Boozy 'bule' baiting at BuGils bar<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Descartes, no doubt after suffering a pecuniary
\nsetback, once said that the only certain thing in life is
\nuncertainty, or something to that effect.<\/p>\n
The developers of the Taman Ria Senayan entertainment complex
\nmust be nodding their heads earnestly in agreement. For Taman Ria
\nis one of those places that was conceived and planned when all
\nthought of economic travail (or "multidimensional crisis" as we
\nhere at The Jakarta Post like to describe it), was regarded as
\nbeing something akin to treason.<\/p>\n
As a result, the complex's huge, precast concrete main block
\nhas been left standing forlorn and virtually empty overlooking
\nthe man-made lake like one of Hitler's bunkers staring blindly
\nand morosely out over the English Channel.<\/p>\n
Even Caravella, a restaurant housed in an enormous mock
\nPhinisi schooner moored by the side of the lake, which I once
\nreviewed for this rag, seems to have run aground and, shuttered
\nup and dark, had all the appearances of a ghost ship on my recent
\nSaturday-night outing to Taman Ria.<\/p>\n
But cheer up, chin-chin, put a brave face on it and so forth.
\nAll's far from being lost in Taman Ria and there's still plenty
\nof inviting restaurants and pubs there where you can get a bite
\nto eat and, even better, a beer to glug. One of the latter is the
\ncheekily named BuGils, a little piece of Amsterdam transported
\nmiraculously to Central Jakarta and a true jewel in this city of
\nglitz and garishness.<\/p>\n
Location: Taman Ria Senayan, Laguna Ria Building Level 1, Jl.
\nGerbang Pemuda No. 3, Central Jakarta. Tel: 5747650, 5747652.
\nHours: 10:30 a.m. to midnight Sunday to Thursday. Up to 3 a.m. on
\nFriday and Saturday nights depending on the crowd.<\/p>\n
What's it got: Good selection of all the old favorites, as
\ngood as you're likely to get anywhere, plus an excellent
\nselection of Dutch and Indonesian dishes on the menu. Bintang
\ndraught goes for Rp 20,000 (Rp 90,000 per pitcher), small
\nCarlsbergs for Rp 27,000 and small Heinekens for Rp 34,000, while
\ncans of Foster's, Carlsberg and Corona all kick in at Rp 37,000.<\/p>\n
A regular spirit will set you back Rp 28,000, while, as you'd
\nexpect, premium spirits command premium prices: Rp 40,000 for
\nChivas Regal, Jack Daniel's or Black Label. For cocktail fans,
\nthe prices vary between Rp 37,000 and Rp 45,000, while a glass of
\nthe house wine (Cuvee Speciale) will set you back Rp 40,000 (Rp
\n210,000 for a bottle, if your stomach is up to chancing that much
\nof the old Cuvee).<\/p>\n
Here's looking at you: As you take time out to study the
\ncluttered events-listings, personal ads and notices crowding the
\nwalls of the tiny, dimly lit vestibule and spy the warm lights
\nglowing within behind the curtain, you know you are onto
\nsomething well out of the ordinary in Jakarta.<\/p>\n
This sense of expectation is more than justified as you enter
\nthe pub with its dark stained wood paneling, wooden floors, heavy
\nfurniture, soft lights and stained glass canopy over the
\nhorseshoe-shaped bar. You might as well be a world away, which,
\nof course, is exactly the effect that the designers were trying
\nto create (the joint has only been open for a year and a half,
\nbut looks like it's older than old Methuselah himself -- quite a
\nfeat of interior design).<\/p>\n
It's a compact and cozy pub, and kind of triangular in shape,
\nwith the bar being located on the baseline and the entrance at
\nthe apex.<\/p>\n
When we arrived at 9 p.m, there were only a few hardy punters
\nslurping at the trough, but by the time of our departure at 11
\np.m., the place had filled up nicely with a good mix of Europeans
\nand locals, making for a good buzz all round -- one of the local
\nwags even had a go on the white upright piano strategically
\nlocated in the center of the pub to give us a bit of a knees up,
\nas Londoners would call it.<\/p>\n
In fact, BuGils to my mind looks more like a London pub than
\nanything else I can think of, an impression reinforced by one of
\nthose noisy fruit machines that are so ubiquitous in England.
\nFortunately this one wasn't working -- yet! But perhaps pubs in
\nAmsterdam are the same. I wouldn't know as I've never been there.<\/p>\n
Oh, by the way, they've even got a bule serving wench, sorry,
\nbarmaid. Now, that's something out of the ordinary in Jakarta,
\nisn't it?<\/p>\n
Odds and ends: Well, let's cut to the chase and get any
\npossible controversy over the name of the place out of the way. I
\nreferred to it as cheeky before and not without reason.<\/p>\n
You see, the word Bugil means stark naked in Indonesian. Hey,
\nthat's not very cheeky, I hear you sniff in a superior, worldly-
\nwise tone. Well, that's not all, for BuGils also has a more
\nsinister meaning as it is a compound of the Indonesian words
\nbule, sekali and gila. Well? Well, bule is a slang word that
\nactually means albino but is used to refer to Europeans,
\nCaucasians, whiteys, you know, that kind of thing, sekali means
\nreally, while gila means mad or crazy.<\/p>\n
But don't worry, any of you afflicted by old-fogeyism out
\nthere should refrain from getting cranky or flapping the wings in
\nrighteous indignation as BuGils is actually owned by a Dutchman
\nwho apparently has a bit of a taste for self-deprecation (pity
\nthere aren't more like him, I say). And, of course, it could be
\nworse, the pub could have been called monyet putih (white
\nmonkey), another common street term for Europeans here.<\/p>\n
Last Call: Ten out of ten on all counts. Great looks,
\natmosphere and service and congrats to the owner and staff on a
\njob well done. For any of you looking for a regular watering
\nhole, you could do a lot worse than BuGils. (Bill Blade)<\/p>",
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