Westbrook - New brewery Westbrook was one of the revelations of CBC and I am very pleased to see that they are now increasingly appearing in select beer bars and shops across Europe. They’re a young team that are firmly of the North American craft tradition with its focus on hops and big, bold flavours, yet also seeking influences from elsewhere, including looking for old European recipes and near-forgotten styles. My Anniversary companion and I came down early to Craft on the Saturday specifically so that we could try their Mexican Coffee Cake (Imperial Spiced Stout, ABV 10.5) as we had been reliably informed that there was one keg only. We were not disappointed and it was a great beer to open the celebration – “Life is uncertain – Have dessert first” to quote Douglas Adams. The coffee flavour is big and deep, dark roast-style, with an overlay of strong spicy notes (cocoa, chili and cinnamon all discernible). As the beer warms up you get more of the delicate dessert flavours, like vanilla and fudge, and the coffee/cocoa flavours become more balanced. The chili kick is definitely there but does not come on strong until after the first third of the glass (we were drinking half-pints). Many brewers do spiced stouts and US brewers in particular like to add everything but the kitchen sink to the spice mix, but few manage to balance it out like Westbrook and make all the flavours clearly discernible and balanced. 5/5. The Westbrook Lichtenhainer (Smoked Weisse, ABV 5.0) was a much more subdued affair in comparison but still offered an wonderfully odd flavour combination: a sour wheat beer body (unusual in itself) with strong smoke flavours – and I’m not talking the “roast”-type smoke flavours either, this beer had a strong aroma of smoked meat – bacon and ham came to mind. And this comes on top of that wonderfully sour, tart and slightly sweet body. An oddball creation that works. 4+/5.

Farmer’s Cabinet/Cabinet Artisinal Brewhouse – Farmer’s Cabinet is a high-end restaurant and cocktail bar in Philadelphia. They recently launched their own house brewery under the name Cabinet Artisinal Brewhouse, with Terry Hawbaker (formerly of Bullfrog Brewery in nearby Williamsburg) as brewmaster. Farmer’s Cabinet is already making a splash in the brewing world with their cocktail-influenced beers – and just like Westbrook, they like offering their own uniquely American takes on traditional European styles. No beer exemplifies this better than their outstanding Marry Me in Goslar (Gose, ABV 4.5) – gose is a beer style native to the German cities of Leipzig and Goslar and has salt (!) and coriander as its key ingredients (Marry Me in Goslar uses pink Himalayan rock salt). The salt is at first very subdued and works exactly like salt in food should work: highlighting and sharpening other flavours without taking over itself. The beer is very fresh, zesty and spicy, kind of like a geuze that isn’t sour, if you understand what I mean. As the beer warms, the salt becomes more pronounced and the beer takes on a sea-breeze-like quality, and the spice notes get stronger, too. A unique beer experience. 5/5. Unlike most US craft brewers, Farmer’s Cabinet are really interested in making good low-ABV beers, evidenced not only by Marry Me in Goslar but also their Layover in Berlin (Berliner Weisse, ABV 3.0). My initial tasting reaction was “pineapple cat wee”, which is much better than it sounds. The beer opens slightly sour and tart with strong fruit flavours, mainly pineapple and elderflower, then the sourness becomes more pronounced and you also get some grapefruit notes. Fantastically flavourful for ABV 3.0, very much reminds me of a mild geuze or a farmhouse style beer. 4/5.  Interestingly, the one slight disappointment I had from Farmer’s Cabinet was their take on the quintessentially US style invention Black IPA, No Love Lost (Joy Division Series) (Black IPA, ABV 7.8). Here, the nose promised what was then not delivered on the palate: the beer really had a massive fruit nose (dried fruit, mango, resin), flavours that were not very present on the palate (except the resin and some light dried fruit touches). The beer had a long dry finish with clear roast notes which made me think more of a porter than a black IPA. Still a good beer though. 3/5.

Pizza Port – I plan to be at the Cask Pub & Kitchen Pizza Port Tap Takeover on Saturday and as I will be posting about that too I’ll keep my comments on the Pizza Port beers I tried brief. I know this is not one brewery but four – the ones I had were from the Carlsbad branch: 547 Haight (Double Red Ale, ABV 10.0) and Spitting Cobra (IPA, ABV 7.5). The 547 Haight was in many ways a textbook Double/Imperial beer: big tropical fruit, big brown sugar, and with a quick, cheeky hop bite at the end. Very moreish. 4/5. Spitting Cobra was a bit more nondescript, a competently-brewed IPA but nothing that made it stand out from its many bretheren. 3/5. I understand some of the more well-regarded Pizza Port beers will make an appearance at Cask (Night Rider Stout, both the regular version and the barrel-aged version, the raisin Belgian dubbel Dubbelicious).

Beachwood – Another new brewery with some CBC beers making a repeat appearance at the “other” CBC. The Knucklehead Red (Amber/Red ale, ABV 5.7)was a pretty standard hoppy red ale, well presented but in my mind not too much different from BrewDog’s 5 AM Saint. 3/5. The Kilgore Stout (Export Stout, ABV 7.1), on the other hand, was a really nice Imperial Stout with a stonkin’ coffee aroma and a pronounced milky smoothness to it. In a lineup that consisted roughly 1/3 of Imperial Stout in the ABV 10+ range, the Kilgore stood a bit in the shade of its stronger colleagues, but it’s not a beer to be ignored. I found it a very unpretentious, well-balanced strong stout. I can easily have this again any time. 4/5.

Jolly Pumpkin – Brewing legends I had yet to try prior to the Anniversary weekend. I usually don’t mind spending the money to get good, rarely-seen beers but I have to admit that the £6.95/half price tag for all Jolly Pumpkin beers (the most expensive beers in the Anniversary lineup) put me off trying more than one, particularly as there were so many other sought-after beers that were cheaper (the Mikkeller Black 2011 Edition at ABV 17.5 clocked in at a comparatively cheap £4.95, for example). But still I could not resist trying the Madrugada Obscura (Sour Stout, ABV 8.1). Yep, you read that right – a sour stout. And they’re not kidding around. I swear I got a bit of brett funk in there, along with more “normal” sour and tart farmhousey flavors. Then the stout aromas hit: grassy/hay-like hops, and roast malt and roast coffee tones. The combination weirdly worked but I don’t think I could have more than one at a time. I’m still getting my head around this one a bit, which I suppose is a good thing. 4/5.

Assorted: Wow, what else? I tried the much-vaunted Heady Topper canned DIPA. I can see what the fuss is about as it is a heavy-on-the-fruit-type DIPA with a big bitter hop bite, but at £13.95 a can, I’ll stick with Kernel IPAs and DIPAs, thank you very much. They do exactly the same thing and are available at a fourth of that price here, so no contest. Carnival, Magic Rock’s summer ale, was predictably competent – a hoppy golden ale that I expect will fly out of pubs. Very English with an American twist. Thornbridge’s dry-hopped barleywine Alchemy XVI had strong grape skin/grappa flavours, which was unexpected but pleasant. And the Stillwater/Farmer’s Cabinet collab Wabash Cannonball was a fine beer that really highlighted the Cabinet cocktail influences: it was a very cocktail-tasting beer, spiced with figs and with nice sweet apple and rum notes. Old Numbskull from AleSmith was a fine barleywine – I am reliably informed it goes great with cinnamon buns and I can definitely see that.

Whale 1: Armand ’4 Herfst (Drie Fonteinen, Geuze, ABV 6.0). Towards the end of Sunday evening bottle sharing with perfect strangers seemed like a great idea, so we were four newfound friends who pooled our resources to purchase a bottle of this lauded and very limited edition gueze. For those of you who don’t know, it’s blended by master lambic blender Armand Debelder and it is a mix of his 1-, 2- and 3-year old lambics, part of a four-beer series with a seasonal theme – besides Herfst (Autumn), there’s Spring, Summer and Winter. I’d heard good things about the Herfst so off we went. And this is indeed a good candidate for ‘perfect geuze’. The barnyard funk and saddle leather smells come on strong, but when you taste the beer these flavours are very subdued and instead give way to a ridiculously well-balanced mix of tart, citric, acidic, spritzy, vinous and fruity. You would hesitate to ever use the word “smooth” in conjunction with a geuze but in this case it is very apt – this is a highly seductive blend that I would think perfect for a geuze/lambic novice. 5/5.

Whale 2: Hunaphu’s Imperial Stout (Cigar City Brewing, Imperial Spiced Stout, ABV 11.0). To top a wonderful weekend off, a not-so-mystery benefactor (thanks, Tom!) poured us glasses from a bottle marked with strange mayan symbols and a big cigar. I am of course talking about Hunaphu’s Imperial Stout, a whale if I ever saw one (or tasted one?). Like the Westbrook Mexican Coffee Cake, this is an Imperial Stout (based on Cigar City’s Zhukov recipe) with everything but the kitchen sink: cocoa nibs, vanilla, cinnamon and pasilla and ancho cilies – a Mayan Imperial Stout, as it were. And what a stout it was. When chilled it had the most enticing milk chocolate flavour, which when warmed gave way to freshly roast coffee beans, vanilla thickness and lots of spice, parallel with some vegetal notes from the chili. The beer had no chili heat, just chili flavour – it’s kind of hard to describe, and also made it stand out from most other chili beers. With so many different spice flavours you’d think they would be fighting for attention but instead it was like drinking a glass of harmonious, half-melted ice cream (also in terms of texture – this is one beer you have to cut with scissors when you pour it, and I swear it absorbed some of the light in the room). This, in my view, is the dessert beer to end all dessert beers, and I count myself very fortunate to have sampled it.

So in case you haven’t gotten it yet, it was a great weekend! Thanks to Tom, all of the Craft staff, and all other guests who made it an unforgettable beer orgy experience.

Di Velpa kita pesen makanan yang bisa disharing, biar lebih hemat dan bisa icip2 semuanya. Kita pesen Velpa Sampler 55k, Antipasti Sampler 54k, Fettucini Meat Balls (lupa harganya, sekitar 50k-an), Pillaf Fried Rice-nya 2 porsi (masing2 harganya lupa tapi kalo gak salah sekitar 60k-an), air mineral 3 botol @ 12k, iced green tea 2 gelas @ 20k. Total bayar nya sekitar 420k termasuk tax.

Antipasti Sampler-nya kayak yang saya pernah pesen isinya bushroom (jamur goreng tepung), nachos yg udah dikasih salsa sauce dan chicken wings, rasanya masih sama kayak terakir pesen; Velpa Sampler-nya isinya mozzarella fried fingers (keju mozzarella yang digoreng pake tepung panir), calamary dan nachos yg didampingi guacamole dan mayo, enak2 semua saya malah lebih suka yg ini daripada Antipasti Samplernya; Fettucini Meat Ballsnya lumayan, meat ballsnya gede2 rasanya juga pas; Pillaf Fried Rice-nya rasanya lebih mirip nasi goreng kampung dengan versi yang gak kampungan karena pake side dish telor ceplok, acar, emping dan dua biji chicken wings yg dibumbu pedes, nasi gorengnya enak kok agak pedes2 gitu.

Intinya saya sih puas, tapi kalo temen2 saya katanya kurang kenyang, dasar perut karung *_*

Velpa Sampler

Antipasti Sampler

Fettuccini Meat Balls

Pillaf Fried Rice

There are also two fridges worth of bottles and as Utobeer are involved you can also always be sure to find plenty of limited and more left-field stuff in addition to staples from Sierra Nevada, Stone, Rogue and Kernel (not a staple anywhere else but London, but here it’s a requirement of any serious beer bar to carry their wares). Always ask if they have anything new and interesting – the staff is knowledgeable and happy to make recommendations.

It’s a tiny place, and it’s nearly always crowded, but it’s still always worth a visit – particularly now, when summer is just around the corner. Sitting in the miniscule ‘beer garden’ (more of a back yard covered with planks, really) of The Rake taking in the sounds and smells of nearby Borough Market while sipping world-class brews is a rare pleasure – I would definitely recommend coming here when the market is one (which is Thursday to Saturday). If you are hungry and the crisps, pork scratchings and the pork pies on offer are not enough to sustain you, pop out and get something from the market, eat, walk around, enjoy the market, and then come back to The Rake when you’re done. Sure, you may have lost your seat, but the exercise will have done you good!

The Rake may not be the biggest of London’s craft beer bars, but they were arguably the first. And you can really feel those extra years of accumulated know-how when you step through the door – it’s in the service, in the beer selection, the events. Everything about The Rake oozes care and passion for beer.

PS: I said The Rake often have Meet the Brewer events and special launches – and coming up in April is a real extravaganza. There’s a ten-day London brewer event from April 16 to April 24th, with a stunning lineup of London brewers: The Kernel on the 16th April, Windsor & Eton on the 17th, Peter Haydon of The Florence on the 18th, Meantime on the 19th, East London Brewery on the 23rd and By the Horns on the 24th. See The Rake’s well-maintained Facebook page for more info (The Rake is one of the few London beer bars that provide daily updates of what’s on tap).

The Rake, 14 Winchester Walk,  London SE1 9AG, Tel 020 7407 0557.

While I was doing this, I found out that there’s a beer festival (or beer and blues festival, to be precise) at the Sebright Arms this weekend (March 10-11) focusing on London breweries – there’ll be beers from almost all London breweries by the looks of it…The Kernel, London Fields, Redchurch, Weird Beard, Moncada etc etc… And with pints at £2.50, you’d be silly not to sample a few. Me? Sorry, due to a scheduling conflict I’ll be in Italy this weekend. But I may pop by late Sunday, if I can.

EDIT: And, oh yeah, the London Drinker Beer and Cider Festival is also this weekend. Which I am also going to miss. I’m a bad London Beer Blogger.

And what about the beer? Naturally BrewDog’s own offerings dominate: the core range is always available, i.e. 77 Lager, Thrashy Blonde, 5 AM Saint, Punk IPA and Hardcore IPA (some of the other stuff like Chris from Stone’s Stout may be part of the core range too, I don’t quite know), and there’s always something seasonal or limited edition on offer: in the past I’ve seen Abstrakts on tap (an occasion in and of itself) as well as beers from the Prototype range (last week I sampled a lovely raspberry beer, a.k.a. Prototype 17.6). You can also always rely on a few guest beers: a Mikkeller or two, brews from well-regarded US craft brewers (Southern Tier, Lagunitas and Cigar City have been on tap in the past), or even more exotic stuff: last week when I was there I sampled two Hitachino Nest beers (the Amber Ale and the Japanese Classic Ale) from Japanese microbrewer Kiuchi. BrewDog Camden also does themed evenings: the  Hitachino Nest was probably left over from a Hitachino tap takeover the week before last, and they’ve had a Lagunitas night with six Lagunitas beers on tap. Add to that an impressive and wide-ranging bottle selection, and you can be sure to always come across a few surprises from the left field here, alongside your old BrewDog favourites. The one thing you cannot get are other British beers – it’s BrewDog or bust, wholly in line with the brewery’s stance and relationship with the rest of the UK brewing scene. Is that a problem? Not really – you can’t expect to teach an old BrewDog new tricks, and there are plenty of other pubs and bars in London where you can have your fill of the Best of British.

Service is knowledgeable and friendly, and the staff are always happy to let you try before you buy – often you don’t even have to ask for a sampler as they are offered routinely. Food is good but no-frills: burgers (no fries!), pizza and assorted bar snacks. Expect it to be messy as you don’t get served on proper plates and the napkin supply is limited. The burgers are juicy and nicely pink inside, and the pizzas swim in cheese and come with generous toppings – you don’t have to go hungry while drinking here. The cheapest burger is £4.95 which in London is a steal and in Camden practically amounts to giving it away. All in all it’s easy to see why the place is popular – expect it to be thronged (and I mean THRONGED) on Friday and Saturday nights. If you visit in the daytime it is considerably more sedate and the staff will have more time to share their recommendations and engage in general beer-related chat. BrewDog Camden is not only a must-visit if you are in Camden, it’s a destination bar for all Londoners!

Other beer bars post lists of what beers they currently have on tap on Facebook and/or Twitter. Not so The Craft Beer Company, which can be frustrating at times – but the truth is, the beer lineup changes so often that it would probably take a full-time member of staff to update it (though if something extra-super-special comes along, bar manager Tom usually makes a note of it on his Twitter feed – as was the case with the cask-aged Thornbridge Bracia a couple of weeks ago, for example). You can go there by lunchtime and then come back in the evening, and between one-fourth and one-third of the beers might have changed – I’m not kidding. It’s all about variety here. The hand-pumps are reserved for cask ales from British craft brewers, and the taps mostly hold imports. Even though they change frequently, I have over the past couple of months noticed that there are a couple of favourites: you can usually find at least three Mikkellers, and New York-based brewer Southern Tier is also a common sight (if their Imperial cream stout Créme Brulée is on, that is in itself reason enough to head down to Craft). There’s also usually an offering from German brewer Rothaus (their Oktoberfest Märzen is incredibly smooth).

Staff is attentive, knowledgeable and friendly. You rarely have to wait long at the bar, even on Friday and Saturday nights when it gets very busy. They all know their stuff and are happy to give advice or provide further information about any of the beers/brewers on at the moment. If it’s not too busy they are also likely share information about their own favourites among what’s on, so if you’re overwhelmed by the selection you could do much worse than simply telling staff your general preferences and they’ll make a selection for you.

One major drawback compared to Cask Pub & Kitchen is that Craft does not have a kitchen. The pork pies they provide as bar snacks are excellent, but it has happened more than once that I’ve wished for something more substantial to go with my IPA/Stout/Belgian Quad. But this is a temple to beer and beer alone, and besides, who needs dinner anyway? Just have another stout and enjoy being at one of the best beer bars in the world. And the best thing of all? It’s my local

Namanya Bureau Gastro Pub, tepatnya di Plaza Pondok Indah (sebelahan gedung Citibank) masih satu area sama De Hooi, depan2an malah. Tadinya berhubung kemaren itu adalah hari Rabu dan sekarang hari Kamis #apeu mm maksut saya, kemaren itu kan setiap hari Rabu di De Hooi ada promo chicken wings dua ribu perak sebiji, nah kemaren tuh rencananya mau kesitu membuktikan kebenarannya *halah* Etapi pas liwat depan si Bureau ini hati saya labil langsung bimbang antara pengen jajal atau pengen ke De Hooi. Setelah minta petunjuk kepada Yang Maha Kuasa #apeu akirnya saya memutuskan untuk jajal Bureau!! Yeaayyy!!

Begitu masuk, bau asep rokok dimana2 – gak disarankan buat yang ga tahan sama asep rokok, pas minta sama waitress-nya sitting area yg gak berasap rokok, dia bilang gak ada, langsung deh saya galau lalu lari ke pantai dan belok ke hutan *gak gitu juga sih* Yaudah deh akirnya saya tetep makan disitu, tapi saya pilih tempat duduk deket pintu. Kesan pertama, tempat ini berkesan industrialis dan neat sekali, beda dengan De Hooi yang lebih warmy, comfy and casual.  Mungkin karena interiornya minimalis dengan dinding didominasi cat abu2 tua dan tulisan menu dan promo2 dengan kapur tulis di dinding2. Buku menunya juga cuma satu papan bolak-balik gitu. Dan kalo diliat dari menu keseluruhan kayaknya lebih ngusung menu2 Italia dan Prancis.

Dari menu pembuka, ada soup, salad, snack (kayak calamari, nachos, escargot canape, dll), untuk menu besarnya ada steak, pasta dan makanan Indonesia kayak oxtail soup, nasi goreng teri, nasi goreng wagyu dll. Untuk dessert ada Uncle Ali, Chocolate Melt, Bavarian Cake, Baileys Irish Muse Pie, Pancake, Banana Split dll. Untuk minuman dari yang normal sampe cocktail, beer dan wine semua ada. Harga makanan berkisar antara 20K – 200K, dan minumannya 31K-1.250K.

Kemaren saya pesan Escargot Canape 39K dan Baileys Irish Muse Pie 31K, minumannya cukup Equil 29K aja ciiinn…saya lagi menghindari alkohol cieeee :p

Escargot Canape-nya enaakkkk!! Jujur ini pertama kali saya makan escargot a.k.a bekicot and i heart it Tekstur bekicotnya agak kenyil2 gitu kayak makan kerang, cuman bedanya kalo kerang kan amis kalo ini sama sekali gak berbau dan berasa. Escargotnya dikasih bumbu kayak saus tomat gitu dan ditaro diatas roti perancis. Jadi modelnya kayak garlic bread tapi atasnya dikasih saus escargot. Keseluruhan rasa enaaakk bangeeedddd!! Kalo Baileys Irish Muse Pie-nya, pie-nya kayak pie nastar gitu trus atasnya ada cream mungkin dicampur Baileys tapi rasanya kurang strong. Ah nyesel saya pesen itu *tepokjidat*

Bureau ini terdiri dari 2 lantai, dan kayaknya lantai atas bener2 berfungsi sebagai pub/bar (in literally meaning) kemaren saya liat pas ke rest room di lantai 2. Dan setiap hari, mereka juga ngadain promo dinner set seharga 75k udah termasuk pilihan menu untuk appetizer, main course, dessert dan free ice tea/mineral water (tambah 25k kalo mau refill), tapi berlakunya cuma dari jam 19.00 – 22.00. Kemaren saya dateng sebelom jam 7 dan sedikit agak nyesel pas tau ada promo dinner set \(T3T)/

Untuk total kerusakan saya masih jagoin De Hooi karena makanannya before tax di diskon semua XD Tapi untuk makanan kedua2nya sama punya taste yg unik dan berbeda, dengan rasa yg masih diterima orang lokal (walo sama2 pengunjungnya mostly ekspatriat).

This is it!

Baileys Irish Muse Pie

Escargot Canape

Interiornya

Promo Dinner Set

Total Kerusakan

Sebagai blog pembuka taun 2012, gadisrakus mau review tentang sebuah resto & bar yang selama ini saya selalu idam2kan untuk mengunjunginya, tapi baru kesampean hari Jumat tanggal 30 Desember kemaren hiks :’)

DE HOOIIII!!

Yang trayek pulang-perginya suka lewat jalan arteri pondok indah mesti ngerti deh ni tempat. Lokasi tepatnya di Plaza Pondok Indah (sebelahan persis sama gedung Citibank). Beberapa kali sih diajakin temen kesini, karena kakaknya temen setiap hari apaa gitu manggung disini, tapi saya pikir tempatnya yg bar abis gitu. Udah gitu denger2 kebanyakan pengunjung disini ekspatriat. Saya yang bule-lover langsung tertarik dong denger disini mostly pengunjungnya bule ahahhahaa..maklum mau memperbaiki keturunan

Terus, pas jumat malem kemarin kesini, pas masuk kedalem emang iya sih kebanyakan pengunjungnya ekspat, tapiiii….udah opa2 yang muda dikit banget  \(T3T)/  Udah gitu kebanyakan disini waitressnya (yang cewek2) gak pake seragam atau semacamnya tapi pake baju bebas kan jadi nyaru sama pengunjung. Begitu masuk kita langsung disambut sama bar, terus disekelilingnya ada meja2 buat dine-in. Ternyata De Hooi ini terdiri dari 2 lantai, dan juga ada outdoor area-nya (kayak semacam teras gitu).

Menu makanan yg disediain disini gak gitu banyak, tapi lengkap mulai dari antipasti (sup, salad dan snack platter), main course (sandwich, burger, pasta dan steak), dessert (mousse, cream brullee). Dan of course, their signature cocktail, beer, spirits dan juga minuman ‘normal’ kayak teh, kopi atau softdrink.

Karna saya tau ini konsepnya lebih ke bar, jadi saya ‘tau diri’ untuk gak pesen makanan yang berat2, saya cuman pesen Pork Bites 60K, carlsberg 25k, dan creme brullee 25k sebagai dessert. Oia, fyi, disini debet BCA gak diterima lho, jadi kalo kalian cuman punya kartu BCA mending ambil duit dulu deh daripada disuruh nyuci piring ;p

Pork bites-nya enak banget, disuguhin pake saus mustard dan saus apple. Dagingnya digoreng garing dan sepertinya udah dimarinate karna rasanya tastey banget. Kalo boleh saya saranin, mending dicocol pake saus apel yang bercitarasa manis dan sedikit asem, emang sih tadinya saya juga mikir aneh banget…tapi setelah dicoba trust me itu enak banget. Malahan saus mustard yang tadinya saya jagoin malah rasanya lama2 aneh, ada tone pahitnya gitu, semacam dicampur pake liquor atau beer, karna agak2 strong rasanya. Creme brullee-nya enak banget, lembut bangeeett dan milky abis rasanya. Jadi kalo creme brullee yang pernah saya rasain di K’Meals Jogja itu atasnya dikasih caramelized sugar gitu, kalo yg De Hooi punya ini atasnya dikasih semacam cream (tapi kayaknya bukan whipped cream deh) yang rasanya creamy dan milky banget. Disajiin panas2 dan itu langsung melted dimulut. Nyaaammm )

Kejutan lain yang saya dapet adalah pas mau bayar bill. Oemjiii…ternyata harga semua pesenan saya (before tax) kena diskon semua. Kalo gak percaya bandingin deh harga yang saya tulis diatas dengan yg tertera di bill berikut ini:

total kerusakan

Benar2 memuaskan!! lain kali saya pasti balik kesini, apalagi denger2 setiap hari Rabu ada promo chicken wings cuman 2 ribu perak aja sebiji, plus saya mau nyobain egg benedictnya

This is it!

Creme Brullee

Pork Bites

I hope the coming year will be filled with peace.

I wish you a happy new year!!

SLの建築遺産を訪ね歩くBLOGに挑戦してみたいと思いながら

RLが忙しくてなかなか実行に移せませんでしたが、

今年、遂にBLOG開設が実現できました。

英語でBLOGを書く事態は、想定外でしたが、

なんとか続けていきたいと思います。

拙いBLOGにご訪問くださいましたみなさま、

どうもありがとうございました。

来年もよろしくお願い申し上げます。

今年のSL納会をする酒場を探してみました。

こじんまりとした街ですが、よい雰囲気でした。

「竹内町1丁目」TP

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Takeuti/167/55/23

BLOG「竹内町1丁目」

（Official Blog “1－chome, Takeuchicho” in Japanese）

http://ponitee.slmame.com/

Velpa konsepnya lebih ke lounge gitu ya, dimana ditengah2 dining area-nya ada bar-nya gitu. Dan ada live music-nya juga kalo diatas jam 8 malem. Di entrance-nya kita disambut oleh wine cellar, kalo orang yang gak tau mungkin disini dikiranya cuman buat tempat minum2 aja. Secara keseluruhan suasananya enak buat nyemil2 lucu sambil hangout sama temen2. Disini juga kita bakal dikasih free compliment berupa kacang, buat cemal-cemil sambil nunggu pesenan dateng.

Karena kemaren saya gak laper2 amat maka saya nyoba pesen dari deret Appetizernya, yaitu Antipasti Sampler 54k – yang berisi chicken wings, bushroom dan beef nachos, heineken beer 30k dan air mineral 12k. Disini range makanannya gak terlalu luas, karena fokusnya emang untuk minum2 sih sebenernya. Dari deret appetizer ada salad dan soup, juga berbagai macam snack platter (salahsatunya seperti yang saya pesen), dari deret main course ada pizza, sandwich, pasta dan steak. Juga dari deret dessert tersedia fruit platter, shorbet, waffel, melted chocolate cake dan ice cream. Untuk minumannya dari minuman yg ‘normal’ kayak juice, teh, kopi, softdrink, beer sampai cocktail, mocktail, their signature mix dan spirits seperti Red Label, Bacardi, Wine dll.

Oke sekarang soal rasa, seperti yang udah saya sebut diatas antipasti samplernya berisi chicken wings goreng tepung, bushroom (jamur shitake goreng), dan beef nachos, dan tiga jenis sauce (mayo, chilli dan campuran antara guacamole dan salsa sauce). Beef nachosnya enak, krispy banget dan pas aja gitu disandingin sama guacamole dan salsanya, bushroomnya biasa aja..cemplang kalo orang jawa bilang, chicken wingsnya kurang tasty. Tadinya saya mau beli dessertnya tapi gara2 minum beer jadi agak2 gimanaa gitu perut saya, jadi gak jadi deh. Tapi tenaaaanngg…saya udah usul ke BFFs saya buat christmas dinner disana

Total kerusakan juga gak mihil2 banget buat tempat sekeren itu. JEMPOL! Harga makanan disini berkisar antara 30k – 175k, minuman berkisar antara 12k – 1 juta (khusus buat spirit seperti smirnoff, bacardi, red label dll).

free kacang

bar-nya

Antipasti Sampler

The Old Fountain is a proper old-school pub with poor lighting, worn wooden furniture and pale, near-bare walls (there’s a dartboard, though) – in other words, absolutely wonderful. At this time of year the white ceiling is also decked-out with Christmas garlands, which somehow adds to the shopworn quality of the Old Fountain rather than detracting from it. I love this kind of pub in an entirely non-ironic way: the moment you step in the door, you feel that this is a pub that does not put on airs, it just quietly goes about the business of being excellent.

And excellent it is: the pub (independent and family-owned, of course) keeps eight rotating real ales/craft beers on the pumps, and in addition often has a couple on keg besides the standard offerings (i.e. Beck’s, Guinness etc). Friendly and efficient staff keep the casks well and are knowledgeable about what they sell. The beers rotate very frequently so there’s always something new to try. You can usually rely on finding something from local London brewers being poured: Brodie’s, By the Horns, Camden and Kernel are fairly regular – the other day they even had Brodie’s and Kernel’s new collaboration brew (Stella for Breakfast, an ABV 6.2 breakfast stout) on cask. There’s also stuff from around the country like Dark Star, Red Squirrel and Oakham. Newcomer-of-the-year Magic Rock often has a presence – the other night they had High Wire, Cannonball (best IPA of the year?) and Curious NZ on pump and tap. In addition, there’s a small fridge for bottled beers, mainly from London  Brodie’s and Kernel – in fact, Old Fountain probably has the widest selection of Kernel beers outside the brewery itself.

Food is served at lunchtime only (12 noon – 2.30 pm) and is standard-plus pub fare, soups and sarnies – strictly no frills. Like many pubs in close proximity to the City, The Old Fountain is closed weekends – and it does feel a bit of a tease to review the pub when it’s now closing for the holidays (today is the last day of opening before Christmas). But hey, at least now you know where to start off 2012 the right way!

The details: The Old Fountain, 3 Baldwin Street (Old Street Tube), EC1V 9NU, Tel 02072532970, Twitter: OldFountainAles

I also had a chance to talk to Mark (who works with communication for the brewery and whom you also probably know as an award-winning beer blogger) and Pete (one of the brewers), during the event. Mark told me the lemons for Gentleman’s Wit were covered in bergamot oil and then roasted before adding them at the end of the brewing process. Apparently, the brew team tried their damnedest to get the actual bergamot orange rather than the oil as the oil wreaks havoc with the head of the beer, but in the end they had to stick with the oil after all. Pete was also very proud of their new tattoo-themed stout, Camden Ink (ABV 4.4) – in a recent interview, Camden Town owner Jasper Cuppaidge hoped that Camden Ink would be able to take the fight to Guinness, which totally dominates the world stout market. Pete was more cautious when I asked him about Ink’s chances against Guinness, but he had a big smile on his face when he was talking so he clearly believes in his product! “Dry and drinkable” is the internal Camden Town brewing mantra, and from what I tasted last night, that’s certainly a good, succinct description.

Here are my capsule reviews of the beers I tasted, in the order I tasted them:

Gentleman’s Wit (ABV 4.3, Witbier)

Look: Cloudy whitish yellow, fast dissipating head.

Nose: Yeast, citrus, perfume and flowers. A much fainter nose than I expected.

Taste: Very aromatic, lemony, flowers and perfume continues on the tounge. Light, spritzy mouthfeel. Ends on clove and dried citrus peel spice notes. An excellent, well-balanced wit.

Verdict: 4/5. An instant favourite – I certainly hope Camden Town will brew this again (they hinted as much). It would be a perfect summer beer.

Show Boat (ABV 4.5, Brown ale)

Look: Dark brown with a slightly reddish hue, very light carbonation, little/no head.

Nose: Sourdough-like, full.

Taste: Nutty and bready up front, as befits a brown ale. Bitterness subtle at first but then grows – sort of sneaks up on you. Mouthfeel a bit thin, a good beer but lacks a bit of body to balance the bitterness.

Verdict: 3/5.

Camden Ink (ABV 4.4, Stout)

Look: Black/dark brown, head with big bubbles that settle fast.

Nose: Roast aromas (bread, coffee), more bread.

Taste: Subtle and almost tender toast and coffee notes follow the nose, a mellow and well-rounded bitterness. A very drinkable stout, a far cry from the more extreme Imperial Stouts (and in a good way).

Verdict: 3/5. I could totally order this over Guinness.

Wheat (ABV 4.5, Dunkelweizen (?))

Look: Cloudy dark grey-brown, little/no head.

Nose: Aromatic, slightly sweet (almost like candied fruit), full (much stronger than the Gentleman’s Wit)

Taste: Wow! Caramel sweetness, lemon and sundry fruit, very seductive candy notes (is that bubblegum I taste?), full, complex and layered flavours. The clear winner of the night.

Verdict: 5/5. A truly excellent wheat beer, the surprise of the evening. Very well kept by the guys at The Craft Beer Company, too (no surprise).

So, all things considered, the wheat beers were the strongest from Camden Town (of the ones I tasted). Disappointment of the evening: I did not even get to taste Bleeding Hops IPA as hops in the keg apparently clogged things up and made it impossible to pour! Didn’t have a chance to order it before that happened…

Pas saya masuk kedalem, tempatnya cool banget. Enak buat nongkrong rame2 sama temen2 sambil sipping beer dan ngobrol ngalor ngidul until late at night on the weekend. Sesuai namanya “tempat pizza dan beer” interior disini juga dihiasin sama drum2 dan botol2 beer.

Makanan yg saya pesen kemarin Angry Cheesy Melt (59K) dan minumannya saya pesen signature beer mereka yg rasa Raspberry Lemonade (39K). Angry Cheesy Melt-nya sendiri bukan pizza tapi semacam Quesadilla, makanan mexico yg terbuat dari tortilla trus dalemannya dikasih beef carne. Yah mirip2 gitu deh. Isinya daging cincang, red bean trus dibikin agak pedes gitu. Lumayan. Raspberry Lemonade Beer-nya, beer dikasih semacam sirup/jus raspberry trus ada cincangan buah raspberry-nya juga. Yang jempol biar udah dimix rasa ke-beer-annya gak ilang. Tapi teteep sih kalo disuruh milih saya mending minum beer yg gak dicampur apa2. Oia selain signature beer dan cocktail, mereka juga provide beer baik lokal maupun international.

Diakhir makan, sebelom bayar bill, pelayannya nyodorin saya iPad – bukan buat dibawa pulang tapi buat ngisi guest-card tentang kesan2 dan mutu pelayanan disitu. Hmm….keren yaa

Yang jelas lain kali saya bakal balik lagi ke Pizza e Birra, bukan buat makan pizza-nya tapi buat nyicipin koleksi beer mereka. Jangan sedih dan jangan bingung karena disetiap meja ada buku panduan mengenai beer koleksi mereka.

Ini penampakkannya tapi maap yak agak gelap, abis pas motret gak nyalain blitz karna batrenya udah sekarat :

bungkusan alat makannya

Raspberry Lemonade Beer

Angry Cheesy Melt

Saya sendiri udah 2 kali berkunjung kesini, itupun karena hasutan temen yg katanya cuman Mellys lah alkohol murah dan mudah di dapat. Secara kami perempuan2 galau yg yg butuh berlari2 lucu dari kehidupan nyata sejenak, akhirnya kami pun rutin mengadakan gathering disini.

Di Mellys, gak cuman jual minuman2 original liqueur aja macam Bailey’s, Cointreau, Kahlua, Black Label, Red Label dsb tapi juga cocktail2 dan mocktail2 yg harganya berkisar antara 42K-47K/shot. Disini mereka juga punya signature drink yg namanya lucu2, kek Balonku ada 5 (vodka warna-warni yg ditaruh di semacam pipet, dan pipet itu ditaruh di semacam pot bunga, satu pot isinya 5 pipet), Lihat Kebunku (5 shot vodka warna-warni yg ditaruh disemacam bucket), Mellys Bomb (bir dingin yg dicampur dengan salahsatu vodka warna-warni) dll. Harga semua signature drink 47K. Tapi di hari2 tertentu mereka kasih diskon hanya 25K aja!

Selain minuman beralkohol mereka juga jual makanan2 ringan, yang udah saya coba indomi telor kornetnya dan Mellys platter yg isinya calamary, kentang goreng, sosis dan nugget. Minumannya yg udah saya jajal, Balonku ada 5, Mellys Bomb dan Lihat Kebunku.

Follow twitter mereka @MellysGarden dan ikutin kuisnya, karena kalo menang kuis kalian bisa lo menangin 1 paket Balonku ada 5 selama seminggu berturut2. Tempatnya juga enak, oke buat hangout rame2 sama temen2. Lokasinya sendiri ada di Sabang, seberangan sama Ibis Arcadia.

perempuan2 galau pencinta Balonku ada 5 #suram

Lihat Kebunku

僕は、この手の場所にうかがうことはあまりないのですが、

たまたま「Flickr」のSL関係PHOTOをみていたら、

素敵なBARの画像に遭遇したものですから、

恐る恐るおたずねしてみました。

そうしたら、OWNERさんにお客様もいらして、

非常に緊張したのですが、

とてもご親切なご対応をいただきました。

それでBARの周辺の建物を楽しく散策、

撮影までさせていただきました。

予想通りのよい雰囲気の場所でしたが、

僕がRLで宴席の後、最後によく立ち寄るBARに

よく似た雰囲気であることも親しみを感じました。

それにしても、こんなSL建築の楽しみ方があるのかと

とても感心した素敵空間でした。

丁寧に建築されているビル建物も、

遊び心が随所に取り入れられ、

楽しい散策をさせていただきました。

旅に疲れたら、またうかがいたいです。

「AIRHEAD PLACE」TP

http://slurl.com/secondlife/Magic%20Land/16/191/1201

OWNERの tonoさんのBLOGとFlickrはこちら。

ぜひご覧になられてください。

僕の画像とは比較にならないすばらしい画像で

「AIRHEAD PLACE」の雰囲気をご覧いただけます。

BLOG「AIRHEAD PLACE」

http://airheadplace.blogspot.com/

「Flickr」tono Kabila’s photostream

http://www.flickr.com/photos/tonokabila/

For a Friday night, the place was disturbingly quiet. We arrived early though, around 6 pm, because we wanted dinner. The place did pick up throughout the night, but it was far from crowded, which is unusual since it is an NYU hotspot. That was more than okay by me because I wasn’t forced to shout the entire night, except when that one weird guy would make absurd growling noises.

The food was typical of a pub –nachos, chicken tenders, burgers, and sandwiches. The waffle fries were scrum-didely-umtious! Yes, I did just type out that word. Deal with it. But onto the beer! The selection was nothing to write home about, but it was much better than most bars I’ve been to and it was cheap! They have Sam Adams, Yeungling, Hoegarten, Guinness, Stella Artois, and a few hard ciders. However, you can’t complain about their Happy Hour prices. Many places skimp out on good Friday night specials, but Josie Woods offers $4 pints of Sam Adams and $3.50 Yeungling and Josie Woods Ale until 9 pm.

I opted for a Hoegarten to begin with since I’ve never had one. That will probably be the last time I order one. My friend Matt exclaimed, “It looks like pee.” ‘Yes, Matt I know.’ “It looks like pee.” ‘You said that already…” It is drinkable, but far too pale for my tastes and the lemon wedge was too potent. I switched to a Sam Adams after –you can never go wrong with Sam Adams and its always my choice when I find myself in a bar that’s lacking a decent selection. We all finished the night with a Josie Woods Ale which was fairly good. You could definitely taste the yeast and it had an interesting mix of bitter and sour flavors, but it wasn’t too overpowering.

Although the beer selection is lacking (but the cider choices were good!), overall, I would still recommend Josie Woods for its food and relaxing atmosphere. It’s a place to chill out and talk about drag queen tattoos, music, and vampires. Okay, maybe that’s what my friends talk about, but it’s a chill place and I thoroughly enjoy chill.

My Rating:

Beer Selection: C
Atmosphere: B+
Food: A

Visit Josie Woods at:

11 Waverly Place
New York, NY

Nice [nis] (Oksitanca: Nissa / Niça, İtalyanca: Nizza), Güney Fransa’da, Akdeniz sahilinde, Marsilya ile Cenova arasında yer alan yar alan bir şehirdir.

Ülkenin en önemli turizm merkezlerinden biridir. Nüfusu 347100′dür. 71.92 km²’lik bir alana yayılmıştır. Fransa’nın beşinci büyük şehridir. 1971 yılında Dünya Satranç Şampiyonası’na evsahipliği yapmıştır.

ETKİNLİKLER
+Şubat ayında büyük uluslararası karnaval
+Mart ayında Festin des Cougourdons
+Haziran ayında St. Peter ve St. John kutlamaları
+Temmuz ayında Jazz Festival

RESTORAN, BAR, CAFE

Chez Rene Socca
Fransız yemekleri, şarap
Adres: 2 rue Miralheti 06000
Tel: 04 93 92 05 73

Zucca Magica
İtalyan, vejetaryen
Adres: 4bis quai Papacino 06300
Tel: 04 93 56 25 27

LOdace
Club/disco, yemek
Adres: 29 rue Alphonse Karr 06000
Tel: 04 93 82 37 66

Thor Pub
Pub/bar
Adres: 34 cours Saleya 06300
Tel: 04 93 62 49 90

NEREDE ALIŞVERİŞ EDİLİR
+Cours Saleyada gündüz sebze-meyve marketi ve yaz aylarında aynı bölgede gece el sanatları marketi bulunmakta.
+Ünlü markalar rue Paradis ve rue Suede, daha genel kıyafetler avenue Jean Medecin.
+Kaliteli şarap Cave de la Buffa, adres: 59 rue de la Buffa.

GEZILECEK YERLER
+Promenade des Anglais; plaj, lokantalar, barlar.
+Vieux Nice; eski sokak aralarında dolaşıp eski kilise, cafe ve dükkanların keşfi.
+Matisse müzesi; adres: 164 avenue des Arenes de Cimiez.
+Musee dArt Moderne et dArt Contemporain; adres: Promenade des Arts.

The war call was the aftermath of the heinous episode which took place in Mangalore sometimes back where Sri Ram Sene (another so called morality police outfit) decided to torment some girls who were having a good time in a pub Amnesia. But whatever happened at Amnesia (unlike its name) is turning to be very hard to forget for the entire nation. Now this same very gang plan to make sure that V-day celebrations in Mangalore is celebrated their way – with couples forcibly getting married and “just – good male & female friends” declaring their undying love (with strings attached in the form of a rakhi).

So, Ms. Choudhury who was already miffed gave her clarion call and asked one and all to give a fitting reply to the so called Talibanization of Indian culture.

I believe youngsters (especially the female kind) will head for the nearest pub on 14th February 2009 and make sure that no beer pitcher is left unfinished, no tequila shot misfired, no Bloody Mary spilled on the pub floor. I too want to contribute to this historic movement and do my part for the society. Wish my better – half is just as understanding.

Unit 62-63 Cubao Expo, Cubao
Quezon City

Phone Number: (63 2) 913-1060
Website: http://mogwaifilm.multiply.com
Last Update: 10.May 09

Mogwai Facade

What happens when two of the country’s keenest cinematic minds team up? The answer may surprise you. Directors Erik Matti and Lyle Sacris have put their heads together, pooled their resources, and came up with…a restaurant. But not just any restaurant: Mogwai is shaping up to be the place to hang out. Combining good food, great drinks, a nice, relaxed atmosphere and fantastic films, there may not be a reason to ever leave.

Mogwai is a restaurant/bar/screening room located at the Cubao Expo, long home to some of the city’s best hidden little food gems. And like many of the other buildings located here, Mogwai exudes a very unique sense of style. From the old-style marquee outside to the vintage, mismatched furniture inside, to the worn look of the walls, walking into Mogwai is practically stepping into another world.

Mogwai 2nd Floor Mini Theater

The second floor is home to the screening room, a cozy little private cinema that regularly shows movies that would be never make it to our cinemas. Five cinema-style seats line the back wall, while the floor is covered with pillows of all shapes and sizes. It all feels very quaint, but don’t be fooled: this theater’s equipped with a high-powered digital projector and a 7.1 Dolby Surround sound system. And there’s no better place to catch movies considered “off-the-beaten-path.” It’s hard to find any place that’s showingGlengarry Glen Ross or Chacun Son Cinema.
You have to sign up for a membership to the Mogwai Film Club if you want to take part in the screenings, but it’s a small price to pay. If you like a little dinner with your movie, you’re in for a treat. Erik Matti is a real foodie and a genuinely talented chef. Mogwai’s menu is a constantly evolving showcase for some of Direk Matti’s best recipes. It’s a fusion of continental and provincial, with a focus on strong, powerful flavors.

Menu

Mogwai Menu

Operating Hours
Open daily from 6pm – 2am

Cuisine
American

Ambiance
Casual, Cheerful

Payment
Cash

Budget
P200 – P499

Specialty
Sole Fillet; Chicken Liver Pasta; Skinless Longanisa; Embutido; Sole Fillet; Lentils with Twice Cooked Fish; Tuna with Black Olive Pesto Sandwich; Squash Soup; Grilled Beef Tenderloin with Gravy; Dynamite Sticks; Dark Molten Lava; and Gin Fizz Cocktails

Perfect place for food trippers and film lovers.

Photos

Ambient of Mogwai

vi que a procura é imensa, veja como as pessoas costumam buscar por isso, balada, boate, barzinho, night, bar, na balada, bar da esquina, night club, show bar, bar da boa, last night, fate stay night, castlevania symphony of the night, all night, one night in paris, balada certa, bar opinião, sushi bar, bar curitiba, www bar, night in paris, bar rafaeli, piano bar, saturday night, tool bar, good night, square bar, american bar, fight night, friday night lights, buddha bar, by night, blackmore’s night, fight night round 3, summon night, saturday night live, 1 night in paris, over night, mid night club, bar code, pizza bar, starry night, night at the museum, bar campinas, all night long, neverwinter night, progress bar, side bar, pub bar, last night diddy, saturday night fever, o bar, lounge bar, the bar, buda bar, status bar, up bar, last night lyrics, night clubs, bar tender, mid night, one night only, wonka bar, night shift nurses, last night p diddy, because the night, night fever, night watch, long night, night wish, summer night, bar refaeli, blues bar, bar central, symphony of the night, night invasion, night elf, coyote bar, black night, i drove all night, dark night, user bar, scroll bar, sissy bar, night sex, one more night, strangers in the night, we own the night, a hard day’s night, budha bar, barracuda bar, music of the night, you shook me all night long, fight night 3, gold bar, night train, café bar, cafe bar, night of the living dead, night day, bar one, fright night, on night, snack bar, to night, hard days night, sport bar, neverwinter night 2, into the night, the dark night, power bar, keyshia cole last night, we are the night, 1 bar, blackmores night, bar hotel, bar b, three dog night, night shift, bar berlin, one night with the king, wine bar, the night listener, starry starry night, shook me all night long, hard day’s night, fight night round 2, www night, fight night round, top bar, bar restaurante, arabian night, one night stand, silent night, bar bie, at night, karaoke bar, color bar, menu bar, all through the night, neverwinter nights, night tv, boogie night, night at the roxbury, a night at the roxbury, love night, 30 days of night, bar dublin, ladies night