I’m always highly excited to write about
new places I visit and new foods I try. However, time doesn’t always permit me
to do so especially in the past few months. Thereby, every time I can find it,
I’ll for sure not waste it, so here I am finding myself relaxing on my bed and
starting to write about the new comer in town I just visited for my late lunch last
Sunday.
Located at Street Gallery Pondok Indah
Mall right across The Coffee Club and close to Union, Pavela becomes the new
comer who has added the crowd to the arrays of restaurants available here. Well,
I guess becoming a new comer in town is not as special as it used to be in
prior as there are too many of them popping-up recently. Nonetheless, being the
very first Peruvian restaurant in Jakarta might make Pavela quickly capture the
excitement of most people, especially those who’re always enthusiastic for
food-hunting; not to exclude, ME.
Staying at the area close to Central
Jakarta makes going to Pondok Indah area become quite an effort for me. Despite
the distance, the traffic sometimes is just too horrible to be true, especially
during the weekdays at the peak hours. Luckily, Jakarta’s traffic has been so
friendly in last few days as most of the people have left the city, either
going back to their hometown or enjoying their short sweet escapes. Not to miss
this chance, I came to Pavela with my hungry tummy and curious palate.
The venue was actually not that huge,
able to accommodate approximately 40 people at maximum based on my guesstimate.
The design was quite simple and I don’t think it tried to bring out anything
strongly reflecting Peru as the main theme. Nevertheless, the place was cozy
enough to chill and enjoy casual dining session.
The service deserved an appreciation as
the waiter was highly responsive, starting from greeting me as the guest and
directing me to the table I chose. He was knowledgeable enough as well when I
came up with questions about details of the dishes. Moreover, it didn’t take
that long for them to have all the dishes ready on the table. The appetizer
came just in time, saving me from the starving-belly alert.
Causa de Cangrejo (IDR 45k)
As the introduction to Peruvian dishes, I had this appetizer, whose ingredients were actually quite simple yet the presentation looked gorgeous due to the mixture of colors. The mash potato base tasted quite plain for me, but luckily it was saved by the well-seasoned toppings, combining fresh Kani and corn with tasty onion.
Pollo A La Brasa (IDR 95k)
This first main course actually didn’t
belong to me, but as sharing is caring, I certainly tried it as well LOL. You
needn’t get confused by its name as I guessed the picture could clearly tell
you what’s in it. Yes, it’s slow-roasted chicken leg, served with fried cassava
and butter rice. The chicken was perfectly cooked as I could see the pink color
and taste the super tender texture. It might look simple, but you’d better not
judge this dish from its appearance as the flavor was rich. Forgetting about
calories, the double carbo coming from fried cassava and butter rice came as
perfect companions to the protein. I couldn’t remember when the last time I had
fried cassava was, but this one made me realized that I just missed it so much.
The butter rice was such a taste-bud satisfier as well since it flawlessly
suited my preference for rice; neither too dry, nor too mushy.
Pollo Saltado (IDR 85k)
This dish of mine was served with exactly
the same side dishes as the previous one. It’s only the chicken, which was
cooked in different style, but this difference did play a big role. If you’ve
read some of my blog posts, you might have known my habit to pick up the
winning dish of the day. And if you’ve just guessed that I’d pick this dish as
the champion, now you own the 100 score. I was so pleased that I opted for the
dish that suited my palate best. The spices blended with the flame-cooked
chicken breast, onion, and tomato, doubtlessly turned the dish to be so
luscious. For you who’re going to have your first trial on Pavela as well as you
who’ve come here but haven’t had this dish, you’d better make sure you have it
at the first place of your order list :)
Beso De Moza (IDR 45k)
Now we come to the mandatory part of the
course in my version, yes it’s unquestionably dessert. My choice went to this dark
chocolate cake with marshmallow and roasted peanuts layer in the middle,
complemented with vanilla ice cream served next to it. Trying to have my first
spoon of this sweet tooth, I found the problem in cutting it as the base of
this cake was basically made of chocolate bar. The taste was quite nice but if
I could choose, I preferred the base to be mixed with something with lighter
texture, such as brownie or pie instead of pure chocolate bar.
In a nutshell, Pavela has successfully
crafted my great impression on Peruvian dishes, especially due to its Pollo
Saltado. I’m excited to come back to try the other dishes they serve!
*UPDATED*
Call me lucky, I was also quite surprised
that my excitement to come back to this Peruvian restaurant got its answer much
faster than expected. This weekend, I again visited Pavela with a roaring belly
for their other dishes. So let’s just make it short and straightly go to my
enviable table.
Pisco Sour (IDR 45k)
This second blissful visit was kick-started
by this refreshing signature mocktail from Pavela, Pisco Sour, which was also
Peruvian national drink. The appealing presentation didn’t lie as it
faultlessly represented the nice taste. At first, I kind of doubted it would
end up good knowing that the foam put on top of this lime-based drink was
basically made of egg white with slight touch of cinnamon. Gladly, I was proven
totally wrong since it came up as a glass of yummy thirst quencher.
Jalea (IDR 95k)
Taking quite some time to make up my mind
in choosing which dish to have (as I wish my tummy could afford everything on
the menu), I finally ended up with this Peruvian fish and chips. I was always a
big fan of fish and chips and thereby, my benchmark was quite high. Nonetheless,
Pavela once again pleased me with this moist fish fillet covered in crispy and lusciously
seasoned golden brown coating. Enjoying it with the salsa and Aji Verde (Peruvian green chili sauce;
consisting of tomatoes, coriander, aji pepper, onion, and water) dipping,
voila! Just impeccably melted in the mouth! Not to forget, the partner to this
fish, the Papas Fritas which was basically butter french fries. They might look
just like common french fries, but I guessed the butter and spices simply made you
resist to stop munching.
Nikkei Chicken (IDR 80k)
Feeling kind of incomplete to dine in
Pavela without having its Cilantro butter rice, so here was another dish I had,
Nikkei Chicken. If last time I went for the roasted (Pollo A La Brasa) and
flame-cooked (Pollo Saltado) versions of the chicken, this time I was curious
to have the fried one. Just like its name, Nikkei, which sounded so Japanese
and indeed literally meant Japanese emigrants, this dish reminded me of my
favorite Japanese chicken-based dish, Chicken Nanban. Serving fried chicken leg
with special Nikkei sauce and tartar, it satisfied me as well as the Japanese
version.
Banana Popsicles (IDR 40k)
Sweet ending of the day, there came the
Banana Popsicles. They were basically simple desserts, serving sweet ripe
plantains, coated with dark chocolate and crushed peanuts, accompanied by vanilla
ice cream. As a portion consisted of 3 popsicles, I recommended you to share it
unless you had big storage in your tummy to finish all. Though nothing in
particular astonished me, but it nicely ended my second Peruvian lunch in my
lifetime. If you’re into fruit-based dessert, this might suit you best.
Having had this second visit, instead of
experiencing diminishing law of return which said the more you have something
the less additional return you would earn; I thought I felt in love deeper with
Peruvian dishes and I could only say that I was still as excited as before,
looking forward for the upcoming visits!
Taste: 8/10
Place: 7.5/10
Service: 8.5/10
Price: 8/10
Thanks for Reading! :)
PAVELA
Address: Street Gallery, Pondok Indah Mall GF
Phone: (+6221) 2952 9767
Phone: (+6221) 2952 9767
Opening hour: Sun – Thu 10am – 00am, Fri – Sat 10am – 2am
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me on:
Inputs
& comments: jessicagaby@ymail.com
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