This is the story of the first iftar Agung and I had together—well, at least the first one in which we were both fasting, since my period had cleared up. Let’s just say it wasn’t the best experience—and, honestly, it disappointed me more, because I’d wanted to try this place in such a long time only to be met with this particular experience. Mind you, it wasn’t an altogether horrible experience, per se, but it certainly had vast rooms for improvement.
Perhaps a little background story: this happened around 3 weeks ago by now. Initially, we were planning on meeting on the Saturday—but since it rained a monsoon the whole day, we decided to push it to the next day. Were our moods dampened by the weather? Oh, you’ll bet. Did that cloud our judgment? Perhaps, but anyway. On the Sunday, the weather was plenty pleasant and we decided to stop by Seroja Bake in Barito for iftar—only to break our fast, knowing we would probably have dinner elsewhere. It was our first time there—and most likely the last.
This is the story of the first iftar Agung and I had together—well, at least the first one in which we were both fasting, since my period had cleared up. Let’s just say it wasn’t the best experience—and, honestly, it disappointed me more, because I’d wanted to try this place in such a long time only to be met with this particular experience. Mind you, it wasn’t an altogether horrible experience, per se, but it certainly had vast rooms for improvement.
Perhaps a little background story: this happened around 3 weeks ago by now. Initially, we were planning on meeting on the Saturday—but since it rained a monsoon the whole day, we decided to push it to the next day. Were our moods dampened by the weather? Oh, you’ll bet. Did that cloud our judgment? Perhaps, but anyway. On the Sunday, the weather was plenty pleasant and we decided to stop by Seroja Bake in Barito for iftar—only to break our fast, knowing we would probably have dinner elsewhere. It was our first time there—and most likely the last.
📷 Fujifilm X-T100 with Fujinon Aspherical Superb EBC XC 15-45mm lens
Local Flavours of the Season
For those of you who don’t know, Seroja Bake—with its slogan, “Bakery with a mission”—is a local bakery originating from Bandung, West Java, that serves an array of delicacies and menu using seasonal local produce with a unique taste inspired by Indonesia’s palate. Its first store is located in Cihapit, Bandung, while its second store opened in Jakarta—initially in Pondok Indah, but has recently moved to Barito. While the name is very synonymous to baked goods and sweets, Seroja Bake also serves all-you-can-eat menu in both branches that feel slightly different—Padangnese in Bandung, Betawi in Jakarta.
However, even if you weren’t interested in the buffet, there is a wide selection of baked goods and dessert for you to choose from. I believe their menu changes regularly—perhaps seasonally—and it makes their culinary experience remain fresh. There were little cakes, sweet traditional porridge and some innovative fusion food—such as Ubi Cilembu Cheesecake. Most of their sizes were rather small though, and, honestly, the resulting tally was far pricier than I expected or was prepared to pay for—apparently, there were some hidden costs that they added to our orders, such as packaging prices which weren’t cheap. I wish they’d ask us if we needed/wanted the packaging, so we could opt out—but alas.
Wabi Sabi ID shirt | thrifted skirt | hand-me-down jacket | Roti Eneng & Merchfirare tote bags |
photos of me by Agung
For those of you who don’t know, Seroja Bake—with its slogan, “Bakery with a mission”—is a local bakery originating from Bandung, West Java, that serves an array of delicacies and menu using seasonal local produce with a unique taste inspired by Indonesia’s palate. Its first store is located in Cihapit, Bandung, while its second store opened in Jakarta—initially in Pondok Indah, but has recently moved to Barito. While the name is very synonymous to baked goods and sweets, Seroja Bake also serves all-you-can-eat menu in both branches that feel slightly different—Padangnese in Bandung, Betawi in Jakarta.
However, even if you weren’t interested in the buffet, there is a wide selection of baked goods and dessert for you to choose from. I believe their menu changes regularly—perhaps seasonally—and it makes their culinary experience remain fresh. There were little cakes, sweet traditional porridge and some innovative fusion food—such as Ubi Cilembu Cheesecake. Most of their sizes were rather small though, and, honestly, the resulting tally was far pricier than I expected or was prepared to pay for—apparently, there were some hidden costs that they added to our orders, such as packaging prices which weren’t cheap. I wish they’d ask us if we needed/wanted the packaging, so we could opt out—but alas.
Wabi Sabi ID shirt | thrifted skirt | hand-me-down jacket | Roti Eneng & Merchfirare tote bags | photos of me by Agung
Exclusivity in Disguise
The whole AYCE concept is where shit started to hit the fan, so to speak. While Agung and I didn’t have any intention of devouring their buffet, I think we both sort of expected to at least be able to sit down at a table to enjoy the delicacies we bought from the bakery. Apparently, that wasn’t possible—the tables are reserved specifically for the AYCE guests, which, by the way, requires reservation. That is honestly fine and dandy, except for the miscommunication we received from the store ladies—who practically made us wait around for a table that would never be available to us. Nobody clarified this fact, though—we ended up having to overhear from someone else’s conversation to receive this information.
All the while, we were sitting on the bench by the door—almost entirely ignored by the staff until it was literally too late. I don’t think we expected to be treated in any special way or anything, but need I remind you that we did buy their food—a lot of them, actually, we almost cleaned out—and it was like we were forgotten straight away. It wasn’t like we were just lounging around, not making any purchase—and, let me tell you, they were pretty pricey. We would’ve at least expected them to ask us if we had a reservation—which they asked of everyone else who came after us—or let us know when Maghrib came along—which was the decent thing for restaurant staff to do. But no, it’s like we paid for our food and almost immediately ceased to exist.
The whole AYCE concept is where shit started to hit the fan, so to speak. While Agung and I didn’t have any intention of devouring their buffet, I think we both sort of expected to at least be able to sit down at a table to enjoy the delicacies we bought from the bakery. Apparently, that wasn’t possible—the tables are reserved specifically for the AYCE guests, which, by the way, requires reservation. That is honestly fine and dandy, except for the miscommunication we received from the store ladies—who practically made us wait around for a table that would never be available to us. Nobody clarified this fact, though—we ended up having to overhear from someone else’s conversation to receive this information.
All the while, we were sitting on the bench by the door—almost entirely ignored by the staff until it was literally too late. I don’t think we expected to be treated in any special way or anything, but need I remind you that we did buy their food—a lot of them, actually, we almost cleaned out—and it was like we were forgotten straight away. It wasn’t like we were just lounging around, not making any purchase—and, let me tell you, they were pretty pricey. We would’ve at least expected them to ask us if we had a reservation—which they asked of everyone else who came after us—or let us know when Maghrib came along—which was the decent thing for restaurant staff to do. But no, it’s like we paid for our food and almost immediately ceased to exist.
While I absolutely love the concept of Seroja Bake—the local taste, local produce and compostable packagings—my disappointment ran deep. The cakes and delicacies tasted really good too—I personally liked them very much—which is why our experience was such a let down. And perhaps I’m reaching for saying this, but I cannot help to notice the clientele they seem to treat very well looked significantly different from us economically—to be straight, they looked pretty well off. I kept wondering if that’s why we were treated as such, despite buying all the delicacies they had. Maybe if we looked wealthier they wouldn’t ignore us so easily? Who knows.
Full disclosure: this isn’t a smear campaign,
I’m just writing from my own experience and feelings.
If you like going to Seroja Bake, more power to you.
While I absolutely love the concept of Seroja Bake—the local taste, local produce and compostable packagings—my disappointment ran deep. The cakes and delicacies tasted really good too—I personally liked them very much—which is why our experience was such a let down. And perhaps I’m reaching for saying this, but I cannot help to notice the clientele they seem to treat very well looked significantly different from us economically—to be straight, they looked pretty well off. I kept wondering if that’s why we were treated as such, despite buying all the delicacies they had. Maybe if we looked wealthier they wouldn’t ignore us so easily? Who knows.
Full disclosure: this isn’t a smear campaign, I’m just writing from my own experience and feelings. If you like going to Seroja Bake, more power to you.