Reconte moi

I always thought i needed good music to set my creative mood as a late night graphic designer. So a few days ago, I decided to hunt for a perfect cd that will keep me going at least for the night.

Having always love jazz music, I came across to a cd which was recommended by one of my bestfriend who is a natural born singer.

The album reconte-moi by Stacey Kent caught my eyes as the cover itself looks rather pretty and somehow girly. beyond expectations if I may say. What more excite me is the fact that it's an all french album and as soon as I hear the first track I fell in love with her music.

Her album contains soft mellow songs which makes you feel as if you were in Paris sitting in one of the cafeteria over looking the beautiful scenery. Like today for instance, I listen to her music with a nice cuppa while writing this blog. It was a beautiful music even though I don't understand a single french word. but definitely a perfect music for a lazy afternoon or just a relax and chill out sessions with your girlfriends.

Jazz lovers...don't missed out on this album. And for those who are not into jazz (like my sister), you might have to consider this one. Infact, I can guarantee that you will change your perception towards jazz after listening to her cd. Strongly recommended =).

xoxo

Eve

Easter brunch at Potato Head

Many years ago, mum and dad used to take me, Eve, and our little brother Steve for a brunch and Easter eggs-hunting every Easter, until we have all grown up and each had our own activities that we no longer made an effort to celebrate Easter together. This year however, I was determined to celebrate Easter the traditional way. Not with Easter-egg hunting since we were now way too old for that, but a proper brunch.

Since all of the family members are in Perth, I wanted to celebrate it with my second family- my dear friends. So one week before Easter, I started to gather some friends for a casual brunch on that special Sunday. Originally I wanted to do it in Social House at Grand Indonesia since the restaurant has good brunch menu selections; however a friend of mine somehow has managed to persuade me to change direction to Potato Head instead.

Situated in a strategic area of SCBD, Potato Head has a very nice outdoor ambiance, and sitting there on a Sunday afternoon made me forget that I was actually in Jakarta. The busy street was hidden behind the trees and plants that surrounded the restaurant, and the whole atmosphere was just relaxing. However after fifteen minutes, most of my friends started to complain about the heat (it was indeed a humid day), so sadly we had to move inside.

Potato Head doesn’t offer too many choices for brunch but my egg benedict came perfect. The eggs were perfectly poached, and came with sautéed spinach and toasted English muffin. The waiter was attentive, however didn’t really pay attention to detail. I specifically requested the hollandaise sauce to be put aside, yet when it came I was so disappointed to see it smothered in sauce, which means another half an hour waiting for the “correct” food to arrive.

Other than that, we had a nice time. The sticky date pudding- as usual- is divine, and being surrounded by people that you love, I think is the perfect way to spend your Easter…

xoxo
Carol

Something blue...

Last week my favourite couple (Mr & Mrs A) and I organized a supposed-to-be-surprised baby shower for our dear friend C. Although it is no longer a surprise ever since the mummy-to-be accidentally found out our plan, we still want to make a celebration. Hence we decided to invite our closest friends to have lunch at Pastis, one of Jakarta’s great dining place at Kuningan Suites.

I always love Pastis’ clean, all-white interior. The combination of wooden tables, white chairs, open kitchen, and French doors emphasize the restaurant’s colonial look, which is very inspiring.

After last minute of frantically decorating our table with everything blue, Mr & Mrs A plus myself finally settled with our drinks and scanned the menu while waiting for others to come. The menu is quite impressive, with a great deal of choice from Western and Asian food. The last time I came here, I had the spinach ravioli with sage butter which was very delicious so I was expecting the same quality this time.

At about a quarter past one, as our stomach began to grumble, our guests (plus the mummy-to-be) finally arrived and we waited no time to order the food. My ravioli came fast, but the waiter seems to forget that I specifically mentioned “no parmesan”, as I can’t stand the smell of any cheese (well, maybe except ricotta cheese). As a result, I had to send it back to the kitchen, and even after that, I could still taste the parmesan a little, which was quite disturbing, knowing that the kitchen didn’t make a new one, but merely just “brush-off” the cheese.

C had the gnocchi, which was very tasty, but somehow took one hour to appear in our table, which again, the waiter “forgot” to mention. Other than those incidents, the food is generally nice, but service definitely needs improvement.

We stayed until four in the afternoon, with conversations around babies, nannies, and diapers =D, not my area of expertise, but I enjoyed organizing the event and can’t wait to organize another baby shower in June for Mrs A who is also expecting a baby boy.. :)

Xoxo
Carol

City that never sleeps

It has been three weeks since I came back to Jakarta, and although the city is so polluted and famous for its never-ending traffic jam, strangely enough, it feels like home. Well, I do miss the serenity of Perth every now and then, but I can’t deny that I love the buzz and energy the city gives me.

In those three weeks, my weekends have always been jam-packed with dinners, events, and activities. In that gap of one year after I left, there are a lot of new things happening- new malls, new apartments, new clubs, and of course, new restaurants. It is a breath of fresh air to see how Indonesian appreciates eating out, and to note that restaurants’ standard have gone up one level. Now, it’s not a hard thing to find good wine that goes with your food, and in my head I already have a list of new restaurants that was recommended. To name a few are Bistro Baron, Marmalade Pantry, Macaroon Tea House, and Kedai at Kemang.

Other than eating out, lately my group has taken the joy of staying in. Just last week, we had a pot-luck dinner at the newly wed (J&F)’s new house. Although we ended up eating a bucket of KFC, it was a fun night, and we are planning to do it again in someone else’s house in three weeks time.

As I’m writing this blog in my bed on a lazy Saturday morning (or should I say noon), I couldn’t help but wonder why I can feel at peace in this hectic city. I’m guessing Jakarta is not for everybody. But when you grow to love it, it is hard to grow out of, and to my father’s horror, I have fallen quite hard :)

xoxo

Carol