Bi Progressive Bistro — Restaurant in Samarinda

Aaaand I'm back after a hiatus for quite some time, but here we are with another restaurant and bar, the famous Bi Progressive Bistro!

First impression, it's great! A staff member opens the door for me, greets and also shows me the way to the table. Then a waiter/waitress is assigned to our table, they proceed by introducing, which is a very good mannerism for a restaurant.

Next is the menu, it's very organized, they have appetizers, main dishes, desserts, and vegetarian dishes. Though I must say the menu is rather simplistic in a way, they don't have that many dishes, and most dishes (fair warning) are not local delicacies. Safe to say it's unique and rather modern, perhaps almost western if not for the variety of other available dishes. All in all, you can get many varieties like Vietnamese Spring rolls, Burger, Rice Bowls, etc.

A special point I need to mention is that they have an off-the-menu special for the day! I get to have a special of the day dessert (sorry i forgot the name 😭) which is great!

Now, off to the food. Personally, I love the overall dishes, in the prospect of variety and selections. You can get funky with your choices, from appetizers to desserts. As for the taste, here it is: Spring rolls, the condiments like the veggies and everything, it's very cold to the touch. I get that it's not a warm-type dish, but it's just very noticeable that I can't help but to mention it. The chicken satay (or whatever the name is), I must say it's kind of bland in a way, it just doesn't have that kind of flavour you would expect after seeing it. I even dipped it in my spring roll sauce just to enjoy it better. The Burger, at first glance I love it. The size is just right for one person, and the side is a simple diced fries with sauce on it. The condiments consist of your usual burger, meat and veggies, but I ordered an extra beef bacon with it. Now I do need to mention, the most important aspect, which is the beef, sadly was crumbling apart. My personal comment would suggest it happens because the outside was too overcooked (hence it's crispy) while the inside isn't cooked enough to be firm (hence it couldn't hold the meat together). I'm not saying it's undercooked, only that the meat is crumbling apart so it's kind of disappointing. The overall taste is nice, although the meat itself could use more seasoning like salt and pepper. Salted egg chicken, well as you would expect like a normal salted egg chicken. I personally am not a big fan in general, because salted egg stuff is kinda heavy when you eat too much of it. It's just your average salted egg chicken, so it's alright.

Now, for the special mention of my off-the-menu dessert, it consists of: Three triangular pancakes Slices of fresh oranges A scoop of vanilla ice cream That's the general gist of it, with a bit of other condiments that compliment the dish together. I must say, this could be the best dessert I've had, if not for the pancakes being too bland AFTER I finished the ice cream. I must say, the cold ice cream really brings the dish together, with a bit of sourness from the oranges. But after the ice cream is finished (which is not nearly enough for three pancakes), it's just plain pancake with sour fruit. The pancake as we know couldn't be eaten without any support flavour, but sadly the oranges aren't cold as well so it basically turns into pancake with sour sweet syrup. All in all, the ending bit is kind of disappointing, but I tell you it's a great dessert to have.

Now, before I end this review, I must give another special mention to the server, which he's very adaptive and very knowledgeable about the restaurant food itself. Although it's a given on how a waiter/waitresses must be knowledgeable about the food they have, this server is taking it to another level. It amazes me how you can just feel that he enjoys his work, delivering every information clearly and interactively.

Bi Progressive Bistro is a great dining place for families, affordable with excellent services....

Leading Samarinda in fusion cuisine progression. Food preparation with care and skill, Bi bistro brings out unique culinary experience in town.

Update Jan2021: New menu available! Grilled Octopus 🐙 - abit too cooked and taste faintly octopus US Beef Rendang rice bowl - Rendang taste great Korean Beef stew - Big portion! Dory Sesame Mayo - Fried just nice and crisp

Quick service despite many people.

Quality kept,...

Cukup kaget di jalan remaja ada resto yang mewah seperti ini. Overall semua sangat baik makanan enak suasananya hangat dan musiknya menenangkan. hanya miss beberapa hal kecil di makanan. Mushroom soupnya enak tapi sedikit nanggung butuh kondimen lebih banyak atau chewynya jamur jika modelnya agak encer. Santori steak sangat enak terutama untuk kualitas daging dan sausnya. Saya pikir sudah include sayur ternyata harus add on. But overall one of the best steak di samarinda cuma butuh seasoning lagi di daging. Tiramisu. Suprisingly ini sangat enak dibanding tiramisu yang pernah saya makan. Minusnya cuma soft cake dibagian bawah yang rasanya agak kuat kalau tidak dibarengi cream + chocolate crumblenya.

Will repeat order for steak and tiramisu. Actually for au jus sauce. The sauce feel like i was being...