Social Affair Coffee & Bakehouse - PIK Avenue — Restaurant in Jakarta

I come to this place at 10AM-ish on weekdays to do some work. Here’s what I think.

Ambience: 4.5/5 The place is divided into 2 area, the first one is located under escalator, and the second one is connected to outdoor space.

I like the way they divide the seating. The inner side (the one under escalator) has less tables, and the space between each tables are pretty wide. I suppose the concept for this area is like a coffee shop, similar to starbucks’. This zone is suitable for those people who want some kind of privacy (work, reading, focus, etc.). They also have freshly made pastries showcased in this area and they smell so nice!

However, the lighting here is quite poor. Although it gives you a cozy and homey feel, people don’t usually come to this area as their first choice. Only when the other side is full, then the customers look for some space here.

The second area has better lighting since it’s connected to outdoor. They also put some green decoration to make the place look fresh and inviting. Seatings are pretty close between each tables and you can combine 1-2 tables if you’re coming to dine with some friends. The concept of this area is much like a restaurant cafe, suitable for informal meetings, casual hang out, etc. I would say this area represents the name of the restaurant: Social Affair, where you can socialize as long as you wish while enjoying some food and beverage.

The only downside of this zone, is that since each tables are pretty close to each other, you can somehow hear the conversation of the other parties. It’s ok when others’ conversation is something light and insignificant, but can be quite annoying (or maybe exciting to some?) when they started gossiping… yes, most customers here are a group of ladies.

Food: 3/5 I ordered their Baked Eggs, accompanied by classic flavored tea (hibiscus).

The portion is just nice for me since I came for brunch. This dish has 3-4 meatballs, baked with 2 eggs and tomato based sauce on a small cast iron. There are 2 slices of sourdough bread to dip with the tomato sauce too. Much like a shakshouka.

The meatballs are a little too rough and dry. You may want to chew it a few additional times, or otherwise it will feel too coarse for your throat. The positive thing though, it means the meatballs are pure meat with less fat and no additional flour to tenderize it. Perfect for those on diet…

But, The tomato sauce tasted VERY strong and quite overwhelming if you eat it just like that. The sourness is overwhelming to a point that it feels like you’re eating tomato puree directly just like that. Thankfully, the dish comes with sourdough to neutralize it. (Although, the quantity is not enough to finish the whole dish).

I don’t hate the Baked Eggs, but this dish has made me desperately need a light drinks to neutralize the overwhelming tomato sauce. Thus, I ordered the flavored classic tea: blackcurrant & hibiscus tea.

If I have to compare, I still prefer Livingstone’s shakshouka compared to this one. But, of course, different price tags produce different quality.;

Service:4/5 Since they divided the place to 2 areas, sometimes it’s pretty hard to get the waiters’ attention, especially when you’re sitting near the outdoor zone. Either you have to raise your voice so the waiters (and the other customers) hear you, or wait until one of them is heading to your direction and wave. Regardless, I only need to be patient for 5-6 min, before I caught one of the waiters’ attention. Not bad… unless you’re in a hurry.

Overall, I think I should give this cafe another try. Perhaps next time I’ll try their famous croffle and pastries.

Additional note: They do not accept cash payments. Only cards and QRIS payments...

Had their Truffle Mushroom Angel Hair

Description on the menu: Angel hair pasta served with shitake, chopped mushroom, creamy brown sauce and 65 degree egg

In my opinion, this is as accurate as they can get. It is not your typical creamy mushroom pasta, first of all, it is not creamy at all. (There is a truffle creamy pasta if that’s more your taste). It has however an umami emulsion from the mixed mushroom which I find delightful. It has a good balance overall and I do think it could do with slightly less salt. The pasta is also cooked al dente and the portion is just nice (which means, I cleaned the plate off but without going into a food coma). Overall, a good dish!

Also had their es kopi kampoeng gula aren and chocolate croissant.

The coffee was really good, not too sweet and just the right amount of coffee. The croissant has a little too much chocolate filling, if you’re a chocolate lover, you will absolutely love it!

I’d definitely coming here but just know that it is slightly on the pricey side but the food is worth the splurge...

The place was spacious and not too crowded when we came (Dec 30, around 4 pm). It was quite cozy and there was an electrical socket near our table. I tried the Truffle Fries, Black Forest Pie, and Chicken Katsu Sandwich. The truffle fries was okay, although it tasted more like the sprinkled parmesan cheese on top of it. The Blackforest Pie was very laden with rum and don’t try it if you don’t like the bitterness of rum. I don’t and I regretted it because I thought the pie would taste mostly chocolate, with some cherry/raspberry jam and a little rum. I was wrong. The Chicken Katsu sandwich didn’t really feature a chicken katsu, but it had boneless fried chicken thighs. The sesame dressing on its salad tasted like the Kewpie one. Service was okay and price was a little on the expensive side but considering skyrocketing rent in PIK area, that’s understandable. There’s also a clean restroom and a shisha...