Brunch & Lunch at MIDTOWN Bistro & Lounge, SCBD

So, last year I visited this place called The Twenty8 in SCBD area. A year later, this place already transformed into a new place called MIDTOWN, but still with the same bistro & lounge concept. Located in SCBD area, MIDTOWN focuses on serving variety of lunch menus for office workers, and also drinks and tapas for them who are looking for a place to hang out after work while avoiding the traffic madness.

For the interior, there were not much differences with the previous The Twenty8. There were a bit changes here and there, but the overall feel is still the same.

MIDTOWN serves quite a lot variety of menus from local taste, to Asian & Western. This time I tried several of their highlighted menus like their chicken wings, brunch menus, and also Indonesian lunch menus.

Truffle Garlic Parmesan Wings - IDR 50,000 ++

For starters, Midtown have several kind of Chicken Wings, one of them is this Truffle Garlic Parmesan Cheese. A bit dry on the outside because of the baked parmesan, but still tasted nice.

Spicy Teriyaki Wings - IDR 50,000 ++

I love the the Spicy Teriyaki Wings better, the wings were well marinated, tasty and just a bit spicy.

Steak & Egg - IDR 110,000 ++

Next, brunch menu! One of their brunch menu item is this Steak & Egg consisted of grilled minute sirloin steak, sunny side up, baked beans, bacon, sausage, grilled tomato, potato galette, and mushroom sauce.

Steak & Egg

Maybe because it was well done, the sirloin was bit tough, but every other item of this menu was quite nice. 

Croque Monsieur - IDR 75,000 ++

The other brunch menu you could fine here is their Croque Monsieur consisted of toasted brioche, bechamel cream sauce, smoked beef, grilled tomato, house salad.

Croque Monsieur

The size of this Croque Monsieur is quite big enough to share. I don't think I would be able to finish this alone. I thought it was gonna be extra cheesy that I wouldn't like it too much, but actually the cheesy taste was quite addicting that I'm kinda craving for this Croque Monsieur now. I think the grilled tomato inside made quite the balance.

Oxtail Fried Rice - IDR 120,000 ++

MIDTOWN also served Indonesian menu like this Oxtail Fried Rice. You'll have this stir fried rice oxtail meat, sweet soy fried oxtail, melinjo cracker, broth, acar in quite a satisfying portion when you order this.

Oxtail Fried Rice

I love the fried rice, savoury with lotsa fried shallots, and oxtail meat inside. The fried oxtail was a bit too sweet for me, but if you have this 'Indonesian loving soy sauce tongue', I think you're going to love the fried oxtail. On the other hand, the oxtail meat was well cooked and tender.

Chicken Betutu - IDR 75,000 ++

Another Indonesian menu that MIDTOWN serves is this Chicken betutu.

Chicken Betutu

Chicken Betutu is roasted Balinese yellow marinated chicken style, served with white rice, lawar urap vegetables, also sambal matah. And the hero of this dish was the sambal matah! Oh how I love sambal matah.

Meringue Sour - IDR 110,000 ++

Next up, cocktails! I tried their Meringue Sour, a mix of gin, lemongrass syrup, lime juice, sugar syrup topped with meringue. Although the name of this cocktail is Meringue Sour, the taste was not that sour. You could taste the lemongrass and lime, also the bitterness of the gin that was balanced by the sugar syrup. Quite refreshing overall.

Wildberry Smash - IDR 45,000 ++

If you are a mocktail goer, you might want to try their Wildberry Smash: blueberry jam, cinnamon, cranberry juice, soda water, marshmallow. A blend of sweet, sour, and berry-like taste.

Taste wise, MIDTOWN serves good food. Price wise, I think it is still reasonable if you compare it to other spots around SCBD. Ambience wise, the spot is quite cozy, but too bad there is no exact separator between the smoking and non smoking section. Overall, I think this place worth a visit.

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MIDTOWN
Jl. Tulodong Atas No. 28, SCBD
Jakarta
Tel. (021) 5274088
www.midtownjakarta.com
Twitter/Instagram @midtownjakarta
Opening Hours: 11AM - 2PM

Dimsum & Cocktails at Newly Relaunched QI DINE & LOUNGE

It's Friday already, time to slow down a little bit. Kalau kalian ngantor seputaran Gatot  Subroto dan mencari tempat untuk nongkrong dalam rangka menghindari kemacetan, mungkin tempat ini bisa jadi salah satu pilihan kalian. QI Dine & Lounge ini terletak di dalam kompleks Hotel Sultan, dan berada di bawah grup yang sama dengan Nan Xiang. 

QI merupakan sebuah lounge, sehingga suasana di dalamnya cenderung gelap, di mana tamu bisa bersantai duduk menikmati makanan dan minuman di tempat duduk yang ada, kebanyakan berupa sofa, dan juga menikmati live music yang ada. Space-nya cukup besar, dan juga terdapat pintu yang menghubungkan langsung dengan Hotel Sultan.

Salah satu keunikan tempat ini adalah menu utamanya yang adalah dimsum dan cocktails, yep, you read it right. Paduan cocktails dan dimsum ini baru saya temukan di QI. Menu makanan yang ditawarkan QI kebanyakan berupa light bites, namun selain dimsum, ada juga pilihan lain seperti nachos, juga french fries. Berikut beberapa makanan juga cocktails yang sempat saya coba saat mampir di QI.

Super Rainbow Bun - IDR 68,000

Super Rainbow Bun terdiri dari 8 potong steamed buns yaitu Green Tea Buns, Salted Egg Buns, Choco Buns, dan Chicken Buns yang juga dapat dipesan secara terpisah. I enjoy their buns, especially when they were still warm, they were a bit chewy just the way I like my buns. 

Green Tea Bun

Menurut saya Green Tea Bus ini paling unik, karena memang masih jarang ada di tempat lain. This Green Tea Bun was not disappointing either.

Flying Noodle - IDR 78,000

Kalau ingin makan yang lumayan berat, mungkin kalian bisa mencoba Flying Noodle ini, Why Flying Noodle? You might see from the presentation above, dalam penyajiannya terdapat sumpit 'terbang' di atas piring. Flying noodle ini terdiri dari 3 jenis mie yang terbuat dari sayur-sayuran yakni pocai, ubi, labu, yang membuat rasa bersalah saya makan mie malam-malam berkurang sedikit. A bit healthier right? Flying Noodle ini disajikan juga dengan semangkuk broth yang gurih dan sedap. Bumbu mie-nya sendiri cocok di lidah saya, cenderung asin, dengan taburan bawang goreng yang cukup banyak, dan edamame sebagai pelengkap. 

Steamed Dimsum Platter - IDR 98,000

I also tried their Steamed Dimsum Platter. Steamed Dimsum Platter ini terdiri dari prawn & chicken siomay, hakau, dan vegetables hakau. Everything was quite nice.

Fiery Phoenix - IDR 85,000

Cocktail pertama yang saya coba di QI adalah Fiery Phoenix yang merupakan mixture dari vodka, strawberry syrup, fresh strawberry, fresh chili. Yes! Fresh chili! This was one spicy cocktail but I quite love it and I did finish the whole glass. Rasa vodkanya tidak terlalu strong, dan keseluruhan rasanya asam, manis, dan meninggalkan sedikit rasa pedas di lidah dan tenggorokan ketika meminumnya. 

Goin-Nuts - IDR 85,000

Another cocktail that I tried was this Goin-Nuts, a mixture of light rum, dark rum, vanilla ice cream, chocolate, crackers, a bit of whipped cream. I somehow felt that this cocktail was a dessert menu since it was quite thick and creamy, with ice cream, and wafers on the top of it. The rum scent was quite strong, but it tasted quite sweet.

So, if you might want to give dimsum and cocktails combination a try, go visit QI.

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QI 

Lagoon Tower (Next to Hotel Sultan)

Jl. Gatot Subroto

Tel. (021) 5727239