday 12:00-23:00 (Last Order 22:55)
Sunday 12:00-22:00 (Last Order 21:55)

Instagram: @yookmian_yeonnam

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Cheong Su Dang Bakery • 청수당 베이커리

Cheong Su Dang Bakery (청수당 베이커리) is one of the many popular aesthetic cafes in Ikseon-dong (익선동) that has gone viral on social media since the first time they opened their door to the public. Their iconic entrance of lush bamboo trees around a small pond with stepping stones leading to the entrance of the cafe is probably one of the most popular photo spot around this neighborhood and it has been shared thousands of times on social media. And even if you’ve never seen the pictures of this place online, the beautiful facade of the bakery will definitely make you stop in your tracks or pique your interest at the very least if you happen to walk by this place.

Since their opening in Summer 2020, the bakery has maintained their popularity among the locals as well as tourists which led to their space renewal and expansion last year in July. The beautifully designed space is the work of Glow Seoul, an architecture and design studio that’s responsible for many other popular cafes in South Korea. The current space is a combination of 6 hanoks surrounded with bamboo trees and ponds with calm flowing water, giving patrons a tranquil escape in the middle of the city. 

My first visit to Cheong Su Dang Bakery was last year in spring with my cousins (this was 3 months before their expansion). They came pretty early, before the place was even open and immediately got a table when the cafe opened. Maybe because it’s still early and a weekday because usually you’ll need to line up to get a table at this place, especially on the weekends. The cafe has a couple of different indoor and outdoor seating areas—individuals and community tables and table floor seatings—and we picked a table facing the street that’s a little bit hidden between two walls.

Since the dessert portion is pretty big, we decided to order 2 desserts and 2 drinks to share between the three of us. 

Stone Drip Egg Coffee (스톤 드립 계란 커피) ₩7,800

Stone drip coffee with fresh egg yolk cream on top, torched crème brûlée style.
스톤 드립 커피 위에 신선한 계란 노른자로 직접 만든 크림을 올려 토치로 마무리한 크램 브륄레(crème brûlée)식 커피.

My cousin ordered this and since I don’t drink coffee, I can’t really give a review on how it tasted. But she said it was pretty good. 

Black Sesame Fromage Cake (흑임자 프로마주 케이크) ₩15,000 | 8.5/10

Sponge cake soaked in black sesame, topped with roasted walnut, mascarpone cheese, milk cream, and black sesame powder.
흑임자 베이스를 흠뻑 적신 시트 위에 구운 호두 마스카포네 치즈와 우유크림을 얹은 후 청수당의 현무암을 표현한 스폰지 케이크와 흑임자 가루로 데코한 청수당만의 특별한 디저트.

My favorite out of the two desserts we tried. As a black sesame flavor enthusiast, I really enjoyed this chilled dessert. Moist sponge cake with earthy, not too sweet black sesame flavor. The roasted walnut in the middle was a nice little surprise to the bite.

Strawberry Compote Souffle Castella (딸기 수플레 카스텔라) ₩18,800 | 7/10

Soft and warm made to order soufflé castella with refreshing strawberry compote and fresh milk cream on top.
부드럽고 따뜻한 수플레 카스텔라 위에 상큼한 딸기 콩포트와 신선한 우유크림이 듬뿍 올려진 디저트로 주문과 동시에 만들어지는 오더 메이드 디저트.

Honestly, this one is a bit underwhelming for me (or maybe I was just expecting too much). Not that it didn’t taste good or anything because flavor wise it was good and it was a well-made dessert. I think anybody who likes strawberry or souffle castella would enjoy this dessert. It’s just for their signature menu and considering the price point, it felt a little bit ordinary. Like I’ve tasted these flavors before. Also worth noting, this is a warm dessert.

Is this place worth the hype it has on social media? If what you’re looking for is an aesthetic cafe to take nice pictures at, I’d probably say yes. But with caveat that you know how to take a good shot and to properly edit your pictures because from a photographer’s perspective, the lighting around this place is a bit challenging, especially on a bright sunny day. My suggestion is to go during sunset time or on a cloudy day for a better lighting (less harsh contrast on the shadows and highlights and you can pull more colors out of your shot). 

But if what you’re looking for is a nice relaxing place to hangout at, the short answer is probably no, especially if you have to line up for hours for a table. This place is always pretty packed with locals and tourists (I don’t know how it is nowadays but every time I passed by this place in the past it always looked pretty busy) and it can get a little bit noisy when the place is full. The drinks and desserts that I had were also just alright considering the somewhat high price point (although price wise, it’s probably similar to other cafes in the area since cafes in Ikseon-dong are notorious for being on the more expensive side).

My personal take, if you’re really curious to check out the place and experience dining at the bakery then go for it. They do have nice interesting architecture and interior design and their menu is pretty decent. But if you’re traveling, have limited time and have other cool cafes that you want to check out, you can probably just see the cafe from outside and spend your time somewhere else. Would I go back to this place again? If I have friends who are visiting Seoul and they want me to go check the place out with them, then sure, I wouldn’t mind going for their sake. Other reason that might make me want to go back is to check out their new space after the expansion (and only if the place is not busy). But for now, I think I’m pretty content with just visiting this place once.

 

Cheong Su Dang Bakery • 청수당 베이커리

Address: 서울 종로구 돈화문로11나길 31-9
Telephone: 0507-1318-8215
Hours: Everyday 10:30 - 21:00 (Last Order 20:30)

Instagram: @cheongsudang_

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