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penangbistro: good food, cool ambience Kurniawan Hari The Jakarta Post/Jakarta
If there was a dining place that combines great cuisine with high-taste architectural design, it must be penangbistro on Jl. Kebon Sirih in Central Jakarta.
Having a dining experience at this restaurant, customers will not only get to enjoy some wonderful dishes but also the very cool ambience.
"We've been preparing this place for almost a year. We did all this for our customers. Today, they come to restaurants not only for the food, but also for the environment," said Petrus Sudjono, director of PT Arena Gourmet that runs penangbistro.
This penangbistro is the second in town, and opened for business just two months ago, while the first one on Jl. Pakubuwono, South Jakarta, has been serving customers since 2003.
Unlike the first outlet, the four-story restaurant on Jl. Kebon Sirih looks more modern with elegant architectural touches that evoke tropical sensations.
The bamboo trees and water flows over the surface of a 20 x 10 square meter wall gives an outdoor and natural feeling, according to its architect Winnie Alamsjah
Customers can choose to enjoy their food in the main dining place on the second floor, in private rooms with karaoke facilities on third floor or, perhaps, by having a barbecue party on the top floor.
With a total of 400 seats available, penangbistro looks to become a new alternative for businesspeople, youngsters or families who wish to have some quality dining at an affordable price.
In its endeavor to become one of the city's first-class restaurants, penangbistro offers mainly Malaysian cuisine.
"In the near future, however, we will offer other Asian cuisine including Indonesian and Indo-Chinese dishes," said Petrus, a former banker.
In order to maintain the integrity and quality of the food, he has hired a chef from Malaysia. He also imports many ingredients from Malaysia that are not available here.
A huge aquarium has been constructed in its central kitchen to ensure a supply of fresh fish.
For appetizers, the restaurant offers roti canai with chicken curry (Indian style flat bread with a curry sauce) at Rp 16,000 (US$1.60).
Hainan spring rolls (deep-fried spring rolls stuffed with minced meat) cost Rp 13,000, while a small plate of Malaysian chicken satay costs Rp 16,000.
Meanwhile, a bowl of tom yam soup is offered for Rp 14,000.
Some main courses include large prawns served in a variety of styles (grilled with garlic or fried with special sauces) that cost Rp 26,000 per 100 grams.
Crabs are also available on the menus, including chili crab, black pepper crab or grilled butter crab for Rp 15,000 per 100 grams. The black pepper crab is particularly delicious.
A combination of hot and sour Malay fish tamarind soup (fried fish served in tamarind soup mixed with a little coconut) is offered at Rp 43,000 per portion while curry fish head costs Rp 72,000.
Various desserts are available to complete the dining adventure.
They are ice kachang (red beans and sweet corn topped with nutmeg around shaved ice and house-special rose syrup), durian chendol, pink ice guava (diced guava, green pearl and young coconut served with milk and a special syrup).
They cost between Rp 14,000 and Rp 18,000.
With the variety of the menu and the cozy atmospherics, it is not surprising that businessmen and diplomats often have lunch there.
"The response from customers has been quite good. We are happy with that," he added.
Bon appetite!
penangbistro
Jl. Kebon Sirih Raya No.59 Central Jakarta Phone: 021 3190 6000
Jl Pakubuwono 6 No.2 South Jakarta Phone: 021 7260 303
open daily: weekdays: 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. weekend: 10 a.m. to 11 p.m.