Great vegetarian food available at Selera

Les Coffier, Contributor, Jakarta

Selera Vegetarian Healthy Restaurant (formerly Citrarasa Vegetarian Restaurant), Jl. Boulevard Raya Blok RA-19 No. 20-21, Kelapa Gading Permai, North Jakarta, phone 45843139-40. Open from 10:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily. Major credit cards accepted.

There are precious few vegetarian cafes or restaurants in Jakarta. Although many venues have vegetarian items on their menus, these tend to be token gestures.

Those in the trade would probably say that the demand is simply not there, but with greater global awareness of healthy eating habits that situation is likely to change. Particularly as the dishes are just as tasty and attractive as those prepared for carnivores. It is also cheaper, as the elimination of meat as an ingredient brings the price down.

I must confess that, although I eat vegetarian food frequently and greatly enjoy it, I'd always felt that a 100 percent vegetarian diet would eventually leave me craving for the texture and flavor of meat.

A visit to the aptly named Selera Vegetarian Healthy Restaurant at Kelapa Gading, North Jakarta, soon laid that misconception to rest. Through clever use of vegetarian alternatives to meat and fish, a wide range of meat- and fish- like dishes is available.

Location: Head northwards from Mal Kelapa Gading on Kelapa Gading Boulevard for about 1.5 kilometers and the restaurant can be found within a row of shop units on the right-hand side of the road.

Looks: From the outside, the building does not look anything special, and is almost indistinguishable from many of the other aluminum-and-glass-fronted units in the immediate locality. The pleasant aroma from sandalwood Buddha statues can immediately be sensed upon entering. The air-conditioned interior is simply decorated, with plain wooden tables and upholstered rattan seats. Seating capacity is about 80 people, on two floors.

What's it got: The simplicity of the decor is misleading, for the restaurant has well over 100 menu entries grouped into soups, fried and clay pot dishes, tahu (soybean curd), vegetable side dishes, special items, rice and noodles.

Owner T. Shierly Chitra said all the food is free of egg, monosodium glutamate and gluten, and corn oil is used for frying. Through clever use of processed seaweed, substitute prawns and ham are used very convincingly in dishes that are genuinely vegetarian.

Desserts are confined to fresh fruit platters, and beverages consist primarily of juices and soft drinks, with no coffee or alcohol on the menu.

The restaurant has a takeaway service and offers home deliveries within the Kelapa Gading area. It also sells imported frozen vegetarian foodstuffs that are difficult to find elsewhere, such as black pepper "steaks", "chicken" nuggets and processed "fish" products. These sell at around Rp 20,000 to Rp 30,000 per packet, sufficient for two people.

Taste factor: The two of us started with some fried seaweed and a portion of soup hisit jamur asparagus (soup with noodles, mushrooms and asparagus). This was followed by sate kacang special (skewered fried mushrooms with a savory peanut sauce), nasi goreng special (fried rice), toge polos (plain, stir-fried bean sprouts) and jamur hitam brokoli (broccoli with black mushrooms). The meal was washed down with a pot of Chinese tea and a sirsak juice, and completed with a plate of fresh tropical fruit.

The seaweed was dark green and crunchy, with an appealing savory flavor, rather like potato crisps. The satay was a real work of culinary art, for it seemed to have the texture and full flavor of barbecued meat, and did not seem like mushrooms at all.

The nasi goreng was equally deceptive, for it appeared to contain small pieces of fish that looked and tasted like prawn, but which turned out to be processed seaweed with carrot-based coloring. The broccoli dish was straightforwardly delicious, the texture and earthy flavor of the Chinese black mushrooms contrasting well with the crunchiness of the broccoli.

Price points: All menu items are available as small, medium or large portions, with small suitable for two to three people, and large sufficient for eight or more. The meal we had came to just over Rp 100,000, which was very reasonable indeed, considering the range of dishes and how attractively prepared they were.

Minus points: The very limited dessert menu and lack of alcohol might be off-putting for some, but is more than compensated for by the sheer range of interesting savory food on offer.

Verdict: If you thought that vegetarian food was dull or uninteresting and only suitable for people of a rather cranky disposition, then you will be pleasantly surprised at Selera. You will leave replete, without feeling bloated. And your wallet won't be complaining either!