Opening a third branch in the middle of Pandemic…
Is like deciding to watch a horror movie for a fainthearted person. It’s a risky move… but decisive one at the same time.
Pilastro is perhaps one of the oldest ‘modern’ coffee shops in Medan. Its journey dated back to 2013 when they brought a new era of coffee shops in Medan. Armed with the knowledge of Molecular Gastronomy and also great love for amazing coffee, Pilastro managed to stay afloat ’till today because of the customers who repeatedly come back.
Early this year, after closing down the main branch and continuing with only the second branch, they then opened their latest Pilastro branch, Pilastro Signature.
Bigger and Better
The latest Pilastro branch has a more spacious space, which was used perfectly to create spaces between tables, following the physical distancing guideline to the dot. There is only one floor, divided into two areas: indoor and outdoor, which the latter allowed for smoking.
To my delight, they use minimalist windows design, which brings in the natural light, creating the illusion that the place is even bigger than it really is.
Smacked in the middle is a wide area of coffee bar—because, why not? Pilastro prided itself on its love for amazing coffees, so a new, more expansive coffee bar is a must. And really, I do think it’s nicely placed.
If you’re looking for a place for small event or meetings, you can try booking it here!
More New Options on the Menu!
Not only the place that gets better but the thing that you come here for also gets upgraded. Pilastro is known for their (pretty) high price tag, but hey, once in a month is alright… right?
To begin our palatable journey, we ordered a Chicken Pizza. Different from round ones, the Chicken Pizza at Pilastro came in a rectangular shape, topped with tomato sauce, chicken bites, and melted cheese. It’s thin but held its topping well, and the kind with more bites into it rather than the ones that break easily.
Obviously we were the kind of group that skipped the appetiser and went straight for main courses and desserts. So we ordered heaps of the main courses, mostly new ones that we hadn’t seen in the previous branches.
Let’s start with my fav—a delightful, upgraded version of fish fillet burger from M*D
It’s called Fish Fillet Mayo Sandwich. The name itself would straightaway remind you of the one above, but when this one appears, I was like, I saw you somewhere, but you look kinda new too.
After a desperate attempt to make this sandwich looked as good as it tasted(which in my sorry heart I think I failed to), I settled for a sliced version to show you guys the humongous size of the fillet, because really, at the end of the day, it’s the size of the fillet that matters.
Kidding—not really, but you get the idea.
The taste itself is quite good, from the outer shell that was the bread even until the nicely fried fish fillet and the mayo spread. It’s delicious, great, as well as the cheapest of the bunch with just IDR 38K in its name. Cough, cough, before tax.
Next is a plate of BBQ Roasted Chicken
You can order the chicken in Half or Whole size. We chose the Half version, priced at IDR 79K. The star of this BBQ Roasted Chicken lies on the sauce that was used to marinate and the sauce that was served along with the chicken.
It’s the sweet, saucy kind which is just right for those who enjoy a sweet BBQ sauce. The meat is perfectly tender and delicious. It’s a favorite of one of our teammates.
We had fish and chicken, you know what’s missing? Yes, beef. So we got the…
Spices Grilled Beef Tenderloin
Lemme tell you something about the beef—it’s cooked to medium per our request, not medium-rare, and they are still so freaking tender.
The spices used for the beef were lots of curry leaves and peppers. It’s spicy and aromatic with heavy flavor that punches your tastebud.
In all honesty, it’s very tasty. But hold your breath, this menu is priced at IDR 160K. If you love your beef, then do come and get ’em. What’s holding you back, right?
We had all the proteins into our stomach, but we couldn’t leave without getting a plate of Carbs. Onto the table, into your screen…
Say hello to a plate of Spaghetti Chicken Piccata
Now, this ain’t a new menu, but we’re still getting it because it looked appetizing straight from the picture on the menu.
Spaghetti Chicken Piccata would have looked like a typical Spaghetti had it not been the 3 layers of onion rings on top of it. Yes, my friends, I was bewitched by the onion rings and I’m not sorry about it.
However, beyond those onion rings, was a great plate of Spaghetti. Chicken Piccata is an American version of Italians’ Veal Piccata. ‘Piccata’ is an Italian term used to describe a food, usually chicken or veal, being sliced, sautéed, then served with lemon butter (with other spices) sauce.
Who doesn’t love a delicious plate of Spaghetti anyway?
The Desserts Are Great in Its Own Satisfactory Scale
Our favorite was the Panna Cotta
The Panna Cotta is sold in two different flavors: Vanilla Panna Cotta with Salted Caramel Sauce and Coffee Avocado Panna Cotta. Each was priced at IDR 25K.
The Vanilla one had set perfectly when we tasted it; the texture was smooth and silky. Once it went into your mouth, it disappeared. I love the Salted Caramel Sauce, it was sweet and salty—a smart pairing choice.
The Coffee Avocado, unfortunately, wasn’t that set so it was two-third in solidified form. However, taste doesn’t lie, it was a delicious Panna Cotta.
Three-Layer No Baked Cheesecake
We had a very unique Cheesecake experience from Pilastro. It was a three-layer cheesecake, with solidified peanut butter on top, then solidified chocolate in the middle, and solidified crumble below.
To us, it was a very dense Cheesecake, and perhaps was a little too filling for dessert (also because we have a lot of main courses previously). The cheesecake isn’t sweet nor salty, just kinda in between because of the peanut butter and the chocolate. It’s priced at IDR 38K.
Confused on what to get for dessert? You’re welcome to ask the crew for daily variety!
You can’t leave without getting the coffee.
DO NOT, I repeat, do not step out of that door without getting yourself a coffee. It could be filtered coffee like manual brew, black like Americano, or white like Flat White. There is a lot of coffee options here and you can find different coffee brewing methods that are heavens for coffee-lover.
On that particular day though, we ordered Coffee Latte from their new coffee section, the ‘Local Authentic’. It’s a specifically made category in which they specially brewed and sweetened the coffee, ending with strong caffeine punch.
Other than Coffee Latte, there’s also Kopi O, which is plain black coffee and sugar without milk. They came in bottles and priced at IDR 35K. You can share it for 3-4 people unless you want it all for yourself—no judgment here.
We also had Iced Yuzu Mocktail, a refreshing mix of Strawberry, Peach, and Lychee, which was perfect for a hot day. It came in a small glass jar and was served for one person. It cost about IDR 42K.
A delightful experience, unlike the The Mummy Reboot 2017
These jokes are meant for people who watched the Stephen Sommers’ version of The Mummy back in the late ’90s and early ’20s and watched the reboot version back in 2017. Because, as a fan of the series, the reboot version was just not up to par with the earlier versions.
On the opposite side, Pilastro delivered a great experience, especially for me who had been working from home for months. Some of the food blew my mind and some didn’t, which was perfectly fine. At the end of the day, it was the whole overall experience that really made my day.
I would love to come back here, especially because the distance between tables are pretty spacey.
Pilastro Signature
Address: Hj Misbah Street, No.18B
Operating Hours: 10.00 – 21.00
Price Points: 38K-116K
Phone Number: 081365491733 | 082167142039
Halal
Location: https://goo.gl/maps/6znT8TDP5T6H4tHk8