Spicing things up at Martabak Mesir Kubang

Spicing things up at Martabak Mesir Kubang

JAKARTA (JP): The streets are filled with vendors offering
that favorite snack-time bite martabak, a rich pancake with
either a sweet filling (take your pick from peanuts, cheese,
chocolate sprinkles, or a devilish mix of them all) or minced
beef or lamb.

It's usually a takeout meal, and rare is the place that
provides an area to sit down and munch on it while it's still
piping hot. We tried one of the few martabak eateries which does.

Martabak Mesir Kubang, Jl. Dr. Saharjo No. 98, South Jakarta
(accessible from Casablanca), next to BRI, and near Manggarai,
and Jl. Raya Kalimalang 14 B, East Jakarta.

Open: 11:30 a.m. to midnight.

What's it got: The restaurant has food from Padang, West
Sumatra, such as soto Padang (a clear soup consisting of meat,
usually liver or other offal, onion, crispy beef, fried potatoes
and white noodles), satay Padang (spicy mutton satay), mutton
curry and roti cane (a fried bread served with dips of mutton
curry or ketchup).

But as to be expected from the name (mesir means Egypt in
Indonesian), the main dishes are a large omelet filled with
chopped meat and vegetables, served with a hot sweet and sour
sauce, and spicy mutton curry served with rice or roti cane.

If you would rather do without the spice (but why eat here in
the first place), there are fried rice, fried and boiled noodles.
Rice and ketupat (rice steamed in coconut leaves) are also
available.

There are the usual soft drinks and juices, plus some other
beverages, including es tebak (a syrup of fermented cassava,
bread and local fruit). Chocolate milk, tea and coffee are on
offer.

Price Points: Martabak ranges from Rp 7,500 to Rp 15,000,
satay Padang for a reasonable Rp 7,000, roti cane kari kambing
for Rp 11,000 per serving, soto Padang at Rp 7,500 per serving,
mutton curry for Rp 7,000 per serving, fried rice and noodles at
Rp 7,000, rice at Rp 2000 per serving, and ketupat coming in at
Rp 700.

Looks: A grade above the standard sidewalk eatery. The two-
story restaurant has a restroom, a no-smoking area and a
washbasin. Other little luxuries include air-conditioning,
television and paintings -- and comfortable seats.

Owner Iwan Nasiswa, the younger brother of the restaurant's
founder H. Yusri Darwis, has 12 uniformed workers who are quick
on their feet. It took a minute for our beverage and soup orders,
and no more than 10 minutes to get our main menu items of
martabak and roti cane.

Popular with...: Office workers from Jl. Casablanca, shop
workers from the businesses on Jl. Saharjo, civil servants from
nearby government offices and residents of the surrounding
Manggarai and Tebet areas.

Taste Factor: The pancake is delicious, but loaded with meat
and spices, which will be a matter of taste for diners. It
smelled heady with the aroma of chilies, which Iwan swore were
brought all the way from chili country in the highlands of West
Sumatra.

The roti cane, which owes its origins to India but is most
commonly associated in this country with the pancakes served up
in Medan, was thin, crisp but, again, potently spicy. Restaurant
lore has it that Iwan's brother met an Indian cook in Medan and
learned the recipe from him.

Minus Points: The noise pollution from busy Jl. Saharjo can be
disturbing. As there is no parking area, customers' vehicles
cause a traffic jam in busy daytime hours (it's no problem at
night as they can park in the BRI parking lot, next to the
restaurant).

Verdict: A taste of this martabak was enough to take me back
to fond culinary memories of my hometown Bandung, which is famous
for its variation of the dish. Although a bit too highly spiced
for my liking, it was tempting enough to forget all the best
intentions about laying off high-caloric fare. (Sri Ramadani)