Comfy kitchens cook up interest in Jakarta

Evi Mariani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Big changes appear to be underway in the rarefied world of Indonesian kitchen design.

Gone are the dark days when the kitchen was a dim and threatening dungeon where the sweating housemaid was virtually chained to the stove and cockroaches ruled the roost.

Now, for the well-heeled Jakarta glitterati, at any rate, the kitchen has become a place where guests and close friends mingle for parties and other de rigueur social gatherings in the home.

"The market here follows the trends in interior design in Europe and North America. First, they concentrate on the bedrooms, followed by the living room, the bathroom and later the kitchen," said Dennis Rahardja, a manager with Indonesia's sole agent for three top-of-the-range kitchen appliance brands.

"The high-end market for kitchens in Indonesia is not as strong as that for bathrooms at the moment. But the demand for kitchens is growing healthily," he said.

He explained that in Europe and the United States the kitchen had long been regarded as an important area in the house, and people in Singapore, Hong Kong and Thailand were following the trend.

Dirk Lohmann, Southeast Asia brand manager for German kitchen cabinet provider Nobilia, said that in Europe the "kitchen trend" had become established some 10 years ago.

"We are not saying that people regard kitchens as being of the same importance as the living room. That would be going too far, although we would be really happy if it happened. But kitchens are now no longer only for preparing food," Lohmann said.

No indeed! The kitchen is now the place where the family gathers to eat simple meals like breakfast while chatting, or bickering, in a more convivial atmosphere than that offered by a formal dining area.

"While I was in the States, the kitchen was the area where we gathered for parties involving friends. I could cook while my friends sat around me, chatting," said Cynthia Hambali, the owner of a shabu-shabu restaurant in Central Jakarta.

"I could participate in the conversation as the kitchen area was not separate. Later after enjoying our meal, my friends could do the dishes," she added slyly.

Cynthia said that some houses in the States even had computers in the kitchen for recipes.

However, even those who do not like cooking, or getting their hands even the slightest bit dirty, now also want to have a comfortable kitchen.

"Here in Jakarta, some of my clients request a sophisticated design for their kitchens at home but they, er, don't use them often," admitted Rudy Dodo, an interior designer for Trivium Design.

He said that the younger generation now preferred well- designed open kitchens rather than separate or closed kitchens. This was in marked contrast to the older generation.

Separately, Dennis said that many of the customers who came to his showroom in the Jakarta Design Center in Central Jakarta wanted their kitchens to be synchronized with the overall design of the house, particularly in the case of open kitchens.

"It would be awkward if the design left the kitchen looking austere while the other rooms looked grand," he said. He also admitted that despite their apparent interest in kitchens, many of his customers wouldn't set hand to stove if they were starving.

Nevertheless, their new-found interest in kitchens means that Jakarta's moneyed classes are often more than willing to shell out hundreds of millions of rupiah for a well-designed ensemble.

For example, a set of high-quality but middle-end kitchen cabinets will cost at least Rp 10 million per meter in length.

This does not include the necessary kitchen fittings and appliances, like microwave, dishwasher, sink and stove.

"The most expensive brand of appliances is Gaggenau from Germany. We haven't sought the franchise for this brand as their prices are too high for the market here," Dennis said.

His company is the sole agent for the Franco-German firm, De Dietrich, German firm Franke and French firm Brandt.

"De Dietrich is the most expensive of the three. The average cost for a set of De Dietrich appliances can reach Rp 100 million, while a set of Franke appliances costs up to Rp 80 million and a Brandt, whose competitors are, for example, Bosch and the high-end line from Ariston, can reach up to Rp 60 million," Dennis explained.

The habit of hiring live-in maids in Indonesia has created welcome extra work for kitchen designers.

"People who have enough money usually make two kitchens -- one is a dry kitchen for them and another is a wet kitchen for the maids to work in," Dennis said.

"But, those with tighter budgets who can only afford one kitchen, well, they can use it together with the maid. Such an arrangement normally calls for some design modifications," he said.

For example, the kitchen would usually be located near the maid's room and would probably have two entrances -- one for the family and another for the maid.

But whatever design people choose, relaxing in a comfortable kitchen is definitely the way to go.