Balloon and Whisk PIK

“Wow, such a peculiar couple!”, exactly the first thought came into my mind. No wonder why, it’s a balloon and a whisk, both of which I’ve never seem before being put together into a joint. Well, I couldn’t tell in my mind how the two could work together LOL. Nonetheless, featuring this uniqueness, this newly opened cafe in PIK area indeed caught my curiosity to pay a visit. 

It’s always nice to be back to Pantai Indah Kapuk, figuring out many changes have been delivered. Some new ones came, some existing ones went away; what a dynamic life! It’s just always like ‘oh man, I’d just been here couple months ago and now they had another new stars??!?’. Even that sometimes led to unplanned visits to multiple places, depending on where the feet and the brain got me into. 

For Balloon and Whisk, this time I intentionally came there, as I’d been waiting for this premiere visit time as the cutie ‘fairy-tale-alike’ interior couldn’t get my eyes away from its pictures. Finally I could witness with my naked eyes how it really looked like. It’s indeed an elegant and kinda girly one, somehow crafting the feeling that made you want to whisper ‘Ooohh. So sweet! <3’

Being a specialist in cookies, when you had your initial door-open, you would first meet the stacks of cookie-boxes being neatly arranged right at the center to draw the attention of the guests. The concepts were all well built, presenting different theme in each of the variants. They got me really impressed there, and I couldn’t think of other things but this was an amazing gift to share. 

Coming deeper to the back of the venue, you would meet the garden arrangement, just like the classic setting in fairy tale. Big green trees, marble furniture, and a hint of golden-lines in the decoration; feeling like a princess going to dine at the palace’s backyard. 

It’s kinda surprising when looking at the menu and I then figured out they mainly featured Indonesian local dishes for the main courses as places with such concept  were usually more into patisserie or Western-themed ones. Well, but I would definitely not mind as long as what’s landed on my table later could give the same satisfaction. 

Hot Cappuccino (IDR 30k)

Starting point? Well you made a great guess there if you just mentioned this caffeine cup, yep nothing but coffee. My second cup of the day, but I didn’t know why, no matter how much I had it, how close the gap between the timing was, it seemed like the law of diminishing return didn’t prevail here. Honestly speaking the aroma wasn’t that tempting, but presentation wise it’s not bad at all and I was deeply in love with the color of my cup. I wouldn’t demand much as they indeed didn’t mention anything related to coffee specialist, and lucky me to set such preliminary thought as my first sip did tell I precisely made my guesstimate this time; slightly acidic, medium bodied, but overall was okay. 

Nasi Kucing (IDR 7k)

As I wasn’t that hungry but thinking of having the combo of savory and sweet, so I tried to find something light and such a nice coincidence that this menu was there displayed on the showcase together with its ‘other family members’. Yep, various choices of toppings to accompany the petite-sized rice wrapped in leaf, which will be re-heated when ordered. I picked the squid one which was surprisingly too spicy for my palate. Unfortunately the squid amount was very limited, but for sure I needed to tolerate that as the dish came in very affordable price. In case you weren’t that much into prawn, there were other choices like chicken and fish. Well, not a bad one just to give that blink of savory flavor on the taste bud. 

Chocolate Rocher (IDR 60k)

Fulfilling my expectation, I did go for the gigantic cake, which I knew was quite too much for single player but yeah let’s forget the hips for awhile and let the tummy get satisfied. I guessing you would also get as confused as I was when standing in front of the dessert showcases as everything there was apparently coming in ‘XL size’. Some might think it’s kinda pricey but looking at the size I still perceived it as worthy. 

I initially kinda underestimated the cake as I badly thought it might turn out quite dry, but it got my mouth shut and simply fell into the indulgence. The chocolate sponge cake layers were deliciously delivered in moist texture, being in beautiful balance between light and dense. The chocolate ganache covering the cake and the chocolate cream layers in between were my biggest crush due to their bold chocolate taste, making them turned out not overly sweet. Not to mention the nougat covering the top part which simply added extra addiction to this piece of sinful pleasure. 

However, if you just thought ‘eeerrmmm.... no no... I was not a cake person’, actually you might go for other options like doughnut (ps. It’s not the kind of o-ring you would finish in several-bites since the diameter was even more than a common saucer I guesstimated), croissants, danish, bread, and even some traditional sweets (yep, that typical homemade ones even like banana fritters!). 

If you’re hoping around PIK area and you’re much into new places, Balloon and Whisk could be one of your options, particularly if you’re looking for nice place to spend longer time. Perhaps easier to find parking space as well since it resided in the second-layer alley where there was less intensity of the crowd. You might also be interested to find some cutie pies (read: cookies) for gift-giving ;)

Taste: 7/10
Place: 7.5/10
Service: 7.5/10
Price: 7/10

Thanks for reading! :)

BALLOON AND WHISK

Address: Rukan Eksklusif Blok G No. 34, Pantai Indah Kapuk, Jakarta

Phone: (+62) 811 1766 855

Operating Hours: Mon - Sun 10am - 6pm

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Lemari Kopi

Lately, I could see people are getting more and more creative in inventing catchy names for coffee shops. Yes, no choice but to do the right branding since the very first start, or otherwise you might get fade away much faster than you could’ve ever imagined. The same reason would prolly what lead to this coffee shop residing in BSD area being named as Lemari Kopi. Some might think like, ‘Hmm. Okay, coffee cupboard?’. But for me personally it did catch my curiosity to figure out more; if it’s indeed shaped like a cupboard, if I could have peculiar spot for taking amusing snaps, and many more queries buzzing in my brain. 

Proving it myself, I finally got exposed to the real appearance of the outlet. Perhaps nothing really represented a cupboard from the outer view, yet I would say I loved the front corner, looking like cute petite store I usually saw in Western movies. More like an antique-stuff store even for me!

I fell for the idea of combining brown from wood and grey from cement as it gave that zen ambiance, which was simply heart-warming and not overwhelming for the sight. The front corner, located right next to the entrance, was a unique one, having 2 different tiny ‘room’ separated by a small alley. One was for the order point, while the other was functioned as coffee bar; creative idea though somehow gave the impression that it’s quite too packed. 

The capacity of the venue was indeed limited, with only few tables for a group of two up to four, and a mini semi-outdoor space for smokers located at the back. Perhaps if you weren’t smoking, you would have the same thought as me that it’s not that preferable to sit outside, knowing the humidity of this area. Nevertheless, it might work well in a windy afternoon when you could try seeking some fresh air. With the design featured, the cafe might look a bit dark with pretty dim lighting, but in my view still in a proper level especially during day time. 

Realizing it’s only dedicated for quick coffee or short break over caffeine-energizer, you might have expected limited dishes offered. Good news they still tried their best to serve those who might be starving, by offering some choices of heavy meals like rice bowls. 

Well as I went here for breakie only, so I still thought I had quite some choices ranging from Pastel, Fried Tofu, Kacang Kukus (Steamed Nuts), Risol, or even Asinan. Yesss you heard me right and honestly I was so happy knowing they served those traditional snacks to accompany my morning coffee and everything’s served in cafe ambiance! Not only that, you could even find more traditional ones like Es Kacang Ijo and Jamu Gendong; such amusing fact, wasn’t it?

Hot Cappuccino (IDR 23k)

As usual, trying the standard one first as I still had the perspective if they could make the basic one good, then the rest would be awesome. Though I couldn’t say this cappuccino was the best one ever, it’s surely not bad. It would suit those who couldn’t take too bold coffee. For my palate, I wished I could have stronger coffee taste in my cup. 

Es Kopi Soesi (IDR 17k)

Though I had no idea what Soesi meant here, my wild guess would be it’s related to milk, and yes that happening iced milk coffee in Lemari Kopi’s signature style. It’s a lovely cup and for me it’s slightly less sweet compared to the general ones. The elements in it, particularly milk and brown sugar, were in right portion that they blended in well. Next time I would absolutely request it with less ice, just to ensure I enjoyed the same taste till the last sip. 

Roti Isi (IDR 20k for 3)

Looking familiar? Having seen the pictures quite too much on your timeline lately? Yeah these signature buns originally found in Thailand seemed to be delivering a big hype here in J-town. It’s such pleasure that Lemari Kopi did serve it with several choices of flavors, from which I picked the most favorite ones; chocolate, milk, and srikaya. I simply loved all of ‘em with the highlight placed on the bun for being so moist and fluffy, as well as tasted flavorful with the indulging mix of milk and butter in it. The different fillings stuffed into the bread were bonus of delicacy to pamper my palate, and thanks to Lemari Kopi for being so generous in giving the bonus! My addiction was doubtlessly my almost all-time fave mate for sweets, CHOCOLATE! Served warm, you would have it literally melt in your mouth <3

If supposedly what’s left in the memory was the coffee, this time I would say my biggest crush from this place was still its Roti Isi. Couldn’t wait to come back and munch some more of them!

Taste: 7/10

Place: 7/10

Service: 7.5/10

Price: 7.5/10

Thanks for reading! :)

LEMARI KOPI

Address: Ruko Sektor 1.1 Blok RE 2 No. 4, Jl. Griya Loka Raya, BSD, Tangerang 

Phone: (+62) 838 7290 2773

Operating Hours: Mon - Sun 8am - 8pm

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