Being one of the 13 hotels
under Hilton group, Double Tree is indeed as stunning as the rest of the group
members. I was there last weekend, having my very first step into the hotel,
and was immediately blown away with its setting. Those high ceiling, huge glass
windows, giant lagoon pool, green views, and spoiling scent have successfully
hypnotized me, making me ended up wishing I could spend the rest of my day
there just to enjoy every single thing on my surroundings.
Bringing back myself to the
reality, my friends and I were warmly greet by the team there, who then
assisted us to go to their Sea Grain restaurant. It’s just one of the four
dining venues Double Tree has besides Krem Pool Bar for dining by the pool,
Open} Restaurant as the all-day dining venue, and T Lounge to hold casual
business meeting or afternoon tea time while enjoying views over the outdoor
swimming pool. This casual restaurant, which is intended to serve dinner only,
is inspired by Mediterranean coast combination with a local Indonesian twist.
Such a unique concept to be delivered, which can rarely be found recently.
Located at the third floor of the hotel, this restaurant can only be accessed starting 5pm, which’s exactly its opening time. The 640sqm-sized venue consists of both indoor and outdoor area, including 3 various-sized private rooms. Not stopping at the hotel design only in mesmerizing me, the restaurant again fascinates me with its contemporary concept with distinctive paintings by Ines Katamso, a French-Indonesian muralist, covering the walls.
It’s a hot and sunny
afternoon when my friends and I went there last weekend. Lucky us, we were
greet by the homemade Sangria (IDR
150k/glass, IDR 496k/pitcher), one of Sea Grain’s best signature cocktail,
combining red wine, brandy, orange, lemon, apple, and ginger ale. It’s a very
refreshing one, bringing out the blend of tropical fruits with a slight touch
of alcohol. Aside of this, the bar featured a selection of classic cocktails as
well as Mediterranean inspired cocktails.
Coming
as the starter to the Mediterranean food feast, there it’s served, a basket of Complimentary Bread whose variants might change on daily basis. The
signature one, Jalapeno Cheese Bread which immediately became my favorite, was
definitely not to be missed! Flawless mix of spicy and savory taste delivered
in a moist bread. To accompany it, there were several condiments to enjoy,
including butter,
olive oil, and beetroot paste.
Mezze Platter (IDR 88k)
Now it’s the turn for
something from Middle East, the Mezze
Platter, consisting soft Pitta bread and lavash (crispy thin unleavened
flatbread) that came with various toppings; Baba Ganoush and Mutabal (both
were basically eggplant dipping that mixed eggplant, onions, tomatoes, olive
oil and various seasonings), Tabbouleh
(Arabian salad), Ezme (looks alike
with tomato salsa sauce containing tomatoes, onion, herbs,
olive oil, and slight touch of red pepper), Hummus (mashed chickpeas or other beans, blended with tahini, olive
oil, lemon juice, salt and garlic), Olive, and Feta Cheese. Most favorite one?
Hmm. Hard to pick as I loved to have everything mixed then got chewed at once.
Prawn Mango
Salad (IDR 95k)
When people said being
healthy was something painful, I would say they should wait until they tried
this Prawn Mango Salad, beautifully
presenting pan-seared king prawn,
mango, taro, capsicum, balsamic reduction, sun-dried tomato and garlic crumble
with crispy lavash on top. Not only the veggies, the king prawns were all so
fresh, giving that chewy delightful texture. Not to mention, the sweet mango
and taro, which have successfully stolen my heart away.
Steamed Seabass (IDR 165k)
Another dish with olive oil was this Steamed Seabass. Yes, Mediterranean cuisine was indeed inseparable with olive oil, its key ingredient. This dish was too good to be true with that super moist fish texture, which literally melted in your mouth! Delivering a hint of pomegranate in the lemon butter sauce, which made it become even more succulent, this dish unquestionably had to be in the first row on the must-try list in Sea Grain. Completing the carbo part, the mashed cassava plated next to the fish came as another flavorful companion.
Rendang Lasagna (IDR 130k)
Another indulgence served on the table was this Rendang Lasagna served with cassava cheese balls. Let me confess first before I mentioned more things about this dish, I was such a freak for Lasagna, especially the one which came with generous mozzarella and béchamel sauce. I would surely have my calorie amnesia for that. Unlike the common lasagna, this one came up with rendang as its protein. Another peculiar mixture brought out by Sea Grain, and once again another one I fell for (well, I guessed I fell for every single dish already LOL). If you said Rendang’s best at Padang restaurant, you’d better try this before giving more comments ;) .
Frito Octopus Pizza (IDR
125k)
Hands up for those who love Oncom! Yes, you heard it right, Oncom, Indonesian’s signature traditional dish, which was loved by many of the people. This fermented soy bean ingredient came as the main topping of the tiny crust pizza, accompanied by octopus, squid, coriander, herb basil, mozzarella, cheddar cheese, and fruit salsa. Well, it might sound a little bit strange in the beginning, yet surprisingly it suited my palate very well and even got me addicted. Simply saying, I wouldn’t be able to tell it’s oncom and would think it’s meat instead, in case I wasn’t told in prior.
Baklava (IDR 110k)
Finally, the part that would forever have reserved space in my belly, what else than desserts? If we previously started with something from Middle East for main course, now we again had our dessert session starting with something originating in the Middle East. I assumed most of you have been familiar with Baklava as it’s one of the most-selling Middle Eastern desserts. But for those who might have just heard it for the first time, it’s basically crispy phyllo pastry filled with chopped nuts (mainly pistachio) and soaked in honey. Though the original Baklava supposed to be much sweeter than Sea Grain’s, but I did love this one as I thought it suited my Indonesian’s taste bud better with this level of sweetness.
Luwak Crepes Tiramisu* (IDR
185k)
*Contains alcohol
Serving
many exceptional dishes meant that the feast should also be ended with
something distinctive. Yes, I found this one very unique as I’ve never before
found Luwak coffee being used as the ingredient for desserts. Stuffing the soft
thin crepes with Luwak coffee and Tiramisu crème, plus adding a little touch of
alcohols and a scoop of vanilla ice cream, this exclusive dessert faultlessly
ended the delightful Mediterranean full-course I had at Sea Grain. Coffee and
ice cream might be common for desserts, but as this one served the premium ones,
it brought the dessert to the next level.
Honestly
saying, when my friends and I were on our way to Double Tree, we already
thought that we wouldn’t be able to take much food anymore into our tummy as we’d
been extremely full having 2 full-courses in prior in 2 different restaurants.
Astonishingly, we made it to the very last round, the dessert, and we did
almost clean up all the plates. We could even say that we failed to hold
ourselves from finishing everything as they’re just too scrumptious to be left.
I wasn’t paid or whatsoever to write this review. I simply loved loved loved
all the dishes served too much and I absolutely would come back here to try
their other menu and I even didn’t mind to have exactly the same ones. In the
end, I could just say that I really wish the upcoming visit would be some time
real real soon!
Taste: 9/10
Place: 8.5/10
Service: 8.5/10
Price: 8.5/10
Thanks for
Reading! :)
Sea Grain at Double Tree by Hilton
Address: Jl
Pegangsaan Timur No. 17, Cikini-Menteng, Jakarta
Phone: +62 21
2985 7093 / +62 21 3190 4433
Operating
Hours: Mon – Sun 5pm – 1am
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Inputs &
comments: jessicagaby@ymail.com
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