Protests hit restaurant business
Protests hit restaurant business
Annastashya Emmanuelle, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The recent wave of anti-American demonstrations and threatened
sweeps by radical groups have not only become a major political
issue but have also hit businesses that often depend on an
expatriate clientele.
The row of popular cafes and restaurants in the Kemang area in
South Jakarta has been one of the those that has immediately felt
the impact, with some establishments claiming to have lost one-
third of their business.
"Since the threatened sweeps, we haven't had as many foreign
customers as we used to," said Elly Sahely, supervisor of W
restaurant.
The past fortnight has been the toughest since the restaurant
opened eight months ago, she said.
Another restaurant that claimed to have been badly hit was
William's fine dining restaurant.
"At night on the weekend our restaurant is usually fully
booked, but now we only have a maximum of 40 guests," Irna
Purnamawati, a waiter at the restaurant, which can seat about
100, told The Jakarta Post.
A parking attendant at the restaurant also said there were
fewer guests overall. "There are only about 30 cars parking here
over a whole day. I used to park around 100 before."
Friday noon at Maxi's Cucina Italiana seemed hauntingly empty,
as the only guests were a group Caucasian women occupying one
table.
Although the waiter maintained that the restaurant was more
popular at night, he acknowledged that there had been a sharp
decline in the number of guests, who were usually foreigners.
"I assume they're worried about possible sweeps, or some may
have returned to their home countries," said one waiter.
It seems that establishments that are dependent upon an
expatriate clientele have been the worst hit. Restaurants that
cater to a more local crowd have not been as severely effected.
William W. Wongso, who owns three restaurants, including W and
William, acknowledged that they were feeling the pinch as the
clientele were foreigners. Yet he remained optimistic the current
situation would soon pass.
"From my experience people easily forget about such issues. I
can already see a recovery under way. It is still not yet
complete, but it's heading that way," he remarked.
He pointed out that restaurants that have a loyal local
customer base continued to do well.
"Only those with foreigners as their main clientele will have
felt the decline; not all restaurants in Kemang target
foreigners," he said.
Among restaurants that have not been adversely effected is the
Twilite Cafe, which boasts a clientele mostly of Indonesians.
"People are still booking for parties and the number of guests
is stable," said manager Brenda Djorghi. "As our customers are
mostly Indonesians we haven't experienced the difficulties others
have done."
The same goes for Tamani Cafe where foreigners, manager Danang
claims, account for only about 15 percent of the clientele.
Tamani continues to bustle with a young Indonesian crowd,
mostly college students.
The Indonesian Hotel and Restaurant Association (PHRI)
confirmed the economic setback for many restaurants and lower
hotel occupancy as a result of the anti-American sentiment.
PHRI executive director Carla Parengkuan also said hotels and
restaurants had suffered an average 30 percent drop in sales.
The setback was being felt particularly by hotels and
restaurants in Jakarta, Carla said in a written statement.