Hong Bin Lou, RI's first Chinese Moslem restaurant

Hong Bin Lou, RI's first Chinese Moslem restaurant

JAKARTA (JP): Sly would likely disagree, but Sylvester Stallone's greatest contribution to 20th-century civilization may not be his ceaseless "Rambo" and "Rocky" sequels. In this era of advanced capitalism, Hollywood's renowned mumbler may best be remembered for Planet Hollywood, his worldwide chain of theme restaurants, first unleashed upon unsuspecting diners five years ago.

The theme restaurant is taking over. Uninspired restaurant goers around the world are emptying their pockets at the countless Hard Rock Cafes, Planet Hollywoods, Champions and Fashion Cafes. They feast on paraphernalia and mediocre meals. Theme restaurants count on diners being so occupied by the theme that they forget about the food.

Some themes are bigger than others. Movie stars and models may be more glamorous, but what icon can truly rival religion? New restaurant Hong Bin Lou at Bapindo Plaza takes the theme restaurant to a new level by pronouncing itself as Indonesia's first Chinese Moslem restaurant.

Prejudice and stereotyping often overlook the fact that Chinese Moslems exists both in China and in Indonesia. With nearly 100 million people, the Moslem population of China is among the largest in the world. But Hong Bin Lou targets not just ethnic Chinese Moslems hankering for halal hors d'oeuvres. It's the Moslem community at large they aim to attract.

But why must a Chinese restaurant identify itself as Moslem? Real Moslems don't eat wonton? Not if they contain a trace of pork, or are cooked in pork fat, which Moslems falsely assume to be the norm. Many Moslems steer clear of Chinese restaurants in fear of consuming sinful non-halal foods.

At Hong Bin Lou, Moslems can leave their fears at the Islamic- arched door. From the moment one enters the elevator, where the number for the restaurant floor has been replaced by Arabic script, the restaurant reassures clients that they are venturing into strictly Moslem territory.

It's not an easy undertaking. Islam's list of prohibited foods not only includes pork and scavenger animals, but also animals which have not been ritually slaughtered. That means the prayer Bismillah, Allahuakbar must precede the killing of the animal by a single stroke across the throat. Blood is haram (taboo) in Islam, except that which remains in meat after much of the animal's blood has been drained.

If the animal was shot, the same prayer must also be spoken, And while fish caught when still alive are halal, dead fish are not.

Certain schools of Islam go even further and forbid consumption of shellfish (considered unhygienic during the time of Muhammad), or any foods which were never consumed by the prophet. Koranic law, however, is more lenient, and allows the consumption of non-halal meat should there be no other means of sustenance.

At Hong Bin Lou, however, starving is the least of your worries. Food was on the table even before we were given the menu. In true Ramadhan style, the restaurant has prepared complementary fast-breaking appetizers consisting of kolak (bananas and sweet potatoes cooked in santan, or coconut milk and brown sugar) and es buah (fruit chilled in coconut milk). The Ramadhan special also included a 20 percent discount.

After a day of fasting, this is a welcome treat. Yet it's not so welcome when the santan is diluted of its usually rich flavor and the es buah just as unimpressive.

Yet free mediocre food is hardly a crime so we looked forward to feasting on the main meal. Several waitresses fluttered around our table, politely waving their gold trimmed long sleeves to illustrate the house specialties. The staff was dressed modestly in ankle length emerald Chinese costumes. In place of a jilbab (headdress), they wore matching pillbox hats to complete the vision of propriety.

A multitude of service staff, however, does not necessarily mean great service. Our waitress failed to give my companion a menu. She soon compensated for her blunder by advising our table of three not to order a medium-sized dish as a small portion would suffice. Considering the hard sell of most other fledgling restaurateurs, her honesty was refreshing. Give her another month at the job and she'll be recommending the priciest dishes available.

We ordered seafood soup (Rp 19,500), duck satay (Rp 3,000 per stick), sauteed mushrooms and kailan (Rp 14,000), and the house special, fried prawns a la HBL (that's Hong Bin Lou to the uninitiated). With Islamic music wafting through the marble walls, we gazed at the elegant Chinese paintings while waiting for our much anticipated meal.

Our high hopes were soon diminished. The soup arrived first, followed two minutes later by the entrees. "Our dinner will be cold by the time we eat it," my companion said sulkily. And it was. After a slog through the uninspired soup ("too salty", complained both my companions), we dove into the by then tepid main course. The duck satay, the most promising order of the evening, was fatty and unappetizing, especially cold.

After all, our vegetable dish was, in either conception or preparation, nothing out of the ordinary for Chinese restaurants. The fried prawns were also typical fare -- what was atypical about it was its steep price! Perhaps the free appetizers were an ingenious strategy, appeasing appetites soon to be disappointed.

The menu itself should have been a telltale sign. "If this is a new restaurant, then why does the menu look old?," asked my companion. Perhaps to suit the offerings, which were neither of great variety or originality. We can eat fried rice, chicken and noodles at any Bakmi Gajah Mada. For an expensive evening out, we expected something more special.

What we didn't expect was bugs in the soup, and hair amongst the mushrooms. Nor did we anticipate water dripping from the air conditioner into our drinks. Were these problems induced by the stress of serving too many customers? Looking around the fairly empty restaurant, especially during the fast-breaking hour, it was evident that such negligence could have been avoided.

The sloppy presentation was a shame because, otherwise, the restaurant's stately interior is fit for an emperor. True emperor-minded customers can dine in the nine private rooms. A musholla (prayer room) is also available for the devout. Hong Bin Lou has taken great care to illuminate its Islamic theme with every possible detail but great dining.

-- Dini S. Djalal