More than Just Coffee at Wake Cup

Another member of the huge coffee shop family in PIK area, Wake Cup Coffee. If you happen to know the restaurant serving the best simmer pot in town (in my opinion and I believe almost all people’s opinion!), Huang Ji Huang, Wake Cup is just next to it! Or perhaps, you might know the hairdresser Toni & Guy, this coffee shop is right below it. Well, it’s not hard to find the venue as it’s located at one of the most crowded spots for dining in PIK. Additionally, one unique characteristic is the roof of the coffee shop, which is shaped like a right triangle, distinctive from the common shape of most roofs.

The place is not that spacious, but I think the size is just more or less similar to any other coffee shops in PIK. The one-storey venue is further divided into two sections; the outer side which is dedicated for smoking area and the inner one which is for non-smoking. Despite the cigarette smell, I personally prefer the outer spot as it’s covered with huge glass windows, allowing perfect natural light to come in and yes, for sure it looks like the production place for instagenic photos! The wall decoration here seems like very supportive as well with all the murals, allowing you to make great selfies and self-pictures. It’s even utilized for party and bridal shower; a great idea I just realized when I went there last time as I saw the event was being held.

Despite being a coffee shop, Wake Cup actually serves the dishes beyond just the coffee cups or light bites as the coffee companions. It surprisingly comes up with several choices of heavy meals like rice-based dishes, pasta, and fulfilling-sized pastries. Great news, they all come with pocket-friendly prices so I guess they still match the needs and wants of most coffee shop visitors; not too much spending yet you can enjoy sit back and relax for long time.

My full-course catch-up session with friends there started with some light bites; Pop Tofu (IDR 27k), Potato Wedges (IDR 27k), and Cheesy Balls (IDR 32k). All these fried snacks were luscious and addicting as they’re crispy, not greasy, and delightfully spiced. As they came in bite-size, they doubtlessly made the perfect mates to my cup of caffeine. Please don’t ask me to pick one as it might be tough to do so. Best solution, go with friends, order all of them then share! Cause that’s what friends are for, aren’t they? Sharing is beyond stories, it’s also every single thing you have on the plate :) .

Continuing the round to the heavier one, this was the dish that attracted me the most, Philly Cheese Dog (IDR 45k). Yes, for sure because I was a big big fan of cheese! Ok, appearance wise, it might look not that appetizing. Yet still, I believe you could see that melted mozzarella cheese on top of this dish. And yeah, after all presentation just came next for me and taste was always the most important. Saying it honestly, yes this might not be the best hotdog ever, but it did taste scrumptious, the sliced beef stuffing was generously given, and most essential for me, I could taste the mozzarella cheese at each bite.

Philly Cheese Dog (IDR 45k)

Seems like understanding Indonesians best, Wake Cup did serve rice-based dishes. Yes, you heard it right, rice; indeed not a typical dish served by any other coffee shop particularly in PIK area. Wake Cup became kind of distinctive due to this as you could enjoy your sip of coffee not only with light bites, but also the heavy meals, and this one’s RICE!

Gyu Matah Don (IDR 48k)

Greater news, I tried their Gyu Matah Don (IDR 48k) and it’s not bad at all; I could even say it tasted lovely enough. The beef might need to be a little bit tenderer, but the moist scramble egg and the spicy yet yummy matah sauce could cause you amnesia on the beef texture. I loved how the matah sauce didn’t contain too much shallot so the shallot taste was not overpowering, and the after-taste (including your breathe aroma) is still nice. Not leaving bad after-taste at your palate.

Coming with this super affordable price, this plate was surely a great deal! Beware, if you couldn’t handle spicy food at all, you’d better request for the non-spicy one. PS, if you’re more into bread person than the rice one, this dish is also available in the ‘hotdog’ version, called as Gyu Matah Dog (IDR 45k).

Bread checked, rice checked, so what’s next? Yeps, you got it right if you just said PASTA! My friends and I had their Spaghetti Aglio Olio (IDR 39k) and Fettuccine Alfredo (IDR 39k), the combination with contradicting components completing each other; in which one was light and spicy while the other was thick and creamy. Both the spaghetti and the fettuccine were cooked al dente, yet the flavor might be even better if they could be slightly saltier and tastier. Thanks to the toppings which came as great saviors, with generously given smoked beef in the spaghetti and abundantly mixed mushroom slices in the fettuccine.  

Chocolate Brownie with Vanilla Ice Cream (IDR 35k)

The crispy skin to the KFC, the mozzarella cheese stuffing to the stuffed crust pizza, yessss the best part to all my full-course meals, D.E.S.S.E.R.T.S! Not to miss one of the most recommended desserts from Wake Cup, I tried their Chocolate Brownie (IDR 35k), which was served with vanilla ice cream. For brownie, my favorite’s the fudgy type one with more solid texture. Calling it lucky coincidence, this brownie exactly satisfied my preference. Not only being so fudgy, it’s also served warm and topped with vanilla ice cream. Could you ask for better combination? ;)

Chocolate Cream Pie (IDR 30k)

When people say there’s always a room for desserts, I’ll say every single room will be available for desserts. That pretty much represents how insane I am for desserts. If people go for 1 dessert in their full-course, I’ll go for 2 or even more! So here came my next round of desserts, Chocolate Cream Pie (IDR 30k). It immaculately combined the delicious pie crust base which has cake alike texture, with the balancedly sweet and moist chocolate cream. Thanks to the cake for suiting my palate so well as it’s neither too milky, nor too chocolaty.

Coffee Latte (IDR 32k)

Now the best and the most important thing in any coffee shops, the coffee itself. As I didn’t drink black coffee, I opted for this Coffee Latte (IDR 32k), taking the normal version.  Normal basically meant double ristretto. On the other hand, they did provide the light version, which was the one served with one ristretto. As I tried both, I recommended the normal one as it had the right level of coffee taste for me, both in terms of the bitterness as well as the acidity. Nevertheless, if you didn’t really drink coffee and you preferred the lighter one, you could go for the single ristretto.

Coffee Latte (IDR 32k)

Moreover, another option’s to go for the combined drink, combining coffee and non-coffee ingredients like this Taro-Spresso (IDR 38k). This drink was probably the highlight of the day as all my friends and I without exception, loved it so much that we’re competing with each other to get more sips of it. The sweet taro was impeccably complemented by the slightly bitter coffee taste from the single espresso shot.

In case your caffeine tolerance’s approaching the zero level, you still needn’t worry as they do serve the coffee-free beverages, such as Peanut Butter Caramel (IDR 38k) and Chocolate Milk Shake (IDR 30k). For the first one, as a peanut-butter addict, my taste bud preferred it to be less milky and have stronger peanut butter taste. While for the latter one, I could say nothing but hands down to this non-coffee drink. The strong dark chocolate taste was extremely good that you might feel you wouldn’t be willing to leave any single drop in the glass.

Summarizing my café-hoping experience in Wake Cup, I was really satisfied in a nutshell. Starting from the appetizers up to the beverages, my palate kept being well-pampered.

Taste: 8/10

Place: 8/10

Service: 8.5/10

Price: 8.5/10

Thanks for reading! :)

Wake Cup Coffeeshop

Address: Ruko Crown Golf Mediterania A 52, Pantai Indah Kapuk, Jakarta

Phone: +62 21 564 0814 / +62 8190 8818 013

Operating Hours: Mon – Sun 8am – 10pm

Website . Facebook . Twitter . Instagram . Email

Find me on:

Instagram . Facebook . Twitter

Inputs & comments: jessicagaby@ymail.com

Transformation from Duck Hater to Duck Lover by Holyduck

Having been successful with Holywings, now this restaurant group spreads its wings to the world of Indonesian cuisines with its newly opened restaurant, Holyduck. Located right on top of Holywings PIK outlet, the venue is not a gigantic one, yet spacious enough for typical restaurant in PIK area. It brings out the Balinese concept for its design, making the venue covered with paintings representing traditional Balinese costumes and the music completed with traditional Balinese instruments. Even when you take the stairs going up to the spot from Holywings, you can already feel like back to nature with the flowers all around you. Great food for the eyes, isn’t it?

 

Represented by the name, this new comer in town mostly sells duck-based dishes, including its appetizers. However, you needn’t worry if you’re not that big fan of duck, since they do serve chicken-based ones and mostly all the menu are available in both duck and chicken. When I firstly knew about dish, my heart actually cheered as I was not that much into duck. Well, when chicken’s available I would surely go for chicken. But pssttttt! For you who’s now thinking about the same thing as me, wait until you read the full review and be ready to get surprised ;)

So at that time, I was actually visiting the place with my other foodie friends (@yennymakanmulu, @fionatjo, @leonardtjoe, @whats_up_jakarta, and @designerdoyanmakan), who’re all duck lovers. So guess what? Yes, absolutely they started to order anything with duck. Luckily, they’re also curious to try the chicken so I could be a little bit relieved since I would still have my part in case the duck didn’t suit my palate LOL.

 

Lumpia Bebek (IDR 27.5k)

The truth was then revealed by the finger food, which kick-started our lunch in Holyduck; Lumpia Bebek (IDR 27.5k). It was basically crispy springrolls with duck and vegetable stuffing. When I firstly looked at the dish, I thought it would just taste like any other spring rolls commonly. Nevertheless, this golden brown little fellas successfully surprised me with its scrumptious taste! Not only the stuffing was generously given, but also the dipping consisting of peanut sauce and sambal combrong faultlessly came as perfect companions to the springrolls. When people said that first impression did significantly matter, I couldn’t agree more as this first meal indeed got me at my very first bite.  

Sate Lilit (IDR 35k)

Not satisfied with one appetizer only, we also went for Sate Lilit (IDR 35k); chicken and fish satay served with Balinese herbs. I always loved Sate Lilit and great news, this one did not fail to satisfy me as well. It was well-seasoned and I could say that it’s comparable to the original one I usually had in Bali.

Next one was the ‘Trio Kwek-Kwek’. Well, probably not all of you were aware of them as they’re the children trio when I was in elementary. Okay forget about that, I was going to talk about the three duck-based dishes we ordered; Signature Crispy Duck, Bebek Betutu, and Bebek Lombok Ijo (IDR 77k each). Not stopping at the appetizer only in surprising me, Holyduck once again pampered my taste bud with something I said I didn’t fancy in the beginning. All these duck were extremely good!! Well, too good to be true for me! They all came in very tender texture and they didn’t have that duck smell or after-taste, which were the two biggest problems I typically had with duck.

Signature Crispy Duck (IDR 77k)

Urap

Bebek Betutu (IDR 77k)

Plecing Kangkung

Bebek Lombok Ijo (IDR 77k)

Though all of them mainly contained duck, each had its own uniqueness. The first one would best suit those who’re in love with anything fried, the second would please those who liked soupy dish with rich combination of herbs, while the third would delight those who’re fond of grilled meal and spicy sauce. Another interesting fact, each of them were served with different types of veggies; first came with urap (boiled veggies with shredded coconut toppings), second with plecing kangkung (boiled water spinach with red chili sauce) and third with sauteed cassava leaves with Teri. All the veggies were so fresh and luscious as well, made me wondering that being healthy should be no more hard. Just to note, the pairing of the main dish and the veggie were actually the ideal combination offered by the restaurant, but the guest was always open for the option to request for other type of veggie. My personal favorite was urap as I was kind of addicted to almost anything with coconut.

Kacang Panjang Kalasan (IDR 22.5k)

Adding more greens on the table, we also tried Kacang Panjang Kalasan (IDR 22.5k); long bean sautéed with the blend of coriander, candlenut, turmeric, shallot, and garlic. Not much thing to say, Indonesian was undeniably talented in mixing spices and Holyduck immaculately prove they’re one of those gifted Indonesians.

Having been mesmerized by the duck, I still did not want to miss the chicken, particularly since it was the most distinctive one for me. Why is that so? It’s due to the chicken dish my friends and I ordered; Ayam Pelalah Bali (IDR 68k). I’d never in my lifetime heard of the term ‘Pelalah’ before, thus I was curious yet excited to figure out how it actually looked like. Being served on the table, I then found out that it’s shredded chicken with Balinese traditional Matah sauce; yes those tons of chilies and onions. Hands down to this dish, it’s not the name alone making it become so special, but the taste did turn it to be my top of mind from Holyduck. It might be a little bit too spicy for some people, but if you belonged to the spicy-tolerant gang, this was immaculately heaven! The texture was as tender as the duck and as the chicken was complete shredded already, hence it’s also the simplest one to be enjoyed.

Ayam Pelalah Bali *Top Right* (IDR 68k)

In the end, Holyduck had impeccably shifted my perception toward duck. If all duck in any other places could taste this awesome, from now on I would hate duck no more and I would probably even welcome my own self into the duck-lover club.

Taste: 9/10

Place: 8/10

Service: 8/10

Price: 8.5/10

Thanks for reading! :)

Holyduck

Address: Ruko Crown Golf B 52-56 lvl.2, Jl. Pantai Indah Selatan 1 Blok DA No.2, Pantai Indah Kapuk, Jakarta

Phone: +62 878 8711 1168

Operating Hours: Mon – Sun 10am – 10pm

Instagram . Email

Find me on:

Instagram . Facebook . Twitter 

Inputs & comments: jessicagaby@ymail.com