Chaine des Rotisseurs concocts archipelagic potpourri
Chaine des Rotisseurs concocts archipelagic potpourri
By Bruce Emond
JAKARTA (JP): It was time to check all dietary proscriptions
at the door on a visit to one of the bimonthly get-togethers of
Chaines des Rotisseurs.
Food, glorious food is always atop of the agenda for the
organization, whose pursuit of the best culinary delights harks
back to the era when food was not a dirty word. The Jakarta
chapter, founded in 1978, and 119 branches worldwide are culinary
descendants of a medieval group which vetted the vittles for
French royal palates. Bringing together hotel managers, chefs and
those from outside the food sphere, contemporary members share an
overriding bond of enjoying the finest gastronomy can offer.
A glutfest for the well-heeled? Not quite, according to
Jakarta Hilton General Manager Michael Nigitsch. "It is all about
the presentation, arrangement, and complexity of the menu. It is
not about volume, but the primary idea is to enjoy the culinary
experience."
Chaine dinners shift between different hotel restaurant
locations, with last month's held at the Hilton. The weeks
preceding each dinner are spent painstakingly devising the
various elements of the dinner -- the theme, menu items,
accompanying wines, table settings, decorations, even garnishes
-- down to the finest details.
The Hilton evening, a journey through the culinary riches of
the Indonesian archipelago, was no exception. Every exquisite
aspect was perfected and choreographed to run like clockwork.
Guests streamed into the Hilton's Golden Ballroom and were
ushered to their tables, each named after a particular Indonesian
region, by young women in traditional dress. The room -- bedecked
in stunning local textiles and quaint touches of bird cages and
palm trees -- was transformed into a tableau of the nation's
proverbial melting pot.
The table by itself was a feast for the eyes. Huge brass
plates held an array of favorite Indonesian crackers, from flimsy
peanut rempeyek to prawn kerupuk. Menus were beautifully
appointed, illustrated by up-and-coming artist Bimo, as a
keepsake of what turned out to be a memorable evening.
Food, of course, was the centerpiece. The assignment had been
for the Hilton chefs to give a nouvelle cuisine makeover to
Indonesian culinary mainstays (which Nigitsch termed "slightly
neglected" on the international culinary front). In nearly every
case, the marriage was a rousing success.
The journey began in Jakarta with a Betawi vegetable terrine,
tiered layers of cabbage, tempeh and green beans served with a
dribble of spicy peanut sauce. An upmarket variation on gado-
gado, it made for a light appetizer.
Next stop was East Java, with Pamekasan consomme. Heady with
the aromas of lemon grass and fragrant lime, the beef consomme
was embellished with a single quail egg.
The personal favorite was the Manadonese chicken cooked in
bamboo. The tender chunks of meat simmered with a medley of
intoxicating spices was delicious, balanced by the comparative
blandness of slivers of fresh palm heart.
Five spice tea granite, a West Java crushed-ice concoction in
which the taste of cinnamon and cloves predominated, cleared the
palate for the entry from South Sulawesi: a gratin basil crust
fringing mouth-watering salmon mousse over a red snapper fillet.
The chefs could have been forgiven for trundling out tired
renditions of old favorites on the dessert trolley after the
spectacular preceding lineup. Thankfully, it was not the case.
The desserts -- spice layered cake with mango mousse, a novel
carrot and vanilla ice, and coconut tart -- fully lived up to
their advance billing as sweet shadows from the puppet master.
The evening was rounded out by steaming cups of Toraja coffee
and a selection of chocolates. Sated by good food and agreeable
conversation, diners bid farewells and headed home after reliving
the dying art of fine dining.