I actually passed Pineapple every weekday as it's just 5-minute car-ride from my current residence. Nonetheless, perhaps I was always too tired to see what's around, that I didn't even realize it was there till my friend told me about it. Moreover, even after I'd known it's there, still took weeks before I finally came to this place. Yeah, I guessed you know that feeling, when you thought something's too close to you and too accessible, creating the thought that you could reach it at all times till you finally realized you ended up not going there.
Cutting the story short, finally I could call today the D-day! It's actually an impromptu one as today supposed to be the day I was going back to my hometown. Realizing the departure time's still late in the evening, I 'tried to be effective and efficient in using my time', allocating a couple of hours coming here (well, another excuse *peace*), the collaboration of Pineapple and Kopi Kalyan.
Located at Foresta Business Loft, it wouldn't be a big trouble finding parking space at Pineapple. Well, I wouldn't know how it would be in weeks from now but at least it's still the condition today as there were still very limited used office spaces there, so you could already guess how empty it looked like during day time in weekdays.
Originally being the showroom of Pineapple Lifestyle Furniture, the place's interior was beyond words, such a jaw-breaking one that would totally wowed you at the premiere sight. Opening its door for the very first time was just like the moment of truth. I could even say that I couldn't get more impressed, it simply made me wish that I could have my office desk migrated here, such a peaceful space to spend my busy working days. That spoiling ambience right away got me questioned what time they opened in the morning and closed in the evening; starting to plan in my mind for continue working here after office hour. Nonetheless, the truth spoke differently as they already closed their door for public by 6.30pm every day. You might literally see the tips of my lips fell freely to the ground now :( (still wishing they considered extending the opening time).
It felt like looking into a real magazine world when spotting at the calming view served by the venue's setup. No wonder why, it's indeed the house of Pineapple, who're the hands behind the impressive furniture setup you saw in well-known places like Courtyard Marriott Bali, Ritz Carlton Nusa Dua, Djati Lounge Malang, and Begor Pondok Suryo BSD. Yeah, their core business was providing furnishing service for places, aiming to make people feel like being home regardless where those places were.
Beautiful sofas, minimalist individual chairs, pretty wooden communal tables, gorgeous petite squared tables, photogenic round tables, eye-catchy hanging light bulbs; called all of them out and Pineapple simply displayed everything. A spacious well-arranged gallery was there right in front of you, to feed your eyes with 'delectable' panorama. The best part was doubtlessly The Pineapple Signature Wall, which you would directly spot as you stepped into the coffee shop. Arrays of chairs and plants were neatly presented next to the big letters showing Pineapple name. It deserved nothing but a long standing ovation!
At one corner, there stood the bar of Kopi Kalyan, the 'young' coffee shop whose initial branch resided in Cikajang area. It was actually an awesome idea to have this collaboration in my view since they could have the guests experienced the ambiance of their furniture set up, over a cup of nice coffee. In the end, people mostly did trust what they really saw and felt by themselves, didn't they? :)
Talking to the baristas, some of them were actually relocated from that first outlet of Kopi Kalyan. The pastries lined-up in the showcase were also freshly shipped from the kitchen there. Woowww, couldn't wait to start my coffee-and-sweets breakie set.
No I wasn't a cookie monster, but yes cookie's my favorite option for sweet snacks, and I almost always gave a try for any new cookie sellers/brands I met. Bluntly speaking, Kopi Kalyan's version might be not as flawlessly-presented as the ones belonged to Mrs. Fields, Ben's Cookie, or Famous Amos; nonetheless, I could certainly call out that taste wise it didn't lose against them. The cookie served in moist texture gave that impeccably gooey caramel hazelnut paste and that mix of flavors was strongly felt on my taste bud.
The classic and minimalist one, which's my friend's most favorite pastry to order in any coffee shop we visited. This time, Kopi Kalyan's was not being an exception, being served in that attractive golden brown color. I could tell that the texture had to be indulging just by looking at it, not yet even having my first bite. I guessed you got what I was saying when looking at the picture presented here :). Not going far from my prediction, it was such simple delicacy for my palate though I had to admit that it's a bit pricey for that size.
Still the same thought as the previous one I had at my initial visit to Kopi Kalyan Cikajang. This Chocolate Almond Croissant was definitely the most appealing one from all the selections shown in the pastry display for me, besides the Original Almond Croissant. Simply stated, the one that I had no reason for not ordering. That perfect layers of flaky pastry base couldn't get my eyes away from it. If I previously had a quite indecent experience in Kopi Kalyan's home base because of the limited chocolate filling inside my croissant, seemed like this time was a totally different one, meaning they'd shown the improvement made there (well done, fellas!). Giving me satisfaction beyond my expectation, not only the batter was so fragrant but the luscious chocolate filling was generously provided as well. Knowing it's just like 10-minute away from my office, I now recorded it as my top option for daily breakfast.
Hot Cappuccino (IDR 33k)
Hot Piccolo (IDR 26.5k)
If you have ever read my prior blog post on Kopi Kalyan, you had to know that I was in love with their coffee as it faultlessly suited my coffee liking. Medium bodied, not overly acidic, and clean after taste; seemed like nothing more to ask for, didn't it? The bold and fragrant coffee aroma was absolutely the highlight from the cup, the one that got me sold to it at the very first sip. I loved both the cappuccino and the piccolo, but if I had to choose one, I would go for the latter which was slightly stronger.
Not to forget, Kopi Kalyan's signature trademark of Pandan sponge cake, who came as the substitute to the petite cookie/biscuit you might usually meet in other coffee shops as the complimentary to your caffeine cup order. Well yeah, I did think almost all Pandan sponge cake I'd had in lifetime were nice including this one. The thing that made it special was it's not common that coffee shop served it for free to pair your coffee. Furthermore, today was probably my happiness overload day as the barista was so generous that he gave my friends and I double portion of these cakes! Couldn't thank you more ;)
Overall, I wouldn't say a lot more than 'You gotta try it yourself and you would definitely not have any regret coming here'. The experience you would get, both in terms of spoiling ambiance as well as indulging sweets and coffee would make your visit paid-off.
Taste: 8/10
Place: 9/10
Service: 8.5/10
Price: 7.5/10
Thanks for Reading! :)
PINEAPPLE X KOPI KALYAN
Address: Foresta Business Loft 2 Unit 20, Tangerang Selatan, Banten
Phone: (+62 21) 3002 0229
Operating Hours: Mon - Sun 7am - 6.30pm
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