Last month, there's a new Italian restaurant open in Grand Indonesia. Mad for Garlic. They say it is the most famous wine & italian restaurant in Korea. I opened their website and learned that they have 11 branches in Korea, one in Singapore and recently new one in Jakarta. I figure, a restaurant with 11 branches in one country should be a good reason to try.
Today, I decided to go there for my friday lunch. The restaurant looks small from outside but turns out it was quite big inside. The ambience is nice, when we enter the restaurant it was quite dark as they use dim lights, but walk further they have sections with brighter light, separated with wall glasses with wine selections, more or less like Decanter.
The menu selections are varied enough. They have several types of pasta, rice, pizza and steaks. I am craving for pasta and my favorite type of pasta is actually aglio olio but their aglio olio is plain, only pasta covered with garlic, without any chicken chunks or at least some mushrooms . Yucks! So, I decided to order Triple Garlic Pasta (110k). It was spaghetti with shrimps, mussels, squids and of course garlic covered in tomato sauce. The spaghetti was mixed with shredded leek. It was ok, they are generous enough on the shrimps, mussels and squids. But I don't really like the sauce, it's too much so kinda wet. I prefer my pasta dry. On the other hand, I like my colleague's aglio olio, Garlicpeno pasta (60k). Even though it's only spaghetti and garlic, but the pasta is good. We asked the waiter if we can add shrimps or bacon into it, and they said can't at the moment as they just open and need to follow the menu as instructions. My other two colleagues order Garlic Sizzling Rice (110k), it was fried rice with bacon and fish roe on a hot plate. It was good. Another one is Arrabiata pasta (80k), spaghetti with bacon in tomato sauce. My colleague said it was quite ok, but I didn't try it as to me the presentation was too wet and red, too much tomato sauce.
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Arrabiata Pasta |
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Garlicpeno Pasta |
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Garlic Sizzling Rice
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Triple Garlic Pasta |
Overall, it was a good lunch. Turns out they are in the same management with Tony Roma's, so if we have Tony Roma's member, we can show them and get 10% discount.
Mad for Garlic
Grand Indonesia, West Mall Ground Floor
Jl. MH Thamrin No.1
Jakarta
ph: +6221 23581076
http://www.madforgarlic.co.id/index.htm