Pepenero Cucina Italiana

Italian restaurant is booming in Jakarta lately. Pepenero is one of them. First opened since 2004 in Bali, Pepenero already has 3 branches in Jakarta and 1 branch in Serpong. After heard all good things about Pepenero, I was surely wanted to try at least once. So here I was. As they had 3 branches in Jakarta, I thought I had no worry about no booking in advance. A little shock, I was almost got no seat. 

Anyway, the later the time, the more crowded it was.

As I was waiting for my friends before I ordered, they gave me this complimentary bread. Consisted of 4 pieces, it was really good to kick your taste bud. The bread was a bit crunchy on the edge, and a bit chewy in the middle. The texture was nice. The tomato cube on the bread, gave fresh sensation when you eat the crunchy-chewy-savory bread. Anyway, I thought they didn't put any sugar to the tomato. 

My friends had came. And Pepenero was very generous. They gave me a basket of complimentary bread AGAIN. Yeiy! Well, nothing much I could say about it, as I just eat a few of them because I couldn't wait for the main dishes. :p

Prosciutto e Zucchine Grigliate (45K). Thin Italian pizza, with tomato sauce, mozzarella  cheese, ham and green zucchini. Well, it turned out they weren't be generous this time. You may see from the pict, the surface of pizza wasn't full of topping. Fortunately it tasted nice though. A bit salty and savory. 

Rigatoni Stracicati (49K). Rigatoni is a form of tube-shaped pasta of varying lengths and diameters. It is larger than penne and ziti and sometimes slightly curved. Rigatoni is usually ridged, and the tube's end is square-cut like ziti, not diagonal like penne (Wikipedia). Rigatoni Stracicati was  rigatoni with bolognese ragu sauce and mozzarella on top. The bolognese was good. A bit sour (tomato-ish). The pasta was al dente, not too hard yet not too soft. So loveable. 

Spaghettini Nostromo (49K). Pasta with green paprika, fresh tomato, tuna and calamari. The pasta was al dente. The sauce was a bit thick and not too much, but enough to cover all the pasta. This dish really kicked my taste buds. Tasted a bit spicy, and so mouthwatering. I definitely wanted some more!!

Linguine Alla Marinara (49K). Linguine pasta with mixed seafood and tomato sauce. Linguine is a kind of pasta, which a bit bigger than spaghetti but smaller than fettucini. The pasta was al dente too. The sauce was good. They were generous of clams. hihi :)

Enough with the main dishes, I saw Soufflé Al Cioccolate (44K). Of course I ordered it without think twice. And I didn't regret it. It worth every cent I spent. It tasted great. As I watched Masterchef, once Gordon Ramsay said that soufflé was one of the hardest dessert to make. You could feel the sensation when you crack that surface on top then touch the creamy milky chocolate inside. Whoooaaaah. I am drooling now. After I ate this, I always been craving for this.  

Gelatti Nacciola (29K). Well, it was gelato, which is Italian ice cream. The difference between gelato and ice cream is gelato is thicker. So when I heard gelato, first thing came up in my mind was it would make me queasy because I was too full and eat something thick. But the fact is, it wasn't. This was good. Well, it was creamy, but also light though. With tasted almond, and sweet. 

Pinzimonio di Frutta (45K). It was a plate of mixed fruits (watermellon, banana, pineapple, strawberry, and orange) with chocolate dip. It was pretty good and (of course) healthy. 


Overall, I was satisfies, and for sure would plan another visit. Yeiy!




Pepenero Cucina Italiana
Plaza Pondok Indah 2, Blok BA 25 - 26, 
Jl. Metro Pondok Indah, (next to CITIBANK Pondok Indah),
Jakarta Capital Region  
(0)21 750 0959


Gedung The Energy, Mezzanine Level, 
Jl. Jend Sudirman Lot 11A, Kawasan SCBD,
Jakarta Capital Region - (0)21 5296 4006


Menara Karya, Ground Floor, 
Jl. H. R. Rasuna Said, Block X-5 Kav.1-2, 
Jakarta Capital Region - (0)21 5794 4727


Jalan Pahlawan Seribu 
Teraskota Ground Floor Serpong, 153222 
(021) 29915771


Temple Hill Studios, 
Jl. Wanagiri 18 - Jimbaran, Bali 
(0)361 704 672


Carrefour Sunset Road, 
Level 2 Unit 16 (opposite the Apple Shop) 
Jl. Sunset Road,Bali
0361 847 7355