Melly's Garden at Kebon Sirih, Jakarta

The night is young. Tuko still locked from inside, so Tuko can't get back and sleep by now. There's some friends asking and actually forcing to go for a rather new place called Melly's Garden at Kebon Sirih, Jakarta.

So we went there. The place is actually not in the main street of Kebon Sirih, but more like in one of the small streets. Easy to find though. But the problem is that the parking area seems to be very full at the time Tuko arrived. And the security guy actually asked for IDR35,000 or around USD2.80 for the valet charge. Are they insane? That's even more expensive than the one in the malls. But because of we're already there, we'll have to take it.

The entrance door / gate to the bar is actually very small and Bali feels.

This is what Tuko means by the bar on the left hand side and bar stools + tables by the front and right hand side.

These are the open air area. Pretty interesting design with Balinese architectural designs. There are small fish ponds and fountains around the area. The open area maybe can hold up around 50 - 60 people.

Tuko and friends were sitting inside since the outdoor is already full. The inside is the area where they say not supposed to smoke inside. But once you are inside, there are  many people just smoke casually and the waiters just let them be.

So for the start before we even order up, the waiter let us know that within 15 minutes their hourly promotion will be over. The promotion for that time was Balonku Ada 5. It's a bucket with 5 laboratory's glass filled with 5 different type of liquor. The original price is IDR54,000 or around USD4.30. Gone down on promotion to only IDR25,000 or around USD2. Amazing, so tuko and friends order it up.

And then for the food, Tuko ordered Nasi Goreng Melly's and Gorengan Kampoeng. The nasi goreng price is IDR29,000 or around USD2.30. And the gorengan is around IDR28,000 or around USD2.20.

The nasi goreng is just ok. Edible but something Tuko will want to order up again though. There's 2 pieces of fried chicken + shrimp cracker + sunny side up + pickles and normal nasi goreng. The nasi goreng doesn't even taste interesting.

The gorengan is actually combination of 2 fried banana, 2 fried tofu, 2 fried tempe and 2 fried cassava. With a few chilli being prepared to be eaten with if that's what your palate asked for. Among all these, the good one is only the tempe. Others just simply edible only.

The Balonku Ada 5 drink sucks terribly. What kind of spirits do they put inside? It's just burning feeling, Tuko really doubt and even have the perception maybe this is a knock off fake drink. It's being sold on a very crazily cheap price here Indonesia. Tuko met this kind of knock off cheap drink before and it tasted like you're drinking gasoline.

Hourly promotion certainly is a very interesting idea and can attract people. There's even popcorn up to grab for free. The waiters are very polite. The atmosphere and place's design is impressive.

But with this kind of food and drink, Tuko really will think twice to come back. Not that Tuko doesn't want. Tuko will still want to come back but only with a really good reason.

Carnivor Barbeque, restaurant at Pantai Indah Kapuk (North Jakarta)

The design of the place is very interesting. They got red bricks to give the aura of country house. They use wooden tables and chairs with old simple design to support the country house theme I guess. The weird thing is with the tree. What's with the tree? What do you want to exploit here? A country house which grows tree inside? Despite whatever the reason is, I think it looks good though.

So for the first I ordered Angel Hair Aglio Olio. The price is IDR58,000 or around USD4.50. I'm not a big fan of Aglio Olio to be honest. But the waiter actually suggested that for the pasta. So let's go for it. Believe me, it's not that my camera sucks. But that really is what the pasta looks like. I don't think looking at it will even tickle your interest on trying.

But since I ordered it, so I'll have to eat it. It's a little salty. And there's not enough spiciness. Aglio Olio supposed to have a bit more kick than this on the spiciness level. But with the help of chili lakes, it's better. And somehow I don't think they actually just spread the olive oil. Because it taste as if the oil is actually use to be heated (cook maybe). If it's true, that is so wrong. Or is it a fusion?

So is the price worth the taste? I'll not say so. It's still edible but not the dish I'll want to order again here. Maybe I'll try something else from the menu next time.

Who doesn't like Bintang Beer? Not the best but yet everyone likes it. They sell it here for IDR30,000 or around USD2.30. I actually asked for the Radler, which is a new variant. Unfortunately they don't have it. Serving it for that price in this type of a restaurant is very generous I'll say.

Bintang used to taste sucks. As if you're just drinking flavored water. It was back in the days. But than the taste have improved greatly. Is it because Heineken took over and redo the recipe? Anyhow, I'll praise the taste now.

Tuko's friend came over and in the end we ordered another dish. We get this Meat Craver Pizza. It's with Ham which means Pork which means not Halal. So I'm really sorry my Moslem friends, this restaurant is not where you may want to eat. Just come for a hang out will be cool though. The pizza cost us IDR65,000 or around USD5.15.

And yes again, the pizza really looks like that. Not my camera's problem. They got ham, sausage, onion, mushroom and cheese. I'm a big fan of Pizza. So it's very crucial to get the thickness right and the composition of bread vs cheese to be in harmony. As for this pizza, I like the thickness. It's not so thin but yet still has the crisp. Well done chef. But as for the composition of cheese and other ingredient, not to be praised. You put a bit too much onion. And a bit too much cheese. Which in the end really overwhelm the other ingredients' taste.

The pizza is just nice to eat for two person. I can finish it by myself, but I'll recommend it a dine for two. The price vs taste, Tuko judges it a bit pricey. With that price, you can get a better pizza with ham. Naming it Meat Craver is also exaggerating. There's only a few slices of ham and also a few slices of sausage.

By end of the night the bill came and there's Service Charge of 5% and Restaurant Tax of 10%. A very common combination here in Jakarta.

Tuko also would like to comment on the restaurant's name. Why do you even name it Carnivor? Come on... Even your Meat Craver dish has vegie inside it. And then you add Barbeque after it. You're really ruining people's expectation when looking at the name. I even were told a lot of people actually give the same comment after looking at the menu. Since when they were invited, they just quickly say yes without asking what type of food are served.

So will Tuko come back here? Sure why not, despite the food is not up to expectation but the service and the atmosphere actually helps out.