RIAN FARISA

Mangia. I thought it’s an Italian joint or something. Well, I didn’t bother to look for the definition of it or anything. Until one time, a good friend of mine friend arranged a dinner there for all of us. Well, much to my amazement, it’s just beside the famed Mexican cuisine joint, Taco Local, but both of them do share the same cramped space! Hmmm.. What about the food then?

Jakartans.. Sometimes I feel bad about them having to test their endurance with the city’s humidity only to savor cigarettes by sitting outdoor. Well, I cannot blame them. We all do need a bit of fresh air sometimes but to stay outside for a long time, that requires a really good treat from the restaurant. Not only for instance, the food or the drinks, but also the crowd. Don’t we all love to see beautiful people? Mangia has that factor, so how about the food then? I’ll put an attempt to describe it generally since I wasn’t really paying much attention that time.

For Mangia, not only the outdoor seats but the first floor seats indoor can get really cramped and noisy because the drinks bar is there too. So you might want to sit upstairs in the air-conditioned area instead. Alternatively, Mangia has a porch upstairs for smoking customers, so it’s pretty much a win-win solution but these particular customers tend to be a bit irresponsible for not closing the separating door between ‘fresh air’ and the air full of cigarette stench.

Nasi ijo with dory fish for my wife and a cutting board filled with chips and fried fish for me were of good options at Mangia. You might find better fish and chips at another joint in Jakarta, which I’m still looking for and you can share it with me by the way. Anyway, I liked the nasi ijo better but you’d better be careful with all those bird-eye chilis. The rest of the deal at Mangia are about breakfast dishes but it all came with a hefty price. So expect to spend for IDR 150K for two persons there.

Well, I guess that’s it for now. In case you haven’t noticed, it’s a bit weird for me to write this way again. It’s both casual and nostalgic like my old posts years ago. A good change sometimes for not writing like journalists. Back to Mangia, give it one or couple attempts to visit the place. You might like it, but then again like the rest of other newly-found joints in Jakarta, God knows until when its influence can survive against the test of time.

PS: Looking forward to see Kastara again! Let’s meet up again, so-called besties! 😀

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MANGIA

Halal-friendly
Suitable for vegetarian

Address: 

• Jalan Panglima Polim V no. 38, Jakarta – Indonesia
  T: +62.21.2358.0313
• Grand Indonesia Shopping Mall, 5th floor, Jakarta – Indonesia
  T:+62.21.2358.0313

Spend: IDR 50,000 – IDR 100,000 / person

Twitter: @mangia_jakarta

Opening hours:
Everyday, 9am – 11.30pm (Panglima Polim) & mall opening hours (Grand Indonesia)