Editor's Rating
Tokyo Belly is yet another innovative creation under ISMAYA group, specifically offering Japanese cuisine with typical ISMAYA’s unique concept and twist. First opened in December 2012, Tokyo Belly is Ismaya Group’s unique take on modern Japanese bistro and sake bar, with a vibrant and eccentric ambience of the nowadays Japan.
What I like about Tokyo Belly is that they offer so many selections of Japanese comfort food, from unique Japanese nibbles or snacks, signature sushi rolls, hobayaki, okonomiyaki, ramen, Japanese curry, omurice, hot stone bibimbap, hot off the grill, J-Dog to their famous Japanese pasta. It’s like, there’s always something for everyone on the table, and bringing large company is not even a problem anymore.
Nowadays, Tokyo Belly has two outlets: in Grand Indonesia and Setiabudi One building, and the good news is, the third one is coming real soon in Kelapa Gading area.
This outlet in Grand Indonesia is located in Entertainment District of Level 3A of West Mall. The location is very strategic because it’s just in the corner of elevator and escalator in the mall, facing Sumoboo to be exact. The restaurant is quite spacious with vibrant colors of Japanese-inspired decorations and ornaments, very beautiful and funky!
This time, we are going to introduce you some of latest menu of Tokyo Belly that we got to try few weeks ago. The new menu are already available in the restaurants, and one of them is the infamous Earthquake Hanito (Honey Toast) that Tokyo Belly brought back from the now-gone Pasta de Waraku! Curious? Let’s start!
Salmon Sashimi IDR 68,000
From the Nibbles category, we tried these Fresh Norwegian salmon sashimi sprinkled with edible gold garnish, served beautifully on top of dry ice. Of course salmon sashimi is not an extravagant menu to begin with, but the presentation was the main reason why it should be included here. This is undoubtedly one of the best photo material ever because of the smokey effect from the dry ice, but be careful of taking photos for too long, because the sashimi got dry fast.
Popcorn Shrimp Okonomiyaki IDR 78,000
Japanese savory waffle with beef bacon and vegetables filling topped with crispy rock shrimp, fresh lettuce, and mayo.
This actually tasted quite nice and the dough inside reminded us to takoyaki (with the red ginger as well) rather than okonomiyaki. Texture-wise, it was very similar to Indonesian corn fritters a.k.a. “bakwan jagung”, crispy and “rocky” here and there. Personally I quite liked it, especially the toppings. However, if you’re looking for authentic okonomiyaki, this is probably not for you.
Sushi Rolls
Tokyo Belly has many unique fusion sushi menu and we got to try 3 of them in sampler size. The prices stated are for the full portions, which contain of 6 to 8 pieces of rolls.
From Left to Right in the picture below:
Rock & Roll IDR 48,000
Enoki mushroom wrapped in beef, on top of kani sushi roll with Tokyo Belly special sauce.
Dazzling IDR 48,000
Salmon sushi roll fried wih crispy panko and topped with mashed potato salad and golden egg glazed with sweet spicy sauce.
Salmon Oyako IDR 88,000
Sushi roll wrapped in fresh salmon and topped with grilled cheese, cream cheese and salmon roe.
Carbonara Ramen IDR 68,000
Ramen in carbonara soup served with beef bacon and Japanese spring egg.
This ramen was served with lots of soup with thinner consistency compared to usual Carbonara sauce. I am a fan of Carbonara (and white sauce in general) and I must say I loved it. The noodle was very chewy and tasty, nicely soaked with the flavorful Carbonara soup. The beef bacon and egg added the familiar aroma to the whole soup, perfect.
Salmon Tamatoji IDR 78,000
This tamatoji dishes use slow-cooking method to cook egg and our choice of meat/fish with special sauce.
Our Salmon Tamatoji was very delicious. The egg was soft and fragrant, and the salmon chunks were put inside the egg pool. We can also make it into a complete set meal by adding IDR 18,000 to get additional Japanese rice, miso soup, and Japanese pickles.
With this slow-cooking process, we can enjoy this dish slowly and the fire helps keeping the food warm while we eat.
Crispy Cheesy Curry Dory BiBimBap IDR 69,000
Crispy-fried John Dory fillet with curry sauce and cheese.
Bibimbap is not popularly known as Japanese dish, but Tokyo Belly brings this concept as one of their menu categories, so we tried this one. Crispy Dory fillet is never a failure and combining this with a curry sauce and cheese is just brilliant. Love the texture of the dory although I think adding some seasoning in the batter wouldn’t hurt. The curry sauce was quite thick and strong, but the cheese was definitely overpowered by the curry itself. However, it was an enjoyable dish and the portion was good.
Earthquake Hanito IDR 58,000
Double stack crunchy honey toast which nobody can resist, am I right? Back then, I used to go to Pasta de Waraku just to order this because I simply love the honey toasts. The hanito are thick, and what I love the most about it is the center part, which is cut into cubes and toasted one by one afterwards. Very crunchy, sweet, and addictive, for sure! Topped with tropical fruits, whipped cream, vanilla ice cream, and Koko Krunch cereal, before drizzled with chocolate sauce, this hanito is definitely a MUST ORDER when you are in Tokyo Belly, period.
Matcha Fondue
Matcha Fondue is a simple yet astonishing dessert to have, especially when we are dining with company. It’s always nice to end our lunch or dinner with something festive, and there is nothing better than a fondue. Here, the fondue comes with 4 dippers which we can select ourselves, and additional dippers will be charged more. With the set, it automatically comes with matcha fondue and peanut sprinkles.
From the color, I wasn’t really attracted by the fondue at first, and as I expected, the taste was light and more into milky rather than matcha flavor. I don’t say it’s bad, but for me who like my matcha fondue to be dark-ish green with strong hint of bitterness like a real matcha should be, I would say this is definitely not my cup of tea. Consistency-wise, it was also quite runny but still okay, compared to some of the so-called fondue sauce here in Jakarta.
Beside all the food and dessert, we also tried the signature smoothies from Tokyo Belly. Basically I am not a smoothie person but I really love these two drinks as the flavors were distinct and strong enough to please my tastebuds. My favorite would be mine (Lychee Licks) as the combination of fruits were excellent and I got a totally fruity smoothie. In the other hand, the Matcha Blast is definitely recommended not only for matcha lover, but also red bean lover, as the drink combines both ingredients in one glass!
Lychee Licks IDR 39,000
Lychee, Cucumber, and Peach.
Matcha Blast IDR 39,000
Green Tea, Red Bean Paste, Vanilla Ice Cream.
Overall, the new menu added more selection to already-satisfying Tokyo Belly’s menu and rest assured, there is always something for everyone when we go there. Don’t expect anything authentic though, because mostly the dishes are created with modern twists, and some are not even close to the real ones. In the end, dining is all about experience, so keeping an open mind is definitely the key of enjoying the moment of it. Last but not least, thank you for having us and best of luck for Tokyo Belly!
*The Food Escape team are not paid whatsoever for writing this post.
** This review is written based on our visit on 26 May 2015.
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TOKYO BELLY
Grand Indonesia Shopping Town
Entertainment District
West Mall 3A Floor No. 7
Jl. M.H. Thamrin No. 1
Jakarta 10310
Phone. +62 21 2358 1090
Opening Hours:
Mon-Sun 10AM – 10PM
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