Tantalizing Arabian fare served at Seasons Cafe of The Regent

By Grace Segran

JAKARTA (JP): Strains of Islamic music and wafts of Middle Eastern spices ushered us into Seasons Cafe at The Regent. At the entrance to the cafe, carpets were laid out on the floor for sale. They are presumably Middle Eastern -- it is difficult to tell the difference these days simply by looking at them because carpet makers from other parts of the world tend to reproduce these great designs.

The guest chef, Ahmed Darwish from the Four Seasons Cairo and his team, have been busy at The Regent Jakarta whipping up a whole array of Arabian dishes.

For lunch there is Moroccan Couscous Buffet (Rp98,000++). The Arabian Dinner Bazaar Buffet which changes daily (Rp110,000++) has the works: tagine, mezze, couscous, stuffed whole lamb, schawarma, etc. Upstairs at the Steakhouse, there is a Middle Eastern plat du jour -- a tagine that varies its meat everyday of the week.

The guest chef has also been conducting a series of Arabic cooking classes: Mezze and party foods, couscous and casseroles and sweets and pastries.

We decided to check out the dinner buffet since it is the most comprehensive of the three F&B promotions. There was an air of celebration as a band played Islamic tunes sitting on a low platform. It was similar to music played at festivals here in Indonesia and in Malaysia. We thought a belly dancer or two would have completed the setting!

The whole lamb caught our eye immediately because of its size. According to Chef Darwish, it is a must for all celebrations in the Middle East -- whether it is a wedding, a birthday or to welcome a special guest. Its presence certainly added to the air of festivity. The lamb was roasted stuffed with rice, nuts such as almonds and peanuts, and raisins, and spiced with cinnamon and saffron.

The lamb was tender and juicy, and the rice tasted very much like the Indian Briyani except that there were so many whole spices we had to be careful not to bite into them.

There was an excellent spread of cold and hot Mezze (appetizers). The tomato and onion salad was refreshing and the ubiquitous tabouleh was good.

At the hot mezze station, the Kabdet Farekh or chicken liver sauteed with garlic, lemon juice, allspice, black pepper and chicken stock was a favorite among the ladies at our table. It is commonly served in Lebanon and Egypt.

One dish that is known the world over and which is associated with Middle Eastern cuisine is the schawarma. It was chicken schawarma the evening we were there. According to chef Darwish, schawarma is made by hammering flat pieces of meat and then marinating them for 24 hours with yogurt, lemon juice, tomato puree, nutmeg, allspice and vinegar. The pieces of meat are then "threaded" on to the spit and cooked as they turn around slowly in front of the upright grill. The cooked edges would then be sliced off and pita bread pockets would be filled with it. There is a choice of condiments to accompany it: tahini which is made from ground sesame seeds and oil, chopped onions, tomato and salad. Back home, chef Darwish told us, the grill would have been made with charcoal giving the schawarma a totally different flavor.

One of the familiar main courses is the moussaka. This is different from the well-known Greek moussaka in that it doesn't have the bechamel on the top and the mince usually used is lamb instead of beef.

Another main course was the Egyptian Beef Fatah made from beef topside. It looked rather bland since it was boiled with carrots, onions celery, garlic, cardamom and cloves. However, it complemented the white rice, which had bits of red like chili sauce -- the Middle Eastern harissa perhaps. But Darwish said that it was tomato sauce with lots of garlic and vinegar. There were also small pieces of crispy pita bread tossed in the rice. The deep-fried pita bread reminded me of our local ca kwe.

Actually, I came to the promotion for the couscous. Unfortunately, I was disappointed because the Lebanese or Moroccan couscous, which I am familiar with, is served in a pot of soupy light broth. The couscous preparation available at the promotion was dry. It was sauteed with a choice of condiments.

However much chicken broth I asked the cook to add (and he had only about 100cc), I couldn't make the couscous swim. The fun in eating couscous is letting it soak up the broth. Plus, the meat used for the couscous was chicken when we were there. For us, couscous (or any middle eastern dish, for that matter) is best served with lamb.

In spite of that, one of our friends commented that he had never seen so much lamb at one meal!

All in all we had a good time. The ambience was great, the food exotic, and the dessert rich and sweet - as it should be.