Hotels offer special packages during Ramadhan

Hotels offer special packages during Ramadhan

Abdul Khalik
The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

Muslims need not worry about being stuck on the road or away from
home at meal times during the fasting month of Ramadhan as most
hotels offer both sahur (pre-dawn meal) and breaking-of-the-fast
menus.

The five-star Hilton Hotel International in Central Jakarta,
for instance, offers a menu tempting enough to encourage
residents of the city to dine out, rather than at home, which is
usually preferred in Ramadhan.

"We have long prepared packages for this Ramadhan. We offer a
selection of Indonesian dishes, such as opor ayam (chicken cooked
in coconut milk), during Ramadhan. We provide dinner to break the
fast and pre-dawn meals for guests and visitors," Hilton public
relations manager Emeraldo Parengkuan told The Jakarta Post.

The hotel will also offer various contemporary and traditional
Egyptian dishes from Oct. 24 to Oct. 29.

A special buffet for Ramadhan is also being laid on by the
Dharmawangsa Hotel in Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta.

A buffet of Indonesian and Middle Eastern dishes is available
for Rp 155,000 per guest at the five-star hotel.

"We even provide free (ta'jil) snacks for breaking the fast
for people passing the hotel," Dharmawangsa's public relations
officer Erni Kusumaningrum told the Post.

The JW Marriott in South Jakarta offers a Ramadhan business
meeting package.

Public relations officer Mellani Solagratia said the hotel had
decorated meeting rooms for the holy month.

"We have decorated two rooms in a Middle Eastern style. We
also offer special food for the meeting. We charge Rp 175,000 per
person for the meeting, which includes ta'jil," she told the
Post.

Mellani said Syailendra, the hotel's buffet restaurant, was a
popular place to break the fast.

She said that a traditional rampak gendang (percussion
ensemble) from West Java performed for diners in the evenings.

Starting from Oct. 3 through Nov. 2, the hotel is also
offering Middle Eastern cuisine. Chef Mustapha Hallal was flown
in from Lebanon to ensure the authenticity of the dishes.

However, for people, who prefer Chinese and oriental food
during Ramadhan, the hotel also provides such food free from
pork.

Mellani said the hotel provided dishes for sahur only in
guests' rooms as the hotel believed most Jakartans preferred to
eat sahur at home.