Sooo to begin with, I had the so-called writer’s block for the past few months, with various attempts to combat it by writing drafts that were left untouched. Well, not today I thought. I decided to just go with the flow while writing this one as the last few entries have been nothing but a *heavy* self-reflection which I took quite some time and energy to write for.

Today, I’m sharing some of my favorite food I tasted back in 2020! Guess we can all agree that 2020 was a full year of takeouts and homemade dishes right? I spent a fair amount of time just opening GrabFood/GoFood to scroll and not actually order at all, ha. Jokes aside, these ones on the list were actually ones I ate and very much enjoyed.

1. Sekoteng Ronde from Sekoteng Ronde Bandung Gajah Mada

Jl. Gajah Mada No.9, RT.9/RW.8, Krukut, Kec. Taman Sari, Kota Jakarta Barat, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta 11140

Now, let me tell you about a dessert I can eat every day for the rest of my life. It’s the infamous Indonesian traditional dessert called ‘Sekoteng Ronde’, which consists of a hot ginger drink, topped with nuts, bread crumbs, brown sugar and the star of the drink, ‘ronde’ round-shaped glutinous rice filled with crushed nuts and (I think) more brown sugar. I just love that first bite to the ‘ronde’!

Chewing it somehow reminds me of chewing a boba and mochi at the same time. Followed by the after-taste of strong ginger that is quite the level of spiciness but also sweet. Highly recommended if you are ever around Central Jakarta and into those hidden ‘hawker’ gems.

2. Soy Matcha Latte from Kopi Soe 

Available on Go-Food/GrabFood or their offline stores

This drink is a newfound love, y’all. I was once addicted to anything coffee and never set my eyes to its counterparts– like the matcha latte. Speaking of which, I remember a time when everyone back in junior high was so into Starbucks’ iced green tea latte, and me not being a fan of it because I found that it has too much milk, too sweet, just not the kind of matcha ‘level’ I expected. I am just into stronger, more bitter matcha like this one from Kopi Soe. This concoction has the perfect ratio of milk to matcha, the soy milk (which I assumed is from V-Soy since they have very creamy and rich soy milk, btw– another recommendation!) is just a perfect creamy blend that is quite sweet but it still leaves another room for the matcha’s bitter aftertaste.

I highly recommend you to order it as it is without sugar but do request more ice because I find it too rich/creamy with less ice (which is okay if you are into that)! It is a great drink if you want a little less jittery caffeine kick 🙂

3. Salad Buah by Tukusiki Food 

Available on Go-Food/GrabFood

When talking about ‘fruit salad’, I think it is safe to say that Indonesians are on a whole different page from most, western countries. If you are from the States, you would probably recognize a fruit salad as a bowl with loads of sliced fruit, topped with honey or any syrups. But of course, the Indonesians have a merrier version of it, it is (still) a bowl with loads of sliced fruit but… let’s not get too excited when talking about its topping! We never have plain fruit salads, but always… always topped with lots of yogurts, and the best part… lots and lots of cheese. To me, the cheese is always the best part! Always the family’s go-to on a hot day.

4. Soft Serve Ice Cream by McDonald’s 

I don’t know about you guys but I find it hard to get excited about something in 2020, where everyday looks mundane, repeating the same routine all over again in the same place, again and again, and again. To make my week a little bit exciting, I always try to find little ways here and there to change my routine, like on the weekends where I reserve a day for lunch/dinner takeouts! And this ice cream is always on my list.

Pretty sure it has been a sentimental thing for me, as I used to pick this as my fix whenever I’m having a bad day since my years in uni (its A CHEAP treat as well, aka cuma $0,70 = IDR 7.000 :))

Back then, I used to walk 10 minutes to the nearest ‘Maccas’ near my apartment, or spare 5-10 minutes to grab it before hopping on the train home from the city. Oh, how nostalgic. I felt like ages ago haha! But anyways, second to the Wedang Ronde, McDonald’s soft serve has been my favorite since forever. I have never grown bored of eating it!

That was a wrap for my first post of the year. Hopefully one or even all of them can be your next go-to! Stay safe and stay well, friends.