3F Lobby Seoul

Walking into 3F Lobby is like walking into the reception area of a small independent architect’s studio. The only difference is the said reception area has been transformed into a cafe where people can walk in, get a cup of coffee (or milk tea in my case) and hang around the space for a bit, even if you’re not a client of the architect.

Located on the third floor of an unassuming walk-up in Yongsan neighborhood (용산구), the cafe’s concept is clearly stated by the tagline printed under the logo on their signage—‘hand drip coffee brewed by architects’. The idea is simple, straightforward and a very good use of the space that they have considering that the architects only use one corner of the room for their private working studio. The rest of the modest space is furnished with minimal modern unique furnitures that give visitors both a collaborative atmosphere where you can discuss your ideas with your table mates as well as a private intimate mood if you want to be left alone with your thoughts. 

Earl Grey Milk Tea (얼그레이 밀크티) ₩6,800 | 8.5/10

I ordered their Earl Grey Milk Tea and was surprised that it was served with an ice ball. I thought that was a nice touch to the presentation of the drink. The milk tea was good and not too sweet. The ratio of the milk and tea was just how I like it. They also give a cube of brownie on the side with the drink which was a nice surprise. 

Other than coffee, non-coffee drinks, tea, and desserts, they also serve Whiskey and Highball on the menu. Since the place is a bit small, it can get a tad noisy when all the tables are fully occupied. I also have an inkling that this place might be busy on the weekends seeing that there are chairs lined up in front of the cafe for people who are waiting for a table (I went on a weekday so it wasn’t a full house. But considering it’s a weekday, the place was pretty packed). But all and all, this was a cool space to check out if you’re looking for a cafe to hang out at around Yongsan area.

 

3F Lobby

Address: 서울 용산구 한강대로15길 19-19 3층
Telephone: 070-8865-1919
Hours: Wednesday-Sunday 12:00-22:20 | Closed on Mondays & Tuesdays

Instagram: @3f_lobby

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Sutbul PIK

Sutbul is a new contemporary Korean dining restaurant that just opened in Golf Island PIK February this year. Focusing on traditional menus with a modern twist, Sutbul offers a variety of unique menus that are different from the dishes one usually find in a typical Korean restaurant in Jakarta. They also prided themselves in their meat cooking techniques where they use imported meat grilling rack from Korea with Binchotan charcoal, the purest charcoal on earth that burns with constant heat bringing out the best flavors in the meat it cooks.

The traditional meets modern concept also extends to the design of the interior of the restaurant. Although the choice of furnitures and fixtures decorating the space feel modern, there’s a certain air of nostalgia exuded by the burnt amber ceramic tiles and the beautiful Korean folklore traditional prints adorning the walls. This two-story restaurant feels stylish and modern but still warm and welcoming at the same time, making it a perfect place to go to if you feel like dressing up for a special occasion or for a casual meal with friends and family.

To start off the meal, they provide you with complimentary corn tea and seven different kinds of banchan. The banchan selections change from time to time but some of the permanent ones (at least the ones that I always got during my multiple visits to this place) are the sweet potatoes, fishcakes, pajeon/pancakes and the pickled onions. And I can say that their banchans are really good.

🍞 Makgeolli Bread 막걸리빵 (59k) | 10/10

Korean Rice Wine Bread, Charcoal Butter

Served in a steaming bamboo container, the Makgeolli bread is warm, soft and chewy. The texture reminded me of Indonesian’s Kue Mangkok, but softer and fluffier. The Makgeolli taste in the bread is subtle and not too sweet. For me though, as delicious as the bread is, the best thing about this dish is the charcoal butter. You got to dip the bread into the charcoal butter and get that combination of sweet and salty from the butter and salt. It’s soooo good. Easily one of my best new food finds this year and I’ve been ordering this on my subsequent visits to Sutbul since the first time I’ve had this. Although instead of having this as an appetizer, I now have this as a dessert.

🐟 Salmon Jang 연어장 (30k/slice) | 8.5/10

Soy Marinated Salmon, Onion

In Korean cuisine, “Jang” (장) refers to a family of traditional fermented sauces that are fundamental to Korean cooking. For the salmon jang, they are using Korean fermented soy sauce (ganjang 간장) so the taste of the soy sauce is different than the ones usually served with sushi or sashimi in a Japanese restaurant (don’t expect it to be the same flavor). The sauce tasted closer to the Korean soy marinated crab (ganjang gaejang  간장 게장) if you’ve ever had one of those. Taste wise, I think they really nailed the Korean flavor profile on the soy sauce. And the salmon pieces were fresh and thick with generous portion.

🥩 Yukhoe 육회 (Wagyu Picanha MB7 80g 250k) | 8/10

Raw Beef, Pear, Seaweed

The raw beef is fresh and cut nicely. The flavor of this dish is on the bolder side since they use soy sauce to marinate the beef (thus the slightly darker color of the meat) and the fresh yolk also added to the creaminess of the overall taste after being mixed together. The pear slices were sweet and fresh and worked really well to add a brighter note to the dish. I do wish the beef tartare is slightly colder than the room temperature that it was served on (but also, I was taking pics of the food for a while so it may contribute the temperature of the meat. Not too sure about this).

🍜  Perilla Cold Noodles 들기름 국수 (110k) | 10/10

Capellini Pasta, Perilla Oil, Perilla Leaves, Perilla Seeds, Seaweed

This is their signature menu that I haven’t seen anywhere else in Jakarta (at least as of now when I’m writing this post. If there’s other restaurant that’s serving this, I probably haven’t heard of it yet). Just like the name suggest, the flavor of this dish screams perilla, but in a nice refreshing way. The pasta is cooked al dente and the dish is really nicely seasoned with earthy, umami and creamy (but not too creamy and more on the lighter end of creamy) flavors. The seaweed powder also added a nice savoriness to the dish. If you like sesame oil or black sesame, roasted soybean, Korean mugwort flavored things like me, you’ll probably enjoy this dish. This is also a perfect dish to have during one of the hot days in Jakarta when you want something light and refreshing and it has become one of the menu that I always order on my every visit. 

🥩 Thick Cut Ox Tongue 우설 150g (425k) | 6/10

The Ox Tongue cuts were nice, thick and well seasoned but the texture was a bit tough and too chewy for my personal taste.

🥩 Beef Platter (1,450k) | 8/10

150g Sirloin (Top Left), 150g Chuck Flap (Top Right), 150g Rib Eye (Bottom)

The meat were nicely cooked although some pieces are a bit burnt on the outside so I took some point off for that. The Chuck Flap was the thickest one, has more fat and the juiciest out of the three cuts. I enjoyed this one the most. The other two are more on the leaner side but still enjoyable. 

🍰 Hotteok Ice Cream 호떡 아이스크림 (79k) | 8/10

Glutinous Rice Pancake, Brown Sugar, Cinnamon, Walnut, Vanilla Ice Cream

Pretty good dessert although it’s a tiny bit sweet for my personal taste. The portion is pretty generous though so make sure you leave some room in your stomach if you want to order this dessert or share it with the table. 

Other dishes that I’ve tried during my subsequent visits (when I didn’t bring my camera so I have no pictures of the individual dish other than this one below) are:

🍽️ Sogogi Gukbap 소고기 국밥 (130k) | 9/10

Beef Bone Soup, Beef Shank, Shimeji, Shiitake, White Rice

A comforting bowl of soup with generous toppings of beef chunks, mushrooms, radish, zucchini (I think. Cmiiw), green onions and eggs. Unlike the usual white/clear soup gukbap that I always had, the soup on this one is red and reminded me of jjigae (Korean stew) style soup, only less concentrated and lighter. It is a bit spicy for me who can’t handle spicy food well, but for people who does, this is probably not spicy at all. 

🥩 Pork Belly 200g 삼겹살 (168k) | 9/10

One of the better pork belly in this price range that I’ve had in a Korean restaurant around PIK area. Nicely cooked pieces of meat that were crispy on the outside, juicy on the inside. 

🥩 Pork Jowl 200g 항정살 (168k) | 9/10

Their pork jowl is also delicious. Same comment as the pork belly, nicely cooked pieces of meat that were crispy on the outside, juicy on the inside. And this one is more tender than the pork belly. 

🥩 Marinated Pork Collar 200g 양념목살 (168k) | 7/10

This one’s a bit tricky. The marination of the meat was really delicious but the texture of the pieces of meat that we got were not consistent. When I tried this, I went with two of my friends and the pieces of meat that I had were good and nice, but they got the tougher pieces so it was not as enjoyable for them as it was for me (I took some points off because of this). But we all agreed that the marination sauce is really good.

After my visit, I also recommended this place to a couple of my friends who went and ordered this menu. The result was 50-50. Half of them got great pieces of meat, half of them got tougher meat. I ended up asking about this to the manager during one of my subsequent visits and he told me that as of right now, they’re still continuously trying to address the inconsistency of the meat. So if you want to try this menu, maybe ask the server first if you’ll be getting a good piece of meat or not on that day before ordering (they could probably tell you by seeing the meat they have in stock that day). Honestly the dish is pretty good, it’s just if you got tougher pieces of meat, it won’t be as enjoyable so I just want to put it out there as a disclaimer. 

I have been back to Sutbul numerous times for dine-in and take-out since my first visit and I have to say (apart from the pork collar) their food is consistently good. My go-to menus usually are: Perilla Cold Noodles (you got to try this if this is your first visit to Sutbul), Sogogi Gukbap, and the Makgeolli Bread. For the meat, pork jowl and pork belly are probably the top two meat options right now since I haven’t tried the rest of the beef cuts just yet and their pork meat prices are pretty affordable. 

Service at this restaurant is also really good. Super friendly staff (for introverts it could be bordering on too friendly though since the staff’s energy level is pretty high. Just an FYI) and prompt service. The place is also pet friendly so if you want to bring your furry friends with you, you definitely can. If you’re looking for a Korean restaurant with less than traditional menu, I would totally recommend this place to try. And with how frequent I’ve been to this place lately, who knows, you might bump into me too (say hi if you do!).

Sutbul PIK

Address: Golf Island, Jln Rukan Jl. Pantai Indah Kapuk No.12 Blok J, DKI Jakarta 14470, Indonesia
Telephone: +62896 0371 5091
Hours: Everyday 11:00 - 00:00

Instagram: @sutbul.jkt

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UKI Matcha ECO8 Puri

After the opening of their flagship store in SCBD Park last March, UKI Matcha has established themselves as one of the best matcha bars in Jakarta. Just shy a year after the success of their first location, they have now opened the second location of UKI Matcha at ECO8 Puri. Although the store still carry the same aesthetics from its sister location, the selections of ceremonial matcha powders are different from the ones offered at the SCBD location. They also have a couple of menus that are exclusive to this location, giving patrons different experiences when visiting their stores.

Tried a couple of different things from their menu and overall they’re all pretty good, but here are some of my favorites (and I believe all these menus are only available at this location):

🍵 Pistachio Matcha (Tenka 104k / Asagiri 134k) | 9.5/10 

Tenka/Asagiri Matcha, Milk, Pistachio Foam, Crushed Pistachio

Their Pistachio Matcha is so good! Both matcha options are good but I prefer the Asagiri Matcha because it tasted nuttier than the Tenka Matcha that has a more bitter profile. This drink is super creamy and nutty and I love the Pistachio foam that’s sweet and salty at the same time. The crushed pistachio also gave a fun texture contrast to the drink. Ordered with normal sugar and it’s not sweet at all (all their matcha drinks are really not too sweet in general). If you’re a pistachio fan, definitely give this drink a try. Even if you’re not a pistachio fan like me (I’m kinda mid with pistachio flavored stuff) but you like a creamier drink I think you’d enjoy this one. 

🍵 Mango Matcha (65k) | 8/10

Tenka Matcha, Milk, Real Mango Coulis

I honestly don’t know how you’re suppose to drink this one but in the beginning, I tried to sipped the drink as is with all the layers still stacked on top of each other. Depending on which part of the drink I sipped it from, it resulted in a variety of different flavors. First time, the end of my straw was on the bottom of the glass so the first flavor that I got was just the Mango Coulis which was a bit too sweet for me. Then I mixed the matcha and the milk together and tried sipping it from slightly above the Mango Coulis and on that sip I only tasted the matcha flavor with a teeny tiny hint of mango flavor. In the end, I did mix the whole thing together and it tasted more balanced. This drink’s slightly on the sweeter side (sweeter than the Pistachio Matcha) but the combination of mango and matcha actually works.

🍡 Warabi Mochi (65k / Whole Box 160k) | 10/10

Warabi Mochi, Tenka Matcha Honey

Hands down THE BEST Warabi Mochi I’ve had in Jakarta so far. The texture of this mochi reminded me of the ones I had in Japan. They really nailed it. The more bitter matcha honey also balanced out the sweetness of the mochi. Honestly, I can probably eat one whole portion of this alone without the honey cause the mochi is already that good.

My first visit to the ECO8 location was during their opening week and the place was packed. There was never-ending long lines at the counter of people who came in to get their matcha fix for dine-in as well as for to-go. The long queue seems to be still going on during the weekends too these days judging by the Instagram stories they uploaded. So be prepared to wait for tables or for your orders if you’re planning to visit on the weekends. The second time I went was during a weekday around lunch time. This time, the place wasn’t too packed and the atmosphere’s actually pretty enjoyable. So if you want to avoid the crowd, visiting on a weekday is probably your best bet. If you’re looking for a great matcha bar in Meruya/Puri/West Jakarta area, definitely check this place out.

 

UKI Matcha ECO8 Puri

Address: Jl. Taman Aries No.8, Meruya Utara, Kec. Kembangan, Kota Jakarta Barat, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta 11620, Indonesia
Telephone: +6287765588229
Hours: Tuesday to Sunday 10:00 - 20:00 | Closed on Mondays

Instagram: @ukimatcha.id

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Solsot Cheongdam • 솔솥 청담점

Solsot Cheongdam (솔솥 청담점) is a chain restaurant that is specialized in “Sotbap” (솥밥) (or“pot rice” in Korean), a Korean traditional dish where short-grain rice is cooked with various ingredients in a heavy pot placed directly on a stove or over an open flame. The dish has been gaining popularity (or at least I’ve seen more and more clips online of restaurants serving Sotbap) in the past couple of years and in my opinion is one of the food trends that’s pretty popular in Korea in recent times (not recent recent, but pretty recent). I still remember a couple of years ago when it started with one or two restaurants that went viral because of their Sotbap menu. But these days, you can find multiple restaurants that have similar concepts in different places in the country. Solsot is one of the bigger franchise in this category with 77 locations all over South Korea. 

I went to the Cheongdam location (솔솥 청담점) on a Friday for lunch with a friend of mine. We arrived at 11:30 am, right before the lunch rush started and managed to get a table right away. The restaurant is not too big with about 24 seatings available around the room. The tables are for mostly for 4 people, but there are about four tables that accommodate party of two. And good thing we came a little early because minutes later, the restaurant was full with people and there’s even a line forming outside. So yes, the place is definitely pretty popular and you might have to wait for a table if you come during lunch or dinner rush. 

The menu here is pretty straight forward with accompanying pictures so you don’t have to guess what you’re getting. Each Sotbap set comes with sides of salad, soup, banchan, dipping sauce and a Yakult drink. 

How To Eat

First, mixed everything inside the pot. Add the sauce too according to your preference and liking. After everything is mixed together, scoop the rice out and place them on the empty plate they gave with your set. If you want to enjoy the Nurungji (or scorched rice), leave the crispy rice that’s sticking to the pot and then pour the hot tea/broth that they gave you inside the white sake bottle shaped container into the pot and put the lid back on top. You can eat this at the end of your meal after you finish your Sotbap.

Overall Comment

One thing I have to say about the flavors, if you’re imagining Sotbap to have a bold flavors (as in South East Asian standard for bold flavors and strong seasonings for example), you might be disappointed when eating it. In general, I think when talking about what considered comfort food in Korea, most of the dishes are very mildly seasoned, especially if you’re comparing it to the flavors one usually finds in South East Asian cooking. Even my Korean friends have told me that SEA foods are generally stronger in seasonings and saltier compared to Korean food (not all, but majority of it). So for the locals, the flavors and seasonings might already hit their level of comfort, but if you are from South East Asia or prefer a strongly seasoned dishes like those found in the SEA countries, Sotbap could taste a tad under seasoned for your taste buds. Just a heads up.

Abalone Sotbap (전복솥밥) ₩18,000 | 8/10

The abalone is fresh and chewy, not tough at all. This Sotbap tastes very earthy especially with the addition of the sesame seeds. For the Abalone Sotbap, it does come with a pack of seaweed sheet on the side. And they recommend you to wrap the rice with the seaweed, dip it into the sauce and eat it in one bite. Eating it this way does add a layer of complexity to the Sotbap and enhance that sea flavor in your bite.

Steak Sotbap (스테이크솥밥) ₩18,000 | 8/10

The steak is nice and tender with pretty generous portion. The egg yolk added an extra creaminess to the Sotbap which I enjoyed. The sauce for the Steak Sotbap is a bit saltier than the Abalone Sotbap’s sauce so I would recommend you to pour it little by little first and taste it in case pouring everything in all together is too salty for you. 

All and all, my friend and I enjoyed our meal. We were pretty stuffed by the end of our lunch (we didn’t even finish all of our rice, just the proteins cause the portion is actually bigger than we thought) and the Sotbap felt like a very healthy meal. If you’re looking for something warm, comforting and nutritious for your body, I think Sotbap is the way to go.

 

Solsot Cheongdam • 솔솥 청담점

Address: 서울 강남구 도산대로53길 16
Telephone: 0507-1334-6806
Hours: Everyday 11:30-21:00 (Last Order 20:30)

Instagram: @solsot_official

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Unvanish Hannam • 언베니쉬 한남

Unvanish Hannam (언베니쉬 한남) is a Korean brand that sells perfume, body oil, hand wash, body wash, and life fragrance. Stumbled upon this store during one of my shopping trip with my friend around Hannam area. Saw their posters plastered on the walls outside the building and we decided to climbed up the stairs to the second floor to check the place out.

Pleasant aromatic scent greeted us as soon as we stepped into the store. The place isn’t too big. But just like the majority of the shops around here, it is well-designed. Their products are displayed around the space that is decorated with modern minimalistic furniture and fixtures. One corner resembles a small living room and on the other they have an open bathroom display area with bathtub and sink where you can use to test their hand or body wash.

Sea of ​​Green Life Mood Spray (씨 오브 그린 라이프 무드 스프레이) ₩59,000

Elegant AldehydeㅣCool MuskㅣSea Beyond the Grass
3.38 fl oz. (100 ml)

TOP     ALDEHYDE, GRAPEFRUIT, MANDARIN
MID     ROSE, MUGUET, VIOLET
BASE   MOSS, SANDALWOOD, MUSK, TONKA

“The elegant and clean aldehyde scent will capture the tip of your nose the moment you apply it. The light floral scent is reminiscent of the sea beyond the grassy plains. The scent of musk and soft sandalwood is finished with  the whisper of a cool sea breeze and the scent of ripples in the earth, bringing to mind memories of early morning walks along the sea.” —Unvanish

Out of all the scents, both me and my friend like the Sea of Green Life the best. But unfortunately, all the Sea of Green products were out of stock when we were there so we couldn’t purchase any. We took it as a sign that we should go back again next time. If you’re looking for perfume around Hannam-dong area, this place is worth checking out. 

Image Courtesy: Unvanish Website

 

Unvanish Hannam • 언베니쉬 한남

Address: 서울 용산구 이태원로49길 19 2층 언베니쉬
Telephone: 070-4129-3333
Hours: Tuesday-Saturday 11:30-20:00 (Closed on Mondays)

Instagram: @unvanish.official
Website

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