Editor's Rating
GOOD NEWS TO BREAD LOVERS IN JAKARTA!
Here I introduce you to the hottest, newest French Boulangerie & Patisserie in Jakarta named Levant, which actually means “rise” in english.
Again, this authentic French restaurant & bakery is located in Kemang, my favorite spot in Jakarta, and it happens to be at just few ruko after Baconerie Kitchen & Bakery. The bright red canopy is the easiest sign to recognize the spot, as the place itself doesn’t look too fancy from the outside.
Perhaps this sentence applies perfectly on Levant.
From outside, it looks just like regular Indonesian ruko, and even when I was inside, I was hardly impressed by the interior design. Certainly the place is not the most beautiful French bakery, and I secretly thanked God for having me visited this place during Christmas season so clearly they have Christmas-related decoration. But other than that, the only things that hooked me to stay was the variety of yummy-looking breads on the shelves, cakes, and pastries in the displays.
Although it is a ruko but the place is actually quite spacious, and there are some tables too for dining in. Okay, pardon me please, it is not bad but my initial impression the first moment I came in? It looks just like some typical old-school bakery shops during my childhood times and it just felt blah. Maybe it’s because of the flooring, maybe it’s the wall, anyway I was surprised (in a not-so-good way).
Glad that the other side of the wall has this black wall with handwritings of the menu. It gives some nice vibe into the (seemingly) blank room.
There’s nothing fancy about the place and furniture. But well, I came here for the food! I went crazy just looking at all the beautiful bread, pastries, tarts, and eclairs!
Before I visited the place, I have learned that the person behind Levant is actually Chef Ramon Medina, who is originally from France, so basically he knows what he does. The great thing is that when you visit this place, he will greet you personally and (if you want) he can make recommendations of what to try based on what you like.
Since Levant’s concept is also restaurant, there are some other food beside those in display, such as sandwich and pizza menu. For the drink, there are also options of coffee (local beans), chocolate, and many others.
Croissant IDR 18,000
Croissant is a MUST item to try whenever I go to a French bakery. For me, beside baguette, croissant is one of the most fundamental components that assure whether a bakery is reliable or not.
Again, from the looks, the croissants are quite thin and smaller than what I find in other French bakeries in Jakarta…. but HOLY MOLLY!!
It was THE BEST croissant I have ever had in Jakarta (sorry, Eric Kayser!).
It was flaky, buttery, and soft in the inside without being too “airy” and surprisingly, it doesn’t lose its consistency in the inside. You know, I love flaky croissant with soft inner side, but most all the time I found the inner side to be “empty” because it is just a big gigantic hole when I bite it.
This is not!
Cappuccino IDR 22,000
Currently they are using local coffee beans (Toraja coffee, if I remember correctly), very mild and easy. A perfect companion to enjoy the bread, sandwich, tarts, you name it.
Quiche Lorraine IDR 37,000
I loooooovvveee quiche. It *was* a pain in the a$$ trying to find decent one in Jakarta.
But NOT ANYMORE!!
Levant’s quiche is amazingly delicious. I tried the Lorraine: with smoked beef, cheese and eggs; and there is no turning back. The quiche was thick, solid, and had the smooth texture when eaten. I have tried the same quiche in other places (including the one in Authentique Kemang), but I really love this one. The pastry crust on the bottom wonderfully solidified with the custard part on the top, made it a super nice combination together.
Chocolat Chaud IDR 25,000
Chocolate is never a failure paired with French baked goods. Especially when it’s so milky and hot.
Sandwich IDR 48,000
Initially I ordered Poulet (chicken) sandwich but since Chef Ramon kindly offered me to have assorted ones (mixed fillings and also different kinds of bread), I was very happy that I could try almost everything on a plate.
Have I told you that Levant offers sourdough bread? The difference between sourdough bread and the normal ones is the making process, in which the fermentation of sourdough is done naturally using lactobacilli and yeasts, resulting a mild sour taste (hence the name).
It’s quite hard to find good sourdough bread here in Jakarta, so I was ecstatic when I knew this.
Oh yes, unlike mostly French bakeries or patisseries in Jakarta, Levant actually bakes their stuffs in this very place, everyday, so rest assured, you’ll get the freshest bakes each time you visit. How cool is that?
I got to try different types of bread, from the iconic French baguette (stuffed with THE BEST liver paté EVER!), multigrains, and campagne. These sandwiches really remind me of the fresh deli in France, complete with the pickles.
This is what I call authentic <333
The bread were very delicious, with fainted hint of sourness, not disturbing at all. The consistency and texture were puerrfect! I couldn’t ask for more freshness, this is HEAVENLY GOOD, period!
Mandarino IDR 28,000
Had this orange soda drink to help digesting, love the scent and hint of bitterness in it.
Tartelette aux Pommes IDR 30,000
Or apple tart, if you prefer.
Fell in love to this since my first bite. It has wonderful texture with nice crust topped with delicious apple slices arranged artfully. The taste was incredibly heart-warming, sweet with nice touch of apple scent that haunted my soul ever since.
I. SO. WANT. IT. RIGHT. NOW!!
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| Complimentary chocolate, thank you! |
This is my first visit to this place but I will definitely stop by often to get my yummy baked goods dosage!
Good luck, Levant! And see you real soon!
Visited on: 14 December 2014
*The Food Escape team are not paid whatsoever for writing this post.
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LEVANT BOULANGERIE & PATISSERIE
Jl. Benda Raya 12A
South Jakarta
Phone. +62 21 7884 7454
Opening Hours:
Mon – Sun 8AM – 5PM
Oh Gosh *______*
i cannot wait to pay a visit here!
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