Light still shining bright on Cahaya Kota restaurant<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Cahaya Kota, established in 1942 under the name
\nTueng Kong, is one of the oldest Cantonese restaurants in town.<\/p>\n
It used to occupy a plot of land in the Menteng Raya area,
\nright on the spot where the Pak Tani statue now stands. When the
\nstatue project started in 1965, the restaurant moved a couple of
\nhundred meters to Jl. K.H. Wahid Hasyim No. 9 in Central Jakarta
\nand became Cahaya Kota.<\/p>\n
Long a popular place for wedding receptions, especially in the
\n1970s and 1980s, it is not as crowded as it once was, but it's
\nstill a favorite for many, especially longtime Jakarta residents.<\/p>\n
Open: Daily from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.<\/p>\n
What's it got: As soon as you take your seat on the wood and
\nrattan chair, the restaurant staff will immediately bring you the
\nmenu and serve complimentary tempting cucumber pickles and tasty
\nfried peanuts.<\/p>\n
On the menu, which smartly uses Indonesian, English and
\nChinese characters as well as color photos of the dishes, there
\nis an enormous selection of beef, chicken, shrimp, fish, squid,
\nmushroom, crab, pork, frog, pigeon, duck, noodles or vegetables
\ncooked in over 100 different styles.<\/p>\n
There are hardly any desserts, but beverages include instant
\ntea and coffee, seasonal fruit juices, soft drinks, cold beer and
\nwhisky.<\/p>\n
Price points: Mostly quite reasonable for a mid to high price
\nrange restaurant. Vegetables are about 20,000 per serving; the
\nchicken-based dishes range from Rp 25,000 per serving for ayam
\ncah tausi (chicken with fermented black bean sauce) to Rp 50,000
\nper serving for ayam rebus ham\/tirem (boiled chicken with ham or
\noyster).<\/p>\n
Shrimp dishes range from Rp 20,000 per serving for regular
\nboiled shrimp to Rp 75,000 for shrimp in butter sauce.<\/p>\n
Crabs fried or sauteed in oyster\/sweet soy sauce range from Rp
\n20,000 to Rp 35,000 per piece, cheaper compared to that offered
\nin other similar restaurants.<\/p>\n
The Soeharto's reported favorite, gorengan a la Cahaya Kota (a
\nplatter of fried crab, pigeon, shrimp and shrimp rolls), is
\nexpensive at Rp 120,000 per portion (but then that probably never
\nstopped them). Other expensive dishes include the bird-nest soup
\nwith crab spawn at Rp 300,000 and abalone in sauce with broccoli
\nfor Rp 200,000.<\/p>\n
Looks: Cahaya Kota is an old-fashioned restaurant that
\ncomfortably seats around 300 people. It has no fancy decor, but
\nis fully air-conditioned and clean.<\/p>\n
The staff may look rather unenthusiastic and awkward, but they
\nget their job done and the service is prompt.<\/p>\n
Parking space is limited to a dozen cars, taken care of by
\nlocal preman.<\/p>\n
Popular with: Former shining lights of Indonesian politics,
\nsuch as former vice president Try Sutrisno, and veteran actors
\nlike Mieke Wijaya, Roy Marten and Yessy Gusman. Younger
\ncelebrities such as Dede Yusuf and Ari Wibowo have also been
\nknown to dine here.<\/p>\n
The restaurant, a staff member said, also supplies food for
\ngatherings at the Soeharto compound, not too far away on Jl.
\nCendana.<\/p>\n
Taste factor: Rightly famous for delicious prawn fried with
\nblack pepper sauce, barbecued duck, carp with tofu and soy bean
\nsauce, crabs with oyster sauce, puyunghai istimewa (omelette with
\na generous filling of crab meat and a tasty sweet-and-sour sauce)
\nand fried rice with salted fish.<\/p>\n
The exorbitantly priced abalone, however, was bland and
\nunappetizing. It seems the only reason why many people still
\norder these flavorless dishes in fancy restaurants is to show off
\nto others about how rich they are.<\/p>\n
Minus points: There is no dessert, but you may not need it
\nanyway after the main courses. Be warned that if you do not pay
\nthe parking attendants Rp 1,000 or above they will yell at you.<\/p>\n
Verdict: All in all, a pleasant dining spot. Since the
\nportions are quite large, lunch or dinner with family and friends
\ncan be quite economical. (Chris Tumelap)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/light-still-shining-bright-on-cahaya-kota-restaurant-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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