Le Meridian brings in original Manado cuisine

Le Meridian brings in original Manado cuisine

Maria Endah Hulupi, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The first thing that comes to people's minds when talking
about Manado is its famous national sea park, Bunaken, home to a
stunning coral reef and various species of colorful fish.

However, Manado -- the capital city of North Sulawesi -- is
not only about marine wonders. Its cuisine has also enjoyed
growing popularity in the past several years, especially in major
cities.

Manado cuisine is usually associated with fiery spices as
served in food courts and more humble roadside stalls. But some
restaurants arrange a group of four or five people to accompany
dinners with the sound of traditional musical instruments,
kolintang, to enhance the atmosphere.

Jakartans are already familiar with restaurants like Chamoe-
Chamoe, Bunaken Indah at Hotel Indonesia, Tinoor Asli Manado and
Cak' Tu' Ci' Ikan Bakar Manado. And the list can go on.

Now, its distinctive culinary richness has inspired Le
Meridien Jakarta to promote Manado food during its nine-day
Manadonese Food Promotion ending Aug. 24, at La Brassiere
restaurant. The hotel's chefs prepare at least 20 different items
for lunch and dinner at Rp 115,000++.

"This is a modest food promotion and is a part of our efforts
to introduce local delicacies," said the hotel's executive sous
chef Teguh Purwanto.

Modest, maybe, but the hotel means business in bringing out
the true Manadonese flavors in every plate it serves. "We are
aware that only locals know the flavors and for this promotion we
invite chef and owner of Ikan Bakar restaurant in Manado Joice
Lontoh," Teguh said.

While most of the ingredients are available at most
supermarkets in Jakarta, some are not and have to be purchased
from Manado. Among the peculiar items are yellow pumpkin, whose
smooth flesh and slightly sweet flavor lack in those sold locally
and of course its traditional smoked tuna, better known as
cakalang, whose distinctive smoky flavor is irreplaceable.

Although different kinds of meat are used in popular
Manadonese traditional cuisine, for this food promotion, the
hotel's chefs would focus on chicken and fish to prepare various
dishes either grilled, boiled or deep fried.

For the spices, Joice said that Manadonese cuisine uses a lot
of chilies and nicely scented herbs like kaffir lime leaf, basil
leaf (locally known as daun kemangi), lemon grass and ginger,
among others, that give the dishes fragrant yet palatable aromas.

It also has a tendency to serve the ingredients' fresh flavors
like sliced shallots and diced tomatoes for dabu-dabu, condiments
that go well with various dishes.

Dishes served during the promotion include the fragrantly
spiced and hot woku belanga, hot but with a mild tang from fresh
tomato rica-rica, fried ikan cakalang, fried ikan tude with
condiments and vegetable rice porridge bubur Manado.

For vegetables, the hotel serves stir fried kangkung (water
convulvulus) and the mildly bitter stir fried papaya leaves.

Other side dishes include deep fried corn cake perkedel jagung
and deep fried fish cake warukus and savory lalampa (glutinous
rice filled with shredded cakalang), while the dessert list
includes sweet koyabu, traditional layered cake balapis and old
time favorite klaapertaart (young coconut flesh with custard and
sliced almond).

During lunch, the event is strictly a food promotion but for
the dinner, guests can enjoy their meals while a group of
musicians (and a singer) accompany them with the sounds of bamboo
musical instrument kolintang playing popular songs to enliven the
atmosphere.