IO, Jakarta – For those of you who want to taste the pleasures of the food menu from breakfast to dinner, now in the Kemang area, south Jakarta there is a unique restaurant because it carries the cafe market concept. The menu served is fresh seafood-topped pasta to grilled chicken. This restaurant is located right on the side of the road with glass walls that attract attention using the Kommunal88 name. The writing “Cafe Market” that accompanies the name of the restaurant aroused our curiosity. The restaurant room is apparently not too big with a long table in the middle. It seems like adjusting the communal concept which means sharing so that visitors can sit together even though they don’t know each other.
The open kitchen area of the restaurant was not less interesting when I visited this restaurant. At first glance, I can take a peek at the chef’s activities passing by. On the menu, Komunal88 offers many choices from the breakfast, lunch, and dinner menus. The concept of the cafe market is reflected in the various premium foods that are sold here. Komunal88 does supply various quality products from countries that have a long culinary history. Including Italy, France, Turkey, Iran and the United States. Premium jams, honey, olive oil, pickled rows and other food products are displayed on the restaurant walls. Tempting anyone who comes to take him home.
Not wanting to linger over it, I immediately ordered a lunch menu. Between pasta, risotto, salad, and other main Western-style dishes, my choice fell on the menu of Seafood Rock Tagliatelle and Baby Roasted Chicken.
Rock Seafood Tagliatelle is in a row of pasta. This paste is flat and wide, like fettuccine. It looks lively because it has mussels, baby octopus, cherry tomatoes, and parsley chopped. The tagliatelle sheet feels chewy combined with the aglio olio which is the marinade. Taste a delicious mixture of olive oil and garlic. Equipped with a little spicy sting from the sprinkling of chili flakes, making this pasta even more special.
Delicious pasta seems not without reason. When talking with Chef Iyus from Komunal88, he explained that all the pasta here is made by themselves (homemade) so that the quality is guaranteed. While baby octopus pieces and mussels provide a savory touch to the dish. Because of the right mix of ingredients and spices, I think this pasta is good to eat just like that. No need for additional complementary sauces or other spices.
Likewise with the Baby Roasted Chicken menu that attracts my appetite at that time. A tiny brown-skinned chicken is placed on a wide white plate. Complete with basmati rice and chicken gravy on the side. A savory fragrance is found in this dish. The chicken meat is so tender with the marinade soaked in. I fell in love with the texture of the chicken as a whole. The skin feels savory crispy with meat that is moist and tender.
“We use a kind of 3-month-old native chicken for this dish. So that later it will produce more savory and tender meat,” said Chef Iyus.
Regarding the cooking process, Chef Iyus explained that chicken is boiled for 4 hours with all herbs and spices such as garlic, oregano, and parsley. Just before serving, the chicken is baked in the oven for about 15 minutes. It’s better when grilled chicken is dipped into gravy chicken. This dark brown sauce tastes delicious because it is indeed made from chicken bone broth.
“Chicken bones are roasted for 2 hours with rosemary and garlic spices. The bones are then blended and the juice is taken,” added Chef Iyus.
Raised basmati rice with raisins perfects grilled chicken. The long grain rice from Turkey is so soft even though the texture is not fluffier. The taste tastes mild because it is seasoned with butter, salt, pepper and parsley.
(Aldo)