Issei

Issei is a Japanese restaurant and sake bar that is located on the first floor of the Elysee SCBD building. The restaurant prides itself in its yakitori and sake selections that they serve in house. I visited the place about two months ago for dinner for the first time. The interior of the restaurant is definitely interesting. The first thing I noticed when I entered was is the high ceiling that is decorated with black, wavy, solid curtain like screens which certainly give the restaurant a modern atmosphere. The dining area is pretty spacious with a combination of regular tables in the main area and booth seatings further back in the restaurant if you want some privacy.

“The design is inspired by organic pattern of natural landscape. This idea is translated into free flow curvatures that are applied into the geometry of the seatings and hanging screens.

The dark dominated color palette combined with warm illumination gives an enigmatic yet warm interior atmosphere.

Locally dan naturally sourced materials such as dark stained wood, natural stone and gravel are combined to simulate an experience of being outdoor in the nature.” —Studio Kota via Archdaily

On the mezzanine floor, they have a private room that has more of a cozy dining/living room atmosphere. On one side of the room, there’s a long table that could seat about 10 people, and on the other side, there’s the living room area which can accommodate another 10 people. TV and karaoke system are installed in the room, making this a perfect choice for a small to medium size gathering if you’re looking for a private space.

During my visit, I tried Issei’s All-You-Can-Eat yakitori package. They have two options, the Chicken Yakitori package which costs IDR 169K++ and the Premium Yakitori package which includes beef, pork, and chicken which costs IDR 249K++. I tried the Premium Yakitori package and ordered a bunch of different stuff from the menu. Some are better than the others but overall, they’re pretty good. Here are what I tried (the ones with the ⭐ were the ones I enjoyed the most):

The most unique dish of the night was this Smokey Quinoa Tsukune. Really enjoyed the play on texture between the crunchy quinoa and the tender, juicy meat. Plus, the dish presentation was really fun.

Other additional information that might be useful, parking space is limited at Elysee building. I arrived pretty early for dinner (before 6 I think) and got a self-parking space, but I found out later that after 6pm (cmiiw), they only do valet parking. Or if you prefer to self-park, there’s a parking space across the street but the building’s kind of old according to my friend who parked there. Noise level in this restaurant for me was medium to high due to the live music and the music from the speakers was playing at the same time.

Overall, I think if you’re looking for an All-You-Can-Eat Yakitori place (although I’m not sure how long they’ll have this package for so I suggest you check with them first prior to your visit) or a Japanese restaurant and sake bar, Issei is worth a try.

 

ISSEI

Address: Elysee SCBD 1st Floor #7. Jl. Jendral Sudirman - SCBD Lot 21, Jakarta Selatan 12170, Indonesia
Telephone: +62878 8621 8888
Hours: 11.00 - 22.00

Instagram: @issei.id

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Surasang Korean Grill House PIK • 수라상

If you’re looking for a Korean BBQ restaurant that serves excellent premium meat in PIK area, you might want to try the newly-opened Surasang Korean Grill House (수라상). Brought by the same group behind Sushi Maru and Aneka Fish that are well-known for their excellent food, Surasang just opened its door to the public early this week, establishing themselves as one of the (if not the only one as of now) premium Korean BBQ restaurant in PIK area.

I had the chance to try their menu last week prior to their grand opening during Rinku’s 7th Anniversary dinner that was hosted at Surasang and I’m telling your right now, their food was absolutely oh so amazing.

Banchan

The dinner started off with these nine homemade banchans that were made in-house. They all tasted great and my personal favorites were their fresh and fermented kimchi. They really nailed the kimchi flavors.

Beef Uni Yukhoe (125k) | 10/10

For appetizer, got to try their Beef Uni Yukhoe that’s served on top of a piece of bite-size bread. Everything in this dish works really well together. The uni was savory and buttery. The raw beef was fresh and tender. The bread has the right texture (not too crunchy but no too soft either) that created a nice contrast with the uni and the beef. Ate everything in one big bite and it was heavenly. The seasoning was on point. Bold flavors that certainly reminded me of Korean food’s deep rich signature flavors really came through on this dish.

Japchae (120k) | 7/10

The japchae was alright for me. It’s well seasoned, the portion was generous, but the texture of noodles was a little too soft for my preference.

Seafood Sundubu Jjigae (125k) | 9/10

Their seafood sundubu jjigae is one of the best one I’ve had in Jakarta. The broth has that really rich and bold seafood flavor, the spiciness was still bearable for me who doesn’t really eat spicy food, and plenty of silky soft tofu and seafood in the bowl. Really enjoyed this dish.

Meat Cuts

“Surasang Korean Grill House proudly serves the best of the best. From Australian grain-fed beef to certified rare Japanese Kobe beef, our team personally hand-picked the beef that are pinnacle in the industry. We combined the traditional korean barbecue and modern steakhouse to deliver you a refined korean grill house.” —Surasang

(Far Left) 60 Days Dry Aged Rib Eye/Porterhouse, (Middle Top in the Bowl) Diamond Cut Galbi, (Middle Bottom) Wagyu Chateaubriand, (Bottom Right) Olive Wagyu.

All the meat that I tried from the tasting menu was excellent. Fresh, high-quality, well-seasoned meat was grilled to perfection on the table one cut after the other before the server cut them into smaller pieces in front of us. Although everything tasted excellent, I do have some favorites from the bunch.

60 Days Dry Aged Rib Eye/Porterhouse 400gr (1,500K) | 9/10

Their Dry Aged Rib Eye is my second most favorite meat cut. Tender meat, perfectly cooked and it tasted great without any additional dipping sauce.

Wagyu Chateaubriand (1,300k) | 9/10

Japanese Olive Wagyu 250gr (2,500K) | 10/10

My most favorite meat cut of the night. The Japanese Olive Wagyu was the BOMB. The marbling on the meat was excellent, super tender and juicy and it literally melted in my mouth. It was so, so good. Would definitely recommend this to anybody.

Wet Aged Diamond Cut Galbi 250gr (385K) | 9/10

The galbi was also great. Tender meat and I really like the seasoning on it. I could really taste the sweet and savory flavors combined with the smokiness from the grill.

Sweet Marinated Pork Shoulder 250gr (155K) | 8/10

Makgeolli Honeycomb (100k) | 9/10

Makgeolli, Honeycombs, Lime Juice.

The honey cut down the alcohol taste from the makgeolli, giving it an overall sweetness to the drink which still works well with the makgeolli. It kind of felt like a dessert drink but I quite enjoyed it.

With only a few good Korean BBQ restaurants around PIK area, I think Surasang could easily occupies the first spot of premium Korean BBQ restaurant in that area right now (with most other premium Korean BBQ restaurants probably located in Senopati/SCB area). Would definitely recommend this place if you’re looking for a more premium meat cuts for your Korean BBQ cravings.

 

Surasang Korean Grill House PIK • 수라상

Address: Jl. Rukan Golf Island No.71-73, Jakarta 14460, Indonesia
Telephone: +62812 6000 3503
Hours: Weekdays 11:00 AM-09:00pm | Weekends 11:00 AM-10:00pm

Instagram: @surasang_id

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Butler's Steak PIK

Butler’s Steak is one of my favorite steak restaurant in BSD area where they opened their first location in 2021. Now, one and a half years later, they just opened their new second location at Damai Indah Golf PIK complex to the public today.

Stepping into the newly opened restaurant, the place felt familiar yet different. Carrying the same interior from their first location, the vibe is definitely reminiscent of my previous visits to the BSD location. But then the bigger space and the higher ceiling make the restaurant feel completely new and fresh. Large floor to ceiling windows at both sides of the restaurant also allow plenty of natural light to come into the nicely spaced out seatings in the dining area.

The menu offered at the PIK location is slightly different than their BSD location. On top of their regular menu items, they actually added a couple of new dishes to the PIK location menu that are only available at this location (at least for now).

Appetizer

(New Menu) Beef Bacon & Cheese Croquette | 7/10

Herbs Breaded Potato Puree with Beef Bacon and Melted Cheese, Tartar Sauce, Mini Salad.

Crispy breading, generous filling and well-seasoned. It tasted good, but I’m not a fan of cheese in general so this one was just okay for me.

SIDES

Butler’s Steak has pretty great sides. I’ve tried almost all of them (I think the only thing I haven’t tried is their garlic rice) and all of them was great. Worth to mention since I don’t have a picture of it here, is their creamy spinach. Their creamy spinach is excellent. Totally recommended.

French Fries | 8/10

Shoestring Potatoes with Shredded Cheese.

Sweet Corn Kernels | 9/10

Corn, Herb Crust and Grana Padano.

(New Menu) Triple Cheese Broccoli Mornay | 7.5/10

Broccoli, Red and White Cheddar, Grana Padano, Mornay Sauce and Bacon Bits.

Mains

For the steak, all of the meat was cooked well and very well seasoned. And my favorite sauce is still the symphony of mushroom.

(New Menu) Special Butcher’s Cut | 9/10

200 Grams of the Butcher’s Daily Selection of Special Cut.

Wagyu Butler’s Steak | 9/10

200 Grams Australian Wagyu MB 6-7 Butler’s Steak.

(New Menu) Grilled Osso Bucco “Tangkar” | 9/10

US Prime Beef Shank Osso Bucco, Tangkar Broth, White Rice, Sukun Chips, Cucumber Pickle.

I was pleasantly surprised on how good this dish is. The meat was tender, the Indonesian flavor really came through in the soup and the portion is really generous. Also, this was my first time trying the sukun chips that they served with the dish. The flavor and texture are quite interesting.

(New Menu) Wagyu Fajitas | 9/10

200 Grams Australian Wagyu Inside Skirt, Flour Tortilla, Grilled Corn Salsa, Mint Yoghurt, Guacamole.

The fajitas was also really good. The meat was cooked well and when I ate it with the whole toppings in one bite, the flavors exploded in my mouth. It was really juicy and flavorful. Really love the meat and vegetables flavor combination.

Lastly, got the complimentary made to order ice cream to end the meal. They have 3 different flavors that they rotate daily—chocolate, vanilla and strawberry—depending on whatever flavors they have available.

Overall, I had a really great meal and dining experience during my visit. The food was great and the service was good (some servers were clearly more experienced than others but no big mishaps happened during my visit). Will definitely come back to this place again (whether it’s this location or the BSD location).

 

Butler’s Steak PIK

Address: Damai Indah Golf PIK, Kapuk Jl. Marina Raya, Jakarta Utara 14470, Indonesia
Telephone: 021-5569-5706
Hours: Everyday 11.00 - 22.00

Instagram: @butlers.steak

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Namul Meogneun Gom • 나물먹는곰

I was introduced to Namul Meogneun Gom (나물먹는곰) by my friends, Soo Zee and Leigh, when I asked them to recommend a good Korean restaurant that serves great bibimbap in Seoul. This place was apparently their favorite, so of course I had to go and try their food.

Namul Meogneun Gom (나물먹는곰), which means bear eating greens, was housed in a traditional hanok in Hongdae area. The entrance of the restaurant led to an open courtyard with outdoor seatings and you enter the hanok through one of the sliding doors for the indoor seatings. The restaurant has that homey vibe that made me feel like I’m visiting someone’s house to have a meal.

After I got seated and ordered, they brought the banchan out. I got to try five different things and they were all excellent. Plus, the serving portion was really generous. I honestly could just eat all these with a bowl of rice and call it a full meal.

I was also craving seafood pancake (해물파전) that day and since they had it on the menu, I ordered one. Their seafood pancake was also great. Plenty of seafood and green onions toppings, not too thick and really crispy.

Then came the main dish, the Namul Gom Bibimbap (나물곰비빔밥). Everything on the stone bowl was really well-seasoned. After I added the gojuchang and mixed it all together, it tasted even better. Their gochujang sauce was also really good. Overall, it was a really great meal and I was stuffed by the time I’m done. Now I know why Soo Zee and Leigh like this place.

Update: This location of Namul Meogneun Gom has now closed. They have moved to another location not too far from this location and renamed their restaurant to Baek Sae Sik Dang (백세식당). They are still keeping the bibimbap menu so if you want to try it, you can go to the new location which comes up as Namul Meogneun Gom Guk Bap Jib (나물먹는곰국밥집) on Naver map. See below for new location’s information.

 

Namul Meogneun Gom Guk Bap Jib • 나물먹는곰국밥집

Address: 서울 마포구 성지3길 67
Telephone: 02-337-0704
Hours: Everyday 11:30~21:00

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Okdongsik Seogyo • 옥동식 서교점

Okdongsik (옥동식) is a small restaurant in Seogyo-dong (서교동) that sells amazing 돼지국밥 (dwaeji gukbap/pork and rice soup). The place only accommodates 10 seatings and the only main menu they have is their 돼지국밥. And when a restaurant only have one main dish on their menu, you know it’s going to be good. I first found out about this place when I was searching online for a place that sells 국밥 (guk-bap/rice soup) during one autumn afternoon. The weather was a bit chilly so I was craving something hearty and warm and gukbap immediately came to mind.

After seeing Okdongsik (옥동식) appeared on one of the search results, I decided to try this place out because apparently the restaurant has been on the Michelin Guide list since 2018. Hours later, I was one of the ten patrons who were sitting inside the small restaurant tasting their delicious dwaeji gukbap. The gukbap has clear broth that tasted light, clean yet flavorful and comforting. The sliced meat was super tender and the portion was pretty generous. While people usually mix the red pepper paste into the broth when eating gukbap, Okdongsik actually recommend against it. Instead of mixing the red pepper into the broth, they encourage people to taste the broth as is and put the red pepper paste on top of the meat without mixing it with the broth. So I took a spoonful of rice and soup, put a piece of meat on top of it, then put the red pepper paste on top of the meat. It was a satisfying spoonful of gukbap. I like it.

Overall, as a fan of gukbap, it was a really good meal for me. Would definitely recommend this place if you’re looking for a good pork gukbap restaurant. Oh, and also, they only serve 100 bowls a day so come early just in case they run out.

“With his take on dwaeji-gukbap, Chef Ok Dong-sik has managed to singlehandedly change any preconceptions the local diners previously had about the hearty pork and rice soup dish Koreans hold near and dear to their hearts. Think bacon-thin slices of silky tender pork meat piled on a bed of rice, all submerged in his trademark consommé-like clear broth. The 'extra large' portion comes with double the amount of meat. The space is limited and only 100 bowls of gukbap are sold daily so get here early.” —Michelin Guide

Note: Photos were taken before the pandemic.

 

Okdongsik Seogyo • 옥동식

Address: 서울 마포구 양화로7길 44-10
Telephone: 010-5571-9915
Hours: Monday-Friday 11:00-22:00, Break Time 15:00-17:00 | Saturday-Sunday 11:00-21:00

Instagram: @okdongsik

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