Radisson Hotel changes menu after 'May riots'

Radisson Hotel changes menu after 'May riots'

JAKARTA (JP): While some hoteliers decided to close their
restaurants due to the sluggish market and unfavorable rate of
the local currency, the four-star Radisson Hotel adopted a rare
idea by shifting the menu from Thai to local cuisine.

According to General Manager Maurice Cook, the inspiration
came to the hotel staff after the restaurant in the hotel's lobby
faced a serious problem following the May mayhem in the capital.

No, neither the hotel nor the restaurant on Jl. Pecenongan in
Central Jakarta were touched, looted or torched. They're totally
safe.

The problem was that the chef of the Thai restaurant flew back
to his country after the disarray, said the waiters.

The restaurant site was left without purpose then until Monday
when the 115-seat dining room, including three VIP rooms, was
reopened with its new cuisine: Indonesian food.

"We hope that our local and international guests, including
expatriates here, will really enjoy the Indonesian food at our
new inhouse eatery," Cook told a group of journalists who were
invited to inaugurate the opening of the semi-formal Ningrat
restaurant.

According to Cook, the occupancy rate at the 390-room hotel,
open since August 1995, is now at 25 percent.

He said changing the menu from Thai to local dishes would help
the hotel survive the current sluggish growth in the hotel
business.

"Besides, more and more of our international guests prefer to
have Indonesian dishes during their visit here rather than other
food," he said.

In addition to its "newest" restaurant, the hotel also runs a
cafe and a Chinese food restaurant.

The Ningrat (Indonesian for aristocratic) restaurant boasts
its vast selection of Javanese delicacies served ala carte style.

Its specialties currently include Lontong Cap Gomeh (rice cake
with chicken, egg and vegetables served in coconut milk broth),
Nasi Kuning Ningrat (saffron rice with sliced beef, tempeh,
omelet and crackers) and Nasi Timbel Cibodas (steamed rice
wrapped in banana leaf with fried chicken, salted fish and so
on...).

Their prices range between Rp 22,000 and Rp 26,000 per dish,
excluding 21 percent government and service tax.

According to the hotel's spokesperson Gina Luntungan, Ningrat
is only open for lunch and dinner from Monday to Friday and
serves dinner on Saturday.

"It'll be closed on Sundays and public holidays," she said.
(bsr)