Komodo Airways: Fun lair with a heart
It's not often that a restaurant gets its inspiration from such a preposterously ugly creature like the komodo. You just have to agree that the slimy gigantic lizard you see protruding from one side of the Atlet Century Senayan Hotel doesn't inspire much ... appetite.
So far, the only other animal-meets-building exterior I can recall of Jakarta's restaurant scene was that huge shark that plunged right into the roof of one restaurant on Jl. Mahakam, South Jakarta (where KOI now stands). But at least it went into the building, not out of it.
But as I began to examine the Komodo Airways Restaurant's innards, a wave of perverse approval gradually washed away my skepticism. It's a lair all right, but it's also much more than that. It's a ... umh ... Gotham-City-meets-Planet-Hollywood; Bat- Cave-meets-Jurassic-Park. In other words, it's a pretty darn interesting place.
The restaurant is divided into two dining sections. The main one, an L-shape of blended yellows filled with comfortable seats, is replete with reptilian decor -- upholstery, wall prints Swimmer's-Cave-meets-Dragon-Heart, even a cage resembling the one in Jurassic Park's gripping first scene with a sign that says Don't feed the snake. At each end of the room are TV screens half-obscured by artificial creepers, playing endless satellite TV sports and music clips.
The other section is more of a fun pub, with high chairs lined against the trivia-infested walls and clear-glass windows overlooking the Senayan area's praiseworthy greenery. The spiffy- looking bar concocts some pretty incredible alcoholic fantasies, such as the recommended Dragon's Blood -- a wonderful blend of brandy, cool red wine and fresh fruits.
Kids can enjoy a 50 percent discount for every Coke purchased during the daily 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. happy hours. They can even get a bubbly waitress to open some floorboards and ... umh ... get the shock of their lives.
The literati can roam the place reading komodo articles, jokes and trivia.
The deep-pocketed can down glass after glass while stomping with Jon Bon Jovi.
The health-conscious can slog all those calories off on one of the two exercise bikes near the window.
Midnight owls can swing by for snacks and drinks after a late night movie because the bar is open until 1:30 a.m.
In short, the place is good enough for the Billionaire Boys Club, the Joy Luck Club and even the First Wives Club, who, after reading stories of Captain Biff's mysterious demise on Komodo Island or looking at his immortalized remains (read: a shoe and a broken pair of glasses), will be equipped with all sorts of nasty designs for their two-timing husbands.
It's also a lair with a heart. Any donation made into the paper boxes found at every table is supposed to go to the WWF for the conservation of the Komodo National Park. So will profits made from ordering the restaurant's signature dish, the King Komodo Pizza.
Like many new establishments with Western-imported themes, the memorabilia is cute and effective -- the smirking komodo logo adorns everything from matches to place mats and coasters. The waitresses, although painfully Americanized with cap and jeans and the "Hey, yo, are you guys having a good time?" Hard-Rock- Cafe-enthusiasm, are lovely. They give you good advice all the way. They even offer to eat your dessert if you don't like it. And they grow on you.
One word of advice: You do need a dragon appetite. Although I'm not sure whether poor old Captain Biff was filling enough for the komodos, he says that the dishes on the first page of the menu are ... umh ... appetizers.
Settling for The Cargo Hold (Vegetable and avocado curry puff served with Komodo's secret dip) proved to be an inspired move. The curry puff was made from the most refined filo pastry, baked to perfection. The filling was bountiful, the sauce wonderfully piquant, the presentation elegant. The sauce's ingredients remain a mystery to me, and you really don't need any main course after this deliciously hearty fare.
It's obvious that the restaurant's concentration is on pizzas cooked in a wood-fired oven. Pizza Sulawesi, the smallest on the pizza menu, was in fact a vegetarian calzone, shaped like an inflated sandwich. So, it was more like eating a focaccia, and a very good focaccia at that, from the basil-seasoned crusty bread right down to the zesty sun-dried tomatoes.
The rest of the menu has enough varieties to satisfy dragons of all manners and stripes, including pasta with various sauces, Cajun-style Snapper Burger, Spicy Beef Fajitas and Komodo Satays (I kid you not).
If you can still endure dessert, the lighter options may be in order, such as the Baked Creamy Cheese Cake. Going for Bromo's Eruption, which is a Chocolate Brownie with Ice Cream and Fudge, is guaranteed to make you witness the eruption of your own belly.
For all its positive points, this is no cheap place. Expect to pay Rp 100,000 (US$41.42) for a full course for two and add on another Rp 30,000 if you order alcoholic drinks.
If you typically hang out at places like Planet Hollywood and Hard Rock Cafe, the bill is not going to scare you. But the thing underneath the floorboards might.
-- Epicurus