JP/AGN

Forget malls or shopping centers. People are now looking for non-mall spots. For Jakartans, they can easily point out Pantai Indah Kapuk in North Jakarta and Pasar Santa in South Jakarta as alternative hangout areas. For those living in the suburbs, alternative hangout places have also started to gain attention. Here are popular areas around the neighboring cities:

Gading Serpong

Tangerang regency, covering an area of 959.6 square kilometers in Banten, has several major townships, including Gading Serpong. Gading Serpong has become a more exciting place to be of late with the establishment of hangout places such as the Scandinavian and Turning Point coffee shops.

Located in shop-houses, Scandinavian and Turning Point offer customers beverages, particularly coffee, ranging from Rp 20,000 (US$1.30) to Rp 50,000. Aside from coffee shops, Gading Serpong is also attractive because of its numerous cafes and restaurants that offer unique dishes such as Madre Arbanat, which is well-known for its flagship animal-like burger named Paoger.

Bintaro

South Tangerang, which was separated from Tangerang regency in 2008, is known for its shopping centers, like AEON, Ikea and Bintaro Xchange. Additionally, its residents have alternative options that offer relaxation, such as the Lot 9 restaurant and the Sebastian coffee shop, both in Bintaro.

Lot 9 is located within the Bintaro Sector 9 eatery complex. The restaurant pampers couples and families with its Indonesian dishes and snacks. For coffee enthusiasts, Sebastian Coffee is one of the best coffee shops in town. The café, which is equipped with a metal-container look, offers macha frappes as its flagship beverage.

South Tangerang also has other eateries which serve mouth-watering dishes, such as Burgreens Eatery and Ind.Ustrie, which are famous for their vegetarian burgers and pop corn chicken.

Bogor

Unlike other cities that designate certain areas to act as stomping grounds, Bogor itself is one giant stomping ground. Also known as the rain city due to its high rainfall, Bogor is a haven for foodies as it has numerous restaurants and cafés spread throughout the city. They not only offer delicious food and beverages, but also unique concepts.

Momo Milk Barn in Baranangsiang, for example, attracts youngsters with its barn concept. The cafe combines a number of prominent products in its flagship dairy-based beverages to create drinks such as Nutella milkshakes and kitkat green tea milkshakes.

However, customers have to join a long list of visitors to hang out in the cafe. Some of them even have to be on a waiting list.

Margonda Raya

Depok is known as a youth city with universities and hangout places mushrooming across the area. Its main road, Jl. Margonda Raya, has at least two well-known universities: University of Indonesia and Guna Darma University.

Jl. Margonda Raya is filled with a wide range of eateries, some of them open 24/7. To accommodate students and young people, the street also offers dozens of coffee shops, libraries and restaurants, making it one of the busiest places in the city.

On the main street, you will find local cuisine serving meatballs, grilled chicken and lamb satay. Aside from that, some places also offer a touch of international cuisine such as pasta, sushi and burgers.

The price of a meal on Jl. Margonda Raya is lower compared to hangout places in Jakarta. You can get a portion of grilled chicken for less than Rp 15,000.

Grand Galaxy Park

Located on the eastern border of Jakarta, Bekasi is also notable as center of trade, business and industry. As a satellite city, Bekasi provides its residents not only with residential areas but also its own stomping grounds.

For Bekasi resident Agustinuz, who is a coffee addict, Hand and Brew Coffee and Eatery in Grand Galaxy Park is one of the hippest places in which to hang out.

'€œThe coffee shop is unique because it is integrated into a barber shop,'€ said Agustinuz, adding that his favorite coffee from the café was Toraja coffee brewed as an espresso. He further said that he recommended the café because it often served coffee with a fruity aroma.

Aside from Grand Galaxy Park, foodies in Bekasi usually enjoy their spare time in Taman Galaxy, where eateries offer many kinds of tasty dishes such as chocolate truffle and kitkat toast.

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