Savor some ASEAN cuisine downtown
By Ati Nurbaiti
JAKARTA (JP): It's possible to get to know popular dishes of neighboring countries at a dining venue downtown. Consider it an introduction to an intriguing variety of daily fare, as new tastes of familiar edibles are available at the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) food festival.
The Sari Nusantara Restaurant, on the ground floor of the Duta Merlin shopping center on Jl. Gajah Mada, has joined in the fanfare and is putting on a spread until Jan. 29. Note that the buffet, Rp 15,000 (US$6.94) plus tax, is only served during lunch hours.
For Indonesians and other Asians, it is a guarantee that the experience of eating foreign cuisine still means you get a full tummy, as a deep bowl ensures an adequate supply of steaming rice.
Naturally the "festival" suits those not in the mood to pick out dainty, sparsely arranged delicacies which come in a string of courses.
Seducing the appetite without diverting patrons' attention is clearly what the management has in mind, as most of its noontime diners are executives entertaining potential clients and they want to keep business the focal point.
Manager Suheri Hiustra commented that the executives seem too busy to more than glance at the buffet decorated by the flags of Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, Brunei and the Philippines. So perhaps business people are not among those of us who are curious about what our neighbors eat.
The management claims the restaurant is a one-stop dining place for Southeast Asian food. But only one country's cuisine is featured at a time.
Also, it is disappointing to find the "festival" leaves out Brunei and the Philippines -- a country famed for its colorful, festive people and dishes. There's just a few Filipino dishes offered on the regular menu.
Something else featured in the restaurant that seems to have become crucial in Asian entertaining: the karaoke lounge "for VIPs" in the 350-seat diner.
If you patronize the restaurant this week it will be Malaysia's turn until Nov. 27. And if you expect to find the cooking of Sumatra's neighbor dominated by coconut milk you'll find the opposite to be the case.
In fact there are no signs of the heavy, richly spiced gulai or other variants containing coconut milk. The Malaysian buffet presentation begins with a delicious sour and chili-hot soup, but the chili is kept to a minimum to give only a fresh hint of its presence.
Not with rice
It isn't a soup to eat with rice because of the sago mixture which thickens it. The ingredients include tofu and mushrooms.
Then there's a choice of ribs, shrimp, fish and chicken. The ribs are well done in honey and pepper, but honestly there wasn't much of either. The shrimp is cooked in blistering cheese - "we call it shrimp crystal because the shrimp comes out golden and flowery," said a waiter.
The chicken comes out interesting because of the momordica (pare) in the chili and ketchup sauce. The other way around is also true -- pare comes out nice with chicken, because not everyone likes the bitter gourd on its own.
Besides meat and fish, tofu is another choice, its sauce hinting at a seasoning which has crossed many borders: tauco, fermented bean paste.
Tauco is popular in Cianjur, West Java. Again the chef was very careful not to overdo its strong sour taste. As he was a trifle too busy that afternoon we were left to wonder whether the dish, mapo tahu is really popular in Malaysia, or whether it was the cook's concoction.
After the Malaysian spread, Thai food reigns to Dec. 11, Singaporean to Dec. 25 and Indonesian to Jan. 15. The last fortnight of the promotion will offer an assortment of Southeast Asian cuisine till Jan. 29.
Most of the selection must be a surprise as the menu only lists "grilled lobster" and "flat shrimp meatballs" from Thailand, and Filipino grilled fish.
Finally, a variation in your coffee will undoubtedly be one that is not consumed at the end of the meal -- explore "chicken and coffee a la Brunei"!