Enjoying Japanese dishes in hot Jakarta

Rudijanto, Contributor, Jakarta

Chef Hiroki Takai's face had streaks of sweat on it but it also showed traces of pride as he the diners' faces brighten when waiters served the food he had cooked at Jakarta's Basara Japanese restaurant.

Still in his early 30s, Hiroki has mastered traditional Japanese cooking thanks to 13 years of immersing himself in the tradition. This mastery of tradition coupled with his creative imagination has resulted in a unique menu at Basara.

If customers want to try something new, Hiroki is ready to use his creative imagination to which up a special dish. Just tell him your budget and he will understand what you want.

Compared with other Japanese restaurants, Basara's dishes are seldom accompanied with separate sauces, which are already integrated in the dishes. This allows customers' attention to be focused solely on the main dish, rather than being distracted by the sauce.

For instance, Basara's Sumibiyaki Moriawase, a mix of grilled fish and beef, is tasty without having to dip the pieces of fish or beef into a sauce. Another dish with which sauce is unnecessary is Sakana Kawariage, consisting of fried fish, vegetables and eggplant.

The focus of Basara's special soup Ebi Shin is on specially imported prawns and fish, so the taste of the broth is not dominant. Without being distracted by a strong-tasting broth, diners are able to enjoy the main ingredients of the soup.

Located on the ground floor of the Summitmas Tower on Jl. Sudirman, Basara certainly provides a cool place for visitors looking for a taste of Japan in the heart of Jakarta.

Faithful to Japanese tradition, Basara serves its food on wooden plates and with wooden spoons. The restaurant still uses charcoal to grill its beef, chicken and fish.

However, Basara also presents itself as a modern Japanese restaurant. That is why the interior design is minimalist and instead of mats, the private rooms use chairs.

Stressing its modern aspects, Basara welcomes guests with soft jazz music rather than traditional Japanese music. The restaurant is also the only Japanese restaurant in Jakarta with a wine seller.

Basara is one of many Japanese restaurants offering a taste of Japan thousands of miles from home. The great Japanese investment and interest in Indonesia has brought many Japanese businesspeople and tourists to Jakarta.

Many Japanese travelers prefer to stay and dine in places that are frequented by other Japanese. That is why hotels and restaurants that cater specially to the Japanese always receive a great number of Japanese guests.

"The number of Japanese visitors to our hotel is not affected by bomb threats or security issues and our occupancy rate averages 70 percent to 80 percent," says Hendra Gunawan, assistant food and beverage manager at the Hotel Nikko, Jakarta.

A favorite among Japanese travelers, the Hotel Nikko surprisingly does not have a Japanese restaurant in the main hotel, though it runs the Kahyangan Shabu-Shabu restaurant in the adjacent Wisma Nusantara office building.

But do not be mistaken. The hotel's Olive Tree Restaurant on the first floor offers familiar Japanese dishes along with dishes from China, Vietnam, Singapore, Korea, Thailand and America.

Though this month the restaurant is dominated by a Betawi atmosphere to celebrate Jakarta's 478th anniversary, lovers of Japanese food still can find Miso Shiru soup, Yaki Soba, Japanese noodles with salmon and Tori Kushi Katsu in the Nikko's buffet.

Aside from the buffet, Japanese food enthusiasts can also order the Gindara Teriyaki set, which is grilled silver cod with teriyaki sauce and served with appetizer, pickles, miso soup and steamed rice.

There is also Unagi Yanagawa with special Japanese eel. Or if you prefer beef, chef Hamami is skillful in preparing grilled beef steak with Moromiso sauce.

Though Indonesian, Hamami has mastered the art of Japanese cuisine through his 23 years of cooking experience. Apparently learning by observing and doing, Hamami knows Japanese appetites.

Unlike Hiroki of Basara, who lets his imagination run free in cooking dishes based on customers' budget, Hamami strictly follows standard Japanese recipes to ensure the original and standard Japanese taste.

"My task is to ensure the standard of the food served in this restaurant. With this adherence to standards, the taste of the foods here is the same as food cooked in the countries of their origin," says Nikko executive chef Setiyanto.

The capital is also home to the Aoki Japanese restaurant at the Gran Mahakam Hotel in southern Jakarta's Blok M area. Here chef Solihin Syahbudin relies on his 22 years of experience in working at Japanese restaurants in Jakarta.

Solihin, 47, prepares a variety of sushi and sashimi, such as Soft Shell Crab Maki, Dynamite, Kintamani Maki, Honeymoon Scallop Maki. This month, he pampers Aoki's guests with Kamameshi, Japanese-style rice with a selection of seafood, beef and vegetable, while next month he will present Unagi.

For Japanese food lovers who enjoy seeing how their meals are prepared, Melt Restaurant's Japanese Raw Bar is a good place to go. Here, chefs are ready to work closely with diners to help them customize their meals.

Located in the GKBI building on Jl. Sudirman, Melt allows customers to watch chefs slice and dice the fish while preparing sushi, sashimi and grilled dishes. The restaurant's specialties include Omakase sets.

Like the Olive Tree restaurant at the Hotel Nikko, Melt is not an exclusively Japanese restaurant but also serves Western food and other Asian delicacies. Next month, the restaurant will hold the Japanese Food Promo, offering The New Indian Ocean Gindara Teriyaki, Japanese Tempura Udon and Japanese Chicken Teriyaki.

Even amid the atmosphere of Betawi culture during celebrations for Jakarta's 478th anniversary, the city consistently offers lovers of Japanese food a good selections of mouthwatering selections.

Just stroll through Jakarta's CBD, Block M and Kemang in the southern part of the city and you will find a wide range of Japanese restaurants. Or if you stay in a hotel run by an international chain such as the J.W. Marriott, Borobudur or Shangri-La, you will be able to choose from your favorite dishes. Enjoy Jakarta!