What We’ll Be Eating When Our Throats Stop Hurting

My boyfriend hasn’t been feeling very well these past few days. After getting a sore throat that made it painful to swallow, he also came down with a fever. (What an unfortunate way to start August—but let’s wish him a speedy recovery.) 

Since he’s currently on bed rest, we’ve been taking some time off from each other. The last time we hung out was Sunday morning after church. He went home to rest afterward because his body had started to feel funny. I continued the day with some friends. 

It didn’t occur to me, though, that our short meetup was enough to transmit the so-called soreness. Last evening, my throat started to act up. It felt so dry—like I had just swallowed a huge chunk of the Sahara Desert! The discomfort even woke me up in the middle of the night, costing me 1.5 hours of my usual sleep. 

That’s why I’m so sleepy now. 

Come to think of it, that’s probably also why I haven’t been able to come up with an interesting topic to post today. I mean, I’m completely fine apart from the sore throat—the spirit to write is still flowing actively in my veins. I just can’t think of anything to post! All I’ve been thinking about is water, because right now, it’s a tough battle between hydrogen oxide and throat soreness. 

Still, I can’t get better with just water. I need food—especially good food on what feels like a sore-filled day. So, in the spirit of pumping up my appetite, I decided to curate a list of my recent interesting food finds: 

Gamchi Potato Cheese Bread. After watching Superman last month, my boyfriend and I left the cinema starving. We stopped by the famous Gamchi and went for the choco melt flavor. With cold ice cream on top of warm chocolate-filled bread, dessert had never felt so good! We’ll definitely come back to try more from Gamchi’s menu. 

Pizza Marzano. I’ve already written a post about my experience in Marzano’s pizza-making class a few months ago, but at the time, I didn’t try the Classic Mushroom Pesto pizza! Even though I already knew how good mushrooms are with almost everything, this one still surprised both my boyfriend and me. We’ve ordered it twice so far. 

Popolamama. After eating too much pizza the day before (I almost finished the whole pan myself), I was a little hesitant when my friends invited me for a quick lunch at Popolamama. In my mind, it was a pizza place—and I wasn’t keen on eating more flour. One of my friends convinced me that it offered other à la carte dishes too, so I went and ordered a plate of Seafood Baked Rice. It turned out amazing! I would’ve ordered another plate if I hadn’t already been full. 

Oma Elly Gelateria. I’ve tried several of Oma Elly’s gelato flavors, but the Banana Nutella Walnut easily won my heart after just a few scoops. I’ve always been a big fan of the banana and chocolate combo, so this gelato has been living in my mind rent-free ever since. 

Yang’s Braised Chicken. After watching Sore: Istri dari Masa Depan last month, my boyfriend and I went to have dinner at Yang’s. We ordered the Great Braised Chicken, Glory Eggplant Chicken, and Supreme Tofu—and I straight up felt like I was eating dinner at home. The Great Braised Chicken tasted just like my mom’s cooking, only braver in its use of ginger. Overall, I’d call these dishes lovely, comforting Chinese food.

If you like this post, you might also enjoy Noodle Adventures in Jakarta: Where I Go for the Ultimate Comfort Food and Christmas in the City: Where to Dine and Celebrate in Jakarta.