Exploring northern frontier style Indian food at Hazara

Exploring northern frontier style Indian food at Hazara

JAKARTA (JP): Declaring that Hazara is a good restaurant is
like stating that the comets crashing into Jupiter last month
were a nice sight. The new Indian restaurant combines delicious
food, superb service and a soothing atmosphere to give the diner
what they deserve.

The Jakarta branch of the highly praised Singapore restaurant
officially opened last month and promises to liven up the city's
eating scene not only with new tastes but also with innovative
style.

Walking through the antique carved door and down the long
corridor you enter another world. The interior is decorated in
authentic Indian antiques and the faint smell of sandalwood wafts
through the air from strategically placed candles. The dinning
room is spacious and according to the owner, Parvinder Singh,
follows Zen principles to ensure harmonious dining. This may
account for the warm feeling that is evident by the happy hum of
the customer's conversations.

Balance aside, the rustic tables are arranged perfectly to
enable you to eat in private while enjoying the relaxing
surroundings accented by the sound of the fountain which has been
cleverly made from a large bronze rice bowl.

In addition to the wonderful atmosphere, Hazara offers
excellent northern frontier style Indian food prepared by expert
chefs.

The Raan E Hazara, or baby leg of lamb cooked in the tandoor
oven is their signature piece. It is cooked overnight in a
mixture of spices and bay and is very tender. It is a great dish
to base the rest of the meal around.

The menu is divided into Tandoor and Handi dishes with
sections of poultry, lamb, seafood and vegetarian entrees. There
are also the traditional side dishes, bread and a variety of
desserts.

The Shorba of the Day, in my case chicken, was a very generous
portion of soup served in a rustic brass pot. It was filled with
tender chicken pieces cooked in fresh coconut milk and spices.
The Kachumber, or garden salad, was very fresh but much spicier
than expected.

For the main course the Murgh Makhni, or butter chicken, was
first roasted in the tandoor and then cooked in a creamy sauce to
give it a wonderful smoky, almost barbecued, taste. The Machli
Tikka Rampuri, boneless fish pieces, was beautifully prepared in
mustard oil maintaining its natural juices.

The quite extensive vegetarian selection offers everything
from cottage cheese to black lentils. The Paneer Shashlik, mouth
watering homemade cottage cheese with bell peppers, tomatoes and
onion barbecued in ajwain flavored yogurt is a delicious
accompaniment to any meal.

After such a meal dessert was almost impossible, but a unique,
traditional rice pudding garnished with nuts and a hint of rose
washed down with Hazara's aromatic coffee served to round it all
off.

All the produce and most of the ingredients are bought locally
to ensure the freshest possible meal; the only imported item
being a special secret spice brought in from India. The high
level of authenticity of the food is maintained with a twice
yearly food audit by noted Indian food critic, Mr. Jiggs Kalra.

The drink list is impressive yet well priced. It includes
Indian cocktails, a variety of beer, a good selection of wine
form countries as diverse as South Africa and Germany and of
course lassies. If a drink you want is not on the list, with a
little warning the staff at Hazara will most likely find it for
you.

Service

What really makes Hazara such a treat is the service.

The attentive staff are well drilled by the manager, Miss
Shoba, from Singapore. She has them trained to such a degree that
your every wish is quickly carried out, but there is never anyone
hovering over your shoulder or pestering you. Parvinder
emphasizes that his staff are taught to relax and have fun. This
makes for a light, cheery atmosphere. The Jakarta director,
Haidhi, says they employ "table radar" to ensure that all runs
smoothly. It does.

The excellent service and the friendly atmosphere are a direct
result of the business philosophy of Parvinder and his friend
Haidhi. They take the time to talk with the customers and are
directly involved in the day to day management of the restaurant.

Parvinder Singh, a computer manager by profession, and his New
Zealand fashion designer wife Lisa risked everything when they
started up their first restaurant on Boat Quay in Singapore two
years ago. With an initial investment of S$500,000 they built up
their business to include another restaurant and finally a
holding company. With determination and the sound use of dynamic
management and training techniques they were then able to expand
their business to Jakarta and have plans for Kuala Lumpur,
Melbourne and maybe even Amsterdam.

In Jakarta, the business is directed by Parvinder's long time
friend Haidhi Angkawijana and his wife Audrey Cheong. Like their
Singapore counterparts they jumped in to the business from a
totally different field, plastics.

There is nothing plastic about Hazara however. The combination
of good food, tremendous service, loads of atmosphere and
excellent management makes it an enjoyable place to eat. As
Haidhi states; "We are aiming at fun but fine dining." I believe
they have achieved if not surpassed their target.

-- Bradely