It’s been quite some time since the last time I visited Tokyo Belly. Tokyo Belly is certainly one of the few best eateries that belongs to Ismaya.

Offering a modern japanese fusion, Tokyo Belly covers a lot of menus that will make you say “I want this! But I want that too!” and in the end, you will be left with confusion for what you should pick for your lunch. 😀

This time around, Tokyo Belly introduces more addition to the club, that will add more “thrill” when you are deciding your lunch/dinner. Let’s just talk about the lovely new menus that I tried!

From the nibbles section, I was given five selections to try. From those five, I really loved Salmon Oyako, Dazzling and Cheese Takoyaki.

# Salmon Oyako (IDR 88k)
This was definitely the most shining gem of all. The sushi roll was wrapped in truly divine salmon slices, topped with grilled cheese, cream cheese, and bad-ass salmon roe. The whole mix was just perfect and left a distinguished wonderful taste in my mouth. It just melted so effortlessly. This is one heck of sexy sushi!

# Dazzling (IDR 48k)
This deep fried roll is one to remember as well. It was a salmon sushi roll, covered in crispy panko and deep fried to perfection. Topped with mashed potato salad, golden egg and glazed with sweet spicy sauce, this delicacy really exceeded my expectation. The sweet spicy sauce that bound the whole ingredients worked like magic. What a dazzling dish!

 # Cheese Takoyaki (IDR 38k)
This undoubtedly one of the best fusion takoyaki I’ve ever tasted. I loved the wonderful smooth texture in the inside, matched with its rich flavour. The savoury cheddar cheese and cheese sauce really enhanced the taste.

# Rock & Roll (IDR 48k)
This rock and roll sushi is actually simple kani sushi roll with strong company of enoki mushroom wrapped in beef and showered with Tokyo Belly special sauce. Truthfully-speaking, this one didn’t work as well as the others above. It had the charming ingredients (who doesn’t love beef and enoki?), but seemingly failed to make any interesting novelty.

 # TB Rice Cake (IDR 38k)
This starter is the famous toppoki or korean rice cake, which I can’t appreciate yet. Even at the good hands of Tokyo Belly’s chef, my tongue couldn’t find the better side of this rice cake. 🙁

# Salmon Sashimi (IDR 68k)
Presented beautifully on top of mystical dry ice, this starter is actually Norwegian salmon slices. Each slice is topped with edible gold garnished to enhance the beauty of this simple dish. Aside from the good look, the salmon sashimi was simply captivating with its freshness.

# Carbonara Ramen (IDR 68k)
Unlike any other ramen I’d ever seen, this bowl of creamy ramen intrigued me. Apparently, the taste was not as great as I imagined. The carbonara soup was a wee bit too light, too subtle to be seriously taken as the iconic carbonara. The smoked beef itself was seemingly a bit out of place (even though I know that Carbonara is extremely attached with smoked beef). I do think that the Carbonara Ramen could have been much better if paired up with something that has better depth of flavour such as salmon or even grilled beef chunks.

 # Crispy Cheesy Curry Dory Bi-Bim-Bap (IDR 69k)
As a hater of Japanese curry, this dish turned the table on me. It might look quite pale in the picture, but the flavour of the cheesy curry was real good. What I really loved from the curry was actually the curry spices which were not overwhelming at all, and instead, it slowly drew me in with its subtleness. The crispy John Dory fillets were pretty good as well. The whole bibimbap turned out to be amongst the bests of the day.

# Chicken Katsu Tamatoji (IDR 78k)
What is Tamatoji? Well, for this case, it was a slow-cooked method for meat or fish on a steamer with special sauce and egg. As explained, the fish or meat has actually been through a cooking process, so it will not be presented raw. Since it’s semi-cooked, the complete cooking process will be under your complete surveillance. That’s the fun! We can actually chat with friends, occasionally take a peek, and go back to some random talk until the whole meat or fish is completely cooked. I personally found this dish very interesting. The method of slow cooking is always well-known for its tender and rich result. My Chicken Katsu that night was perfect. The special (salty) soy sauce was deeply infused in my katsu, and the egg enriched the complexity. It’s definitely a must-try dish.

# Matcha Fondue
Who doesn’t love fondue? Well, next question, who doesn’t love matcha? Well, if you did not raise your hand for both questions, welcome to the club! Tokyo Belly, a restaurant with modern Japanese fusion, is expected to eventually have this party-fun sweet treat! For the basic set, you get to pick 4 toppings from fruits to marshmallows. The matcha fondue had a rather thick texture, which was perfect for me. I hate that runny and watery fondue which has no texture and taste. The matcha itself was more on the sweet milky type of matcha.
When it comes to matcha, there will always be some different opinions. Some people will perhaps like the sweet milky version and some others might love the bittersweet matcha. I myself, caught in between. I like both and truly accept both styles. Yes, I am that kind of open-minded souls. Or perhaps, I am just confused.

All in all, Tokyo Belly remains one of the best establishments by Ismaya when we are talking about food taste and quality. The new menu is certainly a great idea and it really opens up more variety in the world of culinary.

Price-wise, I still think Tokyo Belly has wisely valued each and every menu according to its ingredients, and thus, I do not think the dishes are over-priced. It’s just like that saying, “you get what you pay” and I can completely agree.

Another good news! Tokyo Belly has now opened another outlet in Kelapa Gading! It’s truly a good news for people around Kelapa Gading as now, it will be much easier to visit Tokyo Belly to enjoy its modern Japanese delights.

Well, for the new menu, I highly recommend you to have their Salmon Sashimi, Salmon Oyako, Cheese Takoyaki, Dazzling, Chicken Katsu Tamatoji and Crispy Cheesy Curry Dory Bibimbap. Well, there are definitely more others that I have not tried! Do tell me what you think, when you do try their new menu. I can also be reach on instagram! 😉

TOKYO BELLY | JAKARTA
Grand Indonesia Shopping Town, West Mall Level 3A
Phone: +6221-23581090
Website: www.ismaya.com/tokyobelly
Instagram: @tokyobelly