I went to Blue Jasmine in the far south of Jakarta a few weeks ago and I was pretty impressed at first sight seeing their beautifully-decorated interior. First step into the restaurant, it did transport me to a different vibe, one that does not feel like I was in Jakarta.
The calming ambiance along with the classy interior is indeed one of a kind in Jakarta. The friendly faces and warm hospitality did say a lot about what Blue Jasmine is as a restaurant. What a remarkable impression.
I was seated indoor and it was bright, with suffice sun light coming in from the front door. I always love a well-lit place! It feels uplifting.
One look to the big menu book, I knew that Blue Jasmine was a serious and proud Indonesian restaurant. The food selections are all proudly Indonesian, and the drink menu was equally interesting. I could find mocktails, cocktails to coffee. The antique bar with vintage-looking espresso machine gave it away too!
Briefly discussed, Blue Jasmine is a new partner of Chope, and I’m so glad that now you can enjoy an easy online reservation via Chope and at the same time, enjoy its Chope Perks! You can also redeem your Chope-Dollars here with the amount of Rp 100k, IDR 200k, and IDR 300k! Cheers for that!
In case you still haven’t had an account on Chope, get a grip and make one! You can receive a IDR 100k worth Chope-Dollar just by signing up with this link!
https://cho.pe/hkX5o
Let’s see what we had here in Blue Jasmine.
# Perkedel Jagung Nyonya (IDR 45k)
Oh, yes. One of Indonesian finest, Corn Fritter. I think it’s hard to go wrong with this staple Indonesian delicacy. Blue Jasmine made it pretty well. I just personally think that it was a bit on the saltier side. Apart from that, the sweet corn and crunch were all good!
# Oseng Bunga Pepaya Ikan Teri (IDR 55k)
This one is a tricky dish to make. Papaya flowers are known to be really good because if made right, it should have that particular zest and right combination of slight bitterness and earthy fragrance. If done wrong, the bitterness is going to be unbearable. Here, it fell in between. It didn’t have the unbearable bitterness, yet it didn’t have enough kick or savoriness. I think what can be improved personally is to add more anchovies in.
# Sate Lidah Sambal Ijo (IDR 125k)
Oh, this one was the star! Like for real. This might look mediocre here in the picture, but everything was made right. The tongue was melt-in-the-mouth tender and the green chili was perfectly good and seasoned so well, it matched the beef tongue! I could personally have three portions of this by myself!
# Iga Goreng Sambal Kecap (IDR 135k)
This one is definitely for people with sweet tastebuds! The ribs itself was cooked nicely since the tenderness was still preserved. But the sweet soy sauce was a bit too much, resulting in overwhelmingly sweet aftertaste and no room for other flavors. My input is for them to tone down that sweet soy sauce and maybe add some lime juice for a bit of an acid kick.
# Gurame Sambal Matah (IDR 135k)
This looked so beautiful when it was served and I quite liked it. The fried fish was pretty good, because it basically had very good crunch in the outer layer and tasted fine without the nature of greasiness. The thing was, it lacked flavors. I didn’t get the idea of this fish dish, because I really think the seasoning or “dressing” was nowhere to be found.
# Drinks
All the drinks they served were pretty good. I found no complaints because each drink was crafted nicely, and the balance of every ingredient was spot on. But my fav is indeed Dr. Green Burst!
Oh, one thing tho. I found the latte a bit strange with salty (almost buttery) note. Other than that, nothing can be complaint.
To be really honest, I felt like for the food itself, there’s room for improvement. I particularly loved their Lidah Cabe Ijo, but the other menu didn’t seem to have the same level of positive impression.
Ambiance, checked.
Amazing Hospitality, checked.
Good drinks, checked.
Food, can be improved.
It’s a bit of a shame that Blue Jasmine has everything that makes a great restaurant great, but falling a bit short in the key department. I just hope for the best for Blue Jasmine because this particular restaurant certainly has a bright and promising future!
BLUE JASMINE | JAKARTA
THE MAJA, Jl. Kyai Maja No.39
Kebayoran Baru, Jakarta
Phone: +6221-29053990
Instagram: @BlueJasmineJKT
Website: www.bluejasmine.co.id
Opening Hours: Monday – Sunday 11 AM – 10 PM