Jewel of India still sparkles at capital's Ambhara Hotel

"Not another review of Indian," the long-suffering features page editor sighed as Epicurus revealed what was in store for this week's column.

With a declared Indian food lover on board, the aforesaid editor has learned to deal with frequent tributes to the spices and simmering sauces of the subcontinent.

And Epicurus, and this week's restaurant for review -- Jewel of India at the Ambhara Hotel -- go back a long way. Except, with no affront intended to any religious community, that was when the Jewel was in another incarnation in Kemang.

That restaurant looked like a garish living room created in a suburban palace, comfy and cozy with white table-clothed wooden tables, wall-to-wall carpeting and a decidedly leisurely ambience. The homely feel came through, too, with the complimentary pappadums and condiments which greeted diners when they took their seats, the heaping portions and the familiar attitude of the waiters.

I hasten to add here that I do not mean "familiar" in the crass sense, like the Grand Hyatt's Olympus Club receptionist who shrieks interrogatives (head north, dearie, there lies the fish market). What I am referring to is the uncommon ability to learn the regulars' names, to remember their favorite orders, to make them, in short, feel like Jewel of India was their very own dining room. Call it solicitous and calculated, but it keeps diners coming back for more.

Now, Jewel of India has moved up in the world, so to speak, finding new digs at the Ambhara across the street from Pasar Raya. Its gleaming new perch on the second floor of the hotel is an open plan, with what appears to be a couple of private dining rooms in the back. Gone are the waiters' simple white-shirt-black-pant attire, replaced by spiffy tan-colored uniforms. The Jewel has been polished up and set out on display.

Such a radical change is bound to set alarm bells ringing for anyone familiar with the old restaurant. Has a yearning for style led to the banishing of substance? Has Jewel of India taken the route of the "boutique" restaurants springing up in upmarket malls, establishments where attitude reigns supreme but slim pickings grace the menu?

Thankfully, it is not the case: Epicurus and dining companions were pleased to find that Jewel of India, despite its change of location, has not lost its simple but winning touches.

We started with a samosa, the Indian equivalent of a miniature pasty. It is hard to cook samosas just right; they are often too oily or spoiled by a thick pastry which dulls the appetite for whatever is to follow. The ones at Jewel of India, both chicken and vegetable, fit our bill for taste, with the crisp pastry envelope encasing ample filling.

A deliberate departure was made in choices of the main dishes. Epicurus has long held to the principle of the hotter the better, with the standard order of chicken vindaloo and maankali dhal a recipe to leave eyes streaming. This time, in deference to the more genteel palates of the other diners, a range of unfamiliar dishes was chosen.

They were masala dosa, a crisp pancake filled with potatoes; chicken Hyderabad, with tender chunks of chicken stewed in a bed of spinach; mutton cooked in a creamy korma sauce and, in a remembrance of dining experiences past, an order of the maankali dhal.

We were treading in unfamiliar territory but we made the right choices, with the chicken a particular favorite. However, the maankali dhal, spiced with chopped green chilies, was too hot for the other diners who warily pushed it to the side of their plates.

Indian tends to be filling and we were hesitant about ordering a dessert. We decided to share the gulab jamun, balls of dough cooked in a thick syrup. Cooked too long, and the dessert resembles a heavy, stale dough. The one served up at Jewel of India was light and palatable after the heavy meal, one of the best we have tried in Jakarta, including in the old restaurant.

Some minor gripes. The television in the corner of the restaurant seemed a distraction for waiters until it was thankfully turned off; we considered the "cappuccino", served in tall glasses with dollops of cream, to be Viennese coffee; and one of our party was forced to park her car outside the hotel's parking lot, which was closed due to Friday prayers.

Otherwise, it was a delicious lunch in a pleasant atmosphere. With assorted drinks, including the pricey cappuccino and several lasse, plus naan and rice, the bill came to just under Rp 280,000 for three diners. Not cheap, perhaps, but Jewel of India remains true to its former self -- a fitting venue for Indian food lovers' to eat to their heart's content.

-- Epicurus