Indo Food @ Bandung Restaurant, Abu Dhabi

in UAE, indonesian dishes are the closest to malaysian taste buds; next to singaporean, thai or vietnamese dishes. ‘bandung restaurant’ was the second indonesian restaurant we tried in abu dhabi. the first one was ‘sari rasa’ opposite marina mall abu dhabi – click here for review and pictures.

 

the food is freshly prepared, delicious and affordable!

 

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‘bandung restaurant’ abu dhabi is situated in baharia street corner of masjid cuba I think? check it out! I offers authentic indonesian dishes from all types of soto (soups) like ‘soto madura’ which is soup with shredded chicken and veggies; or ‘soto babat’ which is with beef strips. there are also satay (meat skewers) and all sorts of meat and fish dishes to be eaten with white steamed rice.

 

simple interior. love the ‘brick wall’.

 

 

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we got the obvious choice – ayam bakar (grilled chicken, indonesian style) for the boys to eat with the rice. the chicken was well-marinated; sweet and juicy albeit the charred bits.

 

mr. khairul the soup-fan got himself this ‘soto bandung’ – soup with glass noodles, shredded beef and veggies. SO delicious. the beef so tender and flavorful. I would order this again.

 

the fried ‘tempe’ – fermented soy – it tastes so much better than my description hihi. I don’t really fancy tempe, but this one is tasty because it’s fried in batter. crispy hot delight! also, I love anything fried in batter! (anything edible, pls).

 

our favorite veggies at places like these is either kangkong belacan, or kailan ikan masin. this one is kangkong belacan, and it’s as good as it gets. fresh crunchy kangkong goes perfect with white steamed rice, anytime!

 

this – is supposed to be cendol. I know, malaysians! where’s the shaved ice, right? it’s a cendol-like drink I would say. all the ingredients of this refreshing dessert is there – the green jelly called cendol, the coconut milk, and palm sugar. too sweet for me, this one. and it’s just not the same. sigh.

 

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rakyat malaysia yang kebulor makanan nusantara tu boleh la berkunjung ke bandung restaurant ok! jangan lupa order ayam bakar. the best!

Dapoer Kita : Kitchen of Indonesian Dishes

found a new indonesian restaurant in dubai : ‘dapoer kita’ which means ‘our kitchen’ in indonesian language. it offers similar indonesian delicacies that can be found at most indo restaurants here in dubai.

 

one of our favorites : ayam bakar – grilled chicken, indonesian style.

 

‘dapoer kita’ is situated in karama at sheikh mohamed building 2, very near fish market and the new lulu hypermart. it’s opposite the cluster of apartments.

 

 

you can get indonesian lauk pauk (chicken and meat dishes) like our nasik bungkus. mr. khairul is happy to note that his favorite gulai sapi (beef in yellow gravy) is in abundance, and tasted delicious as it should be.

it also offers many other typical indonesian dishes like the nasi timbel (rice wrapped in banana leaf), nasi pecel (rice served with fried chicken), bakso (meatball, noodle and soup), iga (ribs), and buntut (oxtail).

 

you can also get these indonesian keropok (fish and prawn crackers) – crispy and tasty.

 

we got our favorite; a straightforward indonesian dish – sweetly marinated grilled chicken, served with steamed white rice, fried tofu and tempe (fermented soy), cut-up veggies and the infamous super spicy indonesian sambal (shrimp paste cili sauce). everything is freshly prepared. simple yet satisfying dish.

 

delicious grilled chicken

 

ordered one of our favorite indonesian drinks – the soda gembira. it’s basically rose syrup mixed with condensed milk and ice-cream soda. this one is too sweet. too much condensed milk.

 

rose syrup + condensed milk + ice-cream soda = soda gembira. mixed them up to become a sweet, tasty pink-colored drink. but seriously dapoer kita, this is too sweet. easy on the condensed milk next time ya!

 

we also tried the chicken satay, indonesian style. the chicken satay itself is delicious! well-marinated, tender and juicy. it’s served with nasi himpit (steamed rice rice compressed and cut into cubes) and indonesian peanut sauce.

 

now while the satay meat has similar texture and taste with the malaysian satay, the peanut sauce is significantly different. the malaysia peanut sauce is spicy, the gravy is thick with traces of peanut bits. absolutely delicious. however, the indonesian peanut sauce is more fine and not spicy at all.

still a tasty treat for us. bole la kalo dah rindu sangat satay malaysia!

 

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(image : google) inside ‘dapoer kita’ is spacious. indonesian batik is used as table cloth. the walls are painted yellow (my favorite color) so I absolutely loved it! overall a nice, clean place.

 

yellow walls with a few framed pictures here and there. plants in a corner. nice and sweet.

 

feel like having indonesian food today? call ‘dapoer kita’ 04-3795501 for more information, and directions!

Wok It : New Fancy Place for Asian Food

eating in dubai is so kacang for malaysians. if you missed food from home, you’ve got ‘singapore deli’ or ‘noodle bowl’ that sells spore-msian food from nasi lemak to laksa. you can also get lauk-pauk from indo restaurants ‘sari nusa’, ‘betawi’ or ‘dapoer kita’.

add to that list is ‘wok it’ – a new asian-food place offering delicious dishes from indonesia, malaysia, singapore and thailand. there’s the familiar pandan chicken, char kuey teow, nasi goreng kampung and the most popular dish here – murtabak. 

for links on my reviews of the places i mentioned, click here : singapore deli, noodle bowl, sari nusa and betawi.

 

 

‘wok it’ is very near burjuman mall in bur dubai. it’s directly opposite centerpoint. look out for that cute giant ‘bee’ statue, and you’ll see the entrance to ‘wok it’. you can park right in front of the restaurants, but parking can be tough on a busy day. wait on the side, and if you’re lucky, just swoop in when a car leave its space!

 

 

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with its stylish interior, wooden flooring, classy minimalist park bench-like seats and open kitchen – ‘wok it’ sets itself apart from other asian restaurants. personally i feel that this is the most fancy restaurant that i’ve been to, that offers malaysian dishes.

but hold it – this doesn’t necessarily makes ‘wok it’ better than the others – i still like betawi’s small, cosy place and singapore deli’s simple setting that is so lepak, as well as sari nusa with its batik table spread.

‘wok it’ is a pretty place, but at the same time, i immediately feel that we’re gonna be spending a lot more moolah here than any other asian place!

 

there are two sections : one is with the park-bench seats. and you go a few steps up to a smaller area with soft white chairs. it’s really nice, comfy. simple but classy. and it’s a classy place that is still kids-friendly. i like it.

 

 

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a few of our malaysian and indonesian friends who have been here suggested we try the ‘murtabak’. murtabak is a delicious malaysian dish which is basically minced meat (chicken, or lamb) cooked with a lot of diced onions and egg, wrapped inside a thin parotha-like skin. and it’s grilled over hot pan.

there is also a choice of ‘sweet murtabak’ which i think looks more like our ‘apam balik’ but with cheese and chocolate inside.

 

murtabak kambing or lamb murtabha

 

it’s no wonder why this is one of the most popular dishes in ‘wok it’. it’s delicious! granted that it’s got less inti that what we could get for cheaper in malaysia, and its got a crunchy exterior more similar to ‘samosa’ than our usual malaysian murtabak, but it’s still worth the dirham. it’s served piping hot so the outer skin is crispy crunchy.

for hardcore fans of murtabak, this might be a slight disappointment because the inti is agak sikit but personally I LIKE IT very much simply because i am not usually a fan of murtabak – i like my food to have balance and murtabak is just the sort off food that has very thin skin and A LOT of inti – faham tak? bila makan tu kadang-kadang rasa inti je berlambak. it just doesn’t go together for me!

tu sebab aku suka murtabak ‘wok it’ sebab inti dengan kulit dia seiring dan sejalan haha.

 

we also tried this spicy beef szechuan something-something with bell peppers and mushroom. tasty but tasty yang biase-biase je, especially for the price we’re paying. if you like these kind of dishes, i suggest you’re better off going to lan zhou chinese restaurant near dragon mart. cheap, super delicious lauk! click here for my review.

if i have to say one nice thing about this dish, the beef is tender. senang gigit. well-cooked.

 

for veggies, we opted for kangkong belacan. again, sedap but sedap biase. it’s fairly tasty but mr. khairul said singapore deli has the best kangkong belacan in town.

 

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i think i’ll try the char kuey teow next, just to see whether it’s similar with my favorite ipoh or penang char kuey teow. considering how *often* i get to eat authentic char kuey teow here in dubai, i doubt it will taste as good – but you never know until you try!

depan centerpoint kat burjuman mall tu tau. try lah!

Indo Dishes in Bumbu Desa @ Alamanda, Putrajaya

if ever you wanted to have delicious indonesian dishes in putrajaya, head on to alamanda – there’s a lovely little place called ‘bumbu desa’ that you just have to try.

the place is nicely decorated with indonesian motif, has relaxing indonesian intrumentals and the food presentation is the best. a bit pricey, but you not only pay for the tasty lauk, but comfort and ambiance too!

we came here recently on our trip back to malaysia. it was the day we caught the movie ‘avengers’. just the two us. casual dining at an indonesian restaurant, and a movie afterwards. nice.

 

bumbu desa is right next to garden, if i’m not mistaken

 

this was the ‘food presentation’ that i was talking about. at first i thought it was a buffet table, but it’s actually a spread of all the yummy dishes this restaurant can cook up.

we have a look-see, we choose what we like, tell the waiter, take our seat, and the staff will bring a bowl or plate of that dish to our table. and i tell you, the dishes are all looking SO mouth-watering!

 

the food-spread for patrons to choose from

we took this. gulai daun singkong. it’s some kind of leaf cooked in coconut milk. one of my favorite indonesian dishes. indescribable yumness.

 

i had this. ayam bakar (grilled chicken) with sweet soy sauce. yum, but i didn't like the chili sauce they added on top of the chicken. but the texture and taste – yum again!

 

mr. khairul’s favorite tidbits at an indonesian restaurant – tempe goreng. though i’m not a fan, i must say the tempe at ‘bumbu desa’ is freshly fried, making them hot and crispy. a nice addition.

 

brrr. aku memang tak tahan pedas, so this is clearly for mr. khairul. even looking at it i can feel the spiciness at the tip of my tongue! i usually avoid the green one then most!

 

a must-have for my khairul. never going without when he ate at an indonesian restaurant. some call it 'kelikir', some gulai 'kaki sapi'. to me, the texture of it that perplexed me the most. it’s like gummy bear, but it’s softer and not that liat. and a bit like a hardened jelly too. weird!

 

love, love, love the rice container!

 

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huge poster of one indon pakcik on the wall. there’s another one of a really lepak-looking makcik with kain batik on her head, on the other wall. it’s black and white, giving a classic feel.

 

i love the interior decor. the tikar-mengkuang ceiling. the wooden flooring. the wayang-kulit dolls on the walls. simply beautiful. what’s interesting to note is that the tables are not the same design. they’re all wooden table but some looked modern and contemporary, while some others look like they’re antique. that’s a unique touch, making them different like that!

 

 

i would recommend this restaurant to fans of indonesian dishes, because they’ve got delicious lauk here. however, it could be a little pricey – but you do get your money’s worth! semua sedap!

Lunch With New Family Member @ Simpang 3, Ipoh

it’s mr. khairul’s treat, and the special guest is abah who finally gets a break after the wedding, and my new bro-in-law nash, who just got married to my younger sister syida. the place – a popular indonesian restaurant serving delicious nasi padang (basically steamed rice with a lot of different dishes of our choice from chicken to ducks to veggies) called ‘simpang tiga’.

click here to read my review when i first came here with abah and my youngest sis azi.

 

the restaurant ‘simpang 3’ is really spacious. head on to the counter up front where they put all the dishes. choose what you want, and the staff will bring it to your table.

 

the newlyweds : nash & syida

 

chilli prawn (udang masak cili)

 

sayur pucuk – i like! i love this ever since my eldest sister’s indo maid cooked it. this is one yummy dish!

 

must have – ayam bakar (grilled chicken), sweet, succulent, tender chicken meat!

 

this is mr. khairul’s favorite – gulai kaki sapi. the gulai (gravy) is really good, but the texture of the ‘kaki sapi’ is really weird. gooey yet cheewy yet..yet.. i couldn’t describe it! it’s like eating a very savoury hard jelly!

 

sambal terung. i don’t really like eggplant because the texture is much to soft to be in a sambal (chili paste) – haha, but mr. khairul loves this one too.

 

pergedil – potato nugget!

 

my eldest sister and her sons – talk about ‘really reaching out’ for food! hihi

 

abah & umi. abah really enjoy indo food, especially this nasi padang.

 

us!

 

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the newlyweds shared a coconut drink. awww.

 

my yummy sirap bandung! (rose syrup in milk – yum!)

 

azi and her fiance could’ve made it for this lunch but they were sending her buddies to the train station to catch the ETS (electric train service) back to kl. it was a most enjoyable makan-makan as it was my final lunch in ipoh before heading back to KL.

a simple thing as eating together, as a family. at the same table. enjoyable good food. sharing stories. these are the moments to treasure for always.

 

restoran simpang tiga is at greentown ipoh, taking up more than 3 lots of shophouses. you can’t miss it. check out my previous posting on this place!