76 TRAVEL+LEISURE | APRIL / MAY 2020
and pottery in an amazing series of private rooms set around
interior ponds and gardens.
Perhaps no restaurant of the new guard is as remarkable as
Daun Muda Soulfood by chef Andrea Peresthu, who returned to
Jakarta from more than a dozen years in Europe, to open a
series of mostly Mediterranean restaurants. Greenery-covered
Duan, though, is a complete departure, as Andrea takes a
modern spin on dishes from his youth in Palembang, Manado
and the east coast of Sumatra. The dishes are among the most
exotic you can find in Jakarta, with unusual vegetables, forest
products and complete use of animal parts.
The menu can be challenging: just drawings of fish, beef,
chicken with arrows pointing like dissection charts from
different parts to short descriptions of how they are prepared.
We asked for recommendations, and tucked into ijo royo royo,
free-range chicken, smoked and tangy, served with the bone
and lathered with chili. The rusip duan muda was a beautiful
plate of vegetables, featuring wing beans, cucumber and forest
leaves, flavored with fermented raw fish.
Such spicy and unique dishes not only satisfy the stomach,
and senses, but also up the ante in Jakarta. “When I came here,
there were so few choices outside hotels, only Italian and
French,” says Oskar Urzelai of the food scene a decade ago.
“Now, there is so much: Japanese, Spanish, Mexican, and great
Indonesian. People are trying new things, exploring. Jakarta is
really growing in gastronomy.” I’d have to admit the same thing
about my waistline.
Animale Modern
Mediterranean-esque marvels
like salmon kebabs with red-
onion slaw and barley risotto;
pork tomahawk with smoked
paprika, artichoke and
champignon sauce; and
harissa-glazed tiger prawns,
with tzatziki and crumbled
feta. Get the Oops Cheesetart
(camembert and gorgonzola).
animalejakarta.com; dinner for
two Rp550,000.
Daun Muda Soulfood
Some of the most unusual food
in Jakarta. Start with cumi
bakar rica (spicy grilled squid
covered in rica-rica sambal)
then proceed to mains like
kuah asam pedah (zesty
Sumatra fish stew) or fresh
seafood from the iced display.
daunmudajakarta.com; dinner
for two Rp550,000.
Gunpowder Modern Indian
with a tantalizing twist. Start
with tacos on Punjabi tortilla,
and samosas stuffed with
minced Wagyu and mashed
potatoes, served with sour
plum chutney. Then, relish the
mouth-watering ribs (braised
baby back in spicy Goan curry
or smoky beef short ribs).
ismaya.com; dinner for two
Rp600,000.Hakkasan Jakarta The
dim sum is a must—choose
from samplers of the
Cantonese treats, then mains
like stir-fried black-pepper rib
eye with merlot, or steamed
grouper with kaffir sambal
sauce. hakkasan.com/jakarta;
dinner for two Rp1,500,000.Lara Djonggrang Filled
with art and antiques, this
museum of a restaurant has a
menu packed with satays and
skewers like gimbal tahu gapit
(fried tofu with chicken and
shrimp), and delicacies like
ikan cakalang garo rica (tuna
pan-fried in tangy North
Sulawesi 12-spice marinade)
and the heavenly Rendang
Padang. tuguhotels.com;
dinner for two Rp350,000.Nusa Gastronomy Chef
Ragil's adventurous tasting
menus showcase rare recipes
from around the archipelago.
nusagastronomy.com; set
menus from Rp350,000 for
three courses to Rp950,000
for nine courses.Social House Menu
includes all-day egg dishes
and sushi-roll starters, plus
Asian fusion, with twists on
local favorite beef rendang
(subbing in brazed U.S. beef
short ribs) and crispy pork-
belly carbonara. ismaya.com;
meal for two Rp400,000.Tugu Kunstkring Paleis
This century-old former arts
center is kitted out with
antiques, and a menu to
match, filled with old faves like
Indonesische biefstuk van
mevrouw, and bruinebonen
soep met ossestaart. Cocktails
mandatory before or after at
the swinging Shanghai-style
Suzie Wong Lounge; try My
Sweetheart Wong Mee-Ling orThe First Time I Kissed Suzie.
tuguhotels.com; dinner for two
Rp400,000.Txoko Boisterous Basque
eatery with great seafood,
tapas and homemade bread.
Start with grilled octopus or
Granma’s Bosque seafood
soup, then move to mains like
lamb and sweet potato or daily
grilled fish, lathered in olive oil
and presented over baked
potatoes. fb.com/txokojakarta;
dinner for two Rp550,000.Vong Kitchen This French-
inflected New York–style grill
from Jean-Georges
Vongerichten features classic
starters like egg caviar with
creamy vodka sauce, and the
cheese-rich truffle pizza.
Main-course highlights: tasty
Tasmanian trout in tomato
ratatouille, and a gorgeous
lamb shank with a purple
potato puree and tempura
mushrooms. alilahotels.com/
scbd/vong-kitchen; dinner for
two Rp950,000. — R.G.Where to eat in Jakarta
Manado-style spicy
chicken satay
skewers at Daun
Muda Soul Food.