Philosophy of Coffee.

It’s a short-story

It’s a book

It’s a movie.

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“Hey, as a coffee drinker, have you watch the movie?”

“What movie?”

“The Philosophy of Coffee”

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Based on the little conversation with a colleague, it has motivated me to buy a book and about to watch a movie in theatre. The book was written by Indonesian famous writer, Dewi Lestari or Dee Lestari. The book itself already published long time ago but I never interested in short-story.

The movie itself was adapted based on the book, and just showed nowadays. I interest to watch the movie but reading it first will be good, I think.

So I bought and read the book. It’s totally a simple story about a person who addicted to coffee until he learns how to serve a good coffee to others. Based on his experience of coffee, he and his friend build a café with him as the first Barista. Everything went well, both customers and selling. Then it came to a challenge from a customer which took the Barista so interest. He was challenged to make a coffee with different taste, not like other coffees. Coffee which if people drink it, they will feel success. If the Barista can make it, the challenger will give him fund for his café. The Barista started to explore from his collections, his beans, and his experience. Then he did it. He created the coffee with its different taste and named it after his name “Ben’s Perfecto”. In the end of the challenge, he won the money. But it’s not end by that.

One customer came to the café and ordered the Perfecto. The customer didn’t surprise with the taste and just gave comment “Not bad, I have ever taste better.” This comment, of course, challenged the Barista once again and he asked the details from the customer. He searched and found the best coffee he ever taste, located in a village far away from the city. The search has made the Barista a little shame of his ability to create the Perfecto, he felt loose from a coffee from a farmer. In the end of the story, he asked his colleague to give the fund from a royal customer to the farmer.

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Book gives you lot of imagination and movie tries to make it real and make it more sense. After I read, I watched the movie and feel so coffee after that. It was well-adapted with some additional stories to make it bold, strong, and a little bitter.

The movie gives a little drama of the Barista and his colleague. The Barista came out as an operational while the colleague came out as the Accountant. The café was about to bankrupt and there’re dramas for the issue. And so the “Ben’s Perfecto” challenge came from. Just like the book, the challenge was won by the Barista but not by his only creation.

After he created the Perfecto, he sold it to a blogger, but the blogger didn’t surprise with the taste. The blogger said that there’s other coffee which was more “perfect”. The Barista felt so emotional. The Accountant asked the Barista to go to search the coffee, for the sake of the cafe. They still need the money because of the bankrupt issue.

The story added father and family figure-issue to make a little bitter and sensitive. They found the famous coffee located in the village and managed by a farmer. The farmer cared the coffee tree with love and brewed it with love and hope. Then it came to bold sensation of a coffee. The Barista felt so emotional and shame of his ability.

After they went back to the city, the Barista gave the royal customer the coffee that came from the Farmer;  the coffee beans came from the Farmer but was brewed by the Barista’s hand. In the end of the challenge, they won the money. But since the Barista feel so shame because has beaten by the Farmer, he quit from his own café.

The Accountant tried to save the café and tried to ask his friend to came back. The Barista still didn’t to come back, and the Accountant had to sell the café. In the end of the story, the Barista came back but the business was run not from a building anymore but from a car. They modified the selling way and set new goal: sell to around of the country.

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Both book and movie completed each other and make the story make sense. The story was well-adapted and touches everyone’s heart through coffee. I love this story, not because I love coffee, but how the story can gather people and feel so loved.

So coffee.

A Simple Art

Recently I love to buy a temporary tatoo and put it in my left arm. Right now I choose to put an origami shaped: a single crane.

Since I love to fold papers and make it into a shape, well to simplify, I like to make origami, crane-shaped was the simplest and common shape I used to make.

Back to my last creations, I made creation using old bottle, un-used advertising-paper and sticks, and paper-folding (a crane).

For me, a creation can be called an art on how we used the word itself to make something that could be seen by others.

The combination between my temporary tattoo and my late creation, I called a simple art.and I just want to share it here too 🙂

Ala Ajag Ijig

  

This is new in town.

This restaurant/café located in the central of Jakarta, and it’s located at Jl. Ir. H. Juanda. Very fresh, new, and insist to be looked out.

One fine night, after office hour, my friend and I were trying to find a place to chillin’.

At first we’d like to find place where we can eat ice cream, but our eyes caught this new place, with unique name; Ajag Ijig.

Placed at hoek/corner of the street, designed with mix style such old /street /modern style at once, but after we looked inside, it’s modern but described the town itself.

It served such heavy meals, light bite, with fresh drinks and any usual menu like other restaurants.

Since we’re searched for a light bite, we ordered toast and fried tofu (pong). My friend ordered Nutella toast with café latte while I ordered fried tofu (pong) with mocha latte.

  Tofu-Tahu Pong

  Nutella Toast

 Mocha Latte

 Cafe Latte

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We enjoyed the food they’ve served, with coffee art they’ve done to our coffee. But actually what we’re amazed and enjoyed was the ambience /design that they have. It was so comfortable; in the other side they designed the restaurant with picture of the town mascot. Mascot that we called Ondel—Ondel. It has old-styled floor; Dutch-style floor. This makes the ambience more unique. It also has second floor, but we only used the first floor since the restaurant still has few customers that night.

     

 

I think this place is very nice for simple hang out or chit chat with friend(s) or colleague(s) or maybe family. A new place to hang out! 🙂

A Place called Union

Union.

It’s a place, a café, a restaurant.

It was located on Plaza Senayan Mall, South of Jakarta, Indonesia

I’ve been there several times and again I just falling in love with the decoration, the ambience, the meals, and of course the coffee.

This place is so famous and there’s always a queue for everything, such as to be seated and for the take-home sweets/cakes.

>> The Afternoon Tea.

At the first visit, I came with my fashionable colleagues. We tried the sweets. They called it “The Afternoon Tea”.  They served it at 3 PM and we can only order at that time.

Why it named “Afternoon Tea”?

Because they served assorted sweets with two cups of hot tea.

 

I cannot remember each of the sweets’ name, but I can assure you that this sweets were well-worth

>> The coffee.

Just like any other latte, they served differently with coffee-art.

>> The cake.

We tried their famous cake ever, the red velvet and cheese cake.

It’s soft, rich and bold.

The red velvet was covered with peanuts and served with cream

I cannot describe more about these cakes, but pictures will.

  The Red Velvet Cake

 The Cheese Cake

>> The pasta.

Just like any other pastas, their pasta was as good as our expectation.

   

Overall,

This is well worth and I would love to come again and again!