Trio, a favorite old Chinese eatery for all ages

Everyone has a favorite little eatery, their secret place to return to from time to time to dine. Batik designer and self- described passionate amateur "foodie" Iwan Tirta identifies his as Trio Chinese restaurant in Menteng, Central Jakarta, which has been serving up its unique cuisine for nearly 55 years.

JAKARTA (JP): Trio first opened for business in 1947, when the capital was still known under either of two names -- Batavia if one sided with the Dutch colonial occupation forces, or Jakarta if one supported the new fledgling Republic of Indonesia.

In those years until well into the 1950s, Chinese food in Jakarta was a mixture of Cantonese, Dutch and Indonesian flavors, proof that the fusion cuisine of today is actually nothing new!

There were no Szechuan, Shanghainese, Hainan or Hakka chefs around, and the Chinese food served up in the restaurants around the city was a melange suited to the palates of Indonesians, Peranakan Chinese (assimilated ethnic Chinese, including descendants of mixed Chinese-Malay marriages) and Dutch citizens.

While those venerable establishments in Glodok and Pancoran have disappeared, only to be replaced by air-conditioned, "modern" eating emporiums, Trio is still there, tucked in a corner near the railroad crossing on Jl. Gonangdia.

The size of the premises has not changed from my first visit there with my parents and sisters in 1950, and trains still rumble past, although nowadays they are on elevated tracks. It is also still in the hands of the original family. A husband and wife, one of them the grandchild of the founder, still write down the orders from the waiters and relay them to the kitchen in the back.

I was always curious how the cook or cooks managed in such a small space, hemmed in between a small ditch and the tracks. But one could not peer into Chinese kitchens in those days, unlike the glass-walled modern Chinese restaurant kitchens all over the world where the chefs are like artists on display and, in the United States, show diners that the kitchens are clean and state of the art, conforming to health regulations.

Then as today, the menu at Trio was rather extensive for a small eatery, with a mix of Dutch, Chinese and Indonesian flavored dishes.

Chinese-Indonesian restaurants shared many popular dishes in common, such Gurame Goreng Saus Asem Manis (deep-fried gurame, a type of freshwater fish, in sweet and sour ginger-tomato sauce),Kepiting Chingkong (deep-fried breaded crab claws with a sweet and sour dip), Udang wotiap (fried shrimp wrapped in smoked ham), Ayam Nangking (a kind of chicken steak sauteed in real Dutch creamed butter).

One of the piece de resistance dishes was the Bebek Tim masak Champignon (steamed whole duck in a thick gravy with champignon). The mushrooms had to be canned mushrooms, as proof that "expensive" imported mushrooms were used instead of the local straw variety. This particular dish became famous due to the fact that it was first launched by two grand old restaurants in the downtown Glodok Pancoran area, Beng Hiong and Kam Leng, which were located in the same four-story building, one above the other.

Both were regarded as the epitome of upscale Chinese cuisine. Their waiters were dressed in white jackets and pants with batik headcloths, just like in the big Dutch hotels of Jakarta of that time.

Food was served on Bangka tin or pewter serving plates, and often the plates were round in shape, resting on pewter bowls containing hot water in order to keep the dish warm. Until today, Trio continues using the same tableware.

Test

In our family's opinion, the real test for a good Chinese restaurant was the acar (cucumber pickles).

If the pickles looked and tasted good (the right balance between sweet and sour), using real gherkins and not sliced cucumbers, then the main dishes invariably would taste good. Generous helpings of acar always preceded a proper meal. Try the acar of the Trio today and you will agree. As youngsters we always devoured the acar while waiting for the main dishes to come, demanding several helpings since it was free anyway!!

Trio today, as in the past, is clean and unpretentious. There is no air-conditioning, only ceiling fans. The absence of air- conditioning results also in the absence of any glass doors which would be needed to keep the cold air in. Open shutters allow shoeshine boys and magazine vendors to sell their services between the tables from time to time, but they are not too much of a bother if you tell them firmly you are not interested. The music played is old tunes of keroncong and Manadonese or Ambonese songs sung by Indo-Dutch entertainers from the Netherlands in the 1950s.

The menu shows those old favorites, including Kakap a la restaurant Kam Leng, in homage to the now sadly gone restaurant. Here and there one discovers a Dutch dish, like Huzaren Sla, a Dutch version of the famous Waldorf mixed salad, with a difference that the salad is slightly pink in color due to the use of diced beetroot among the vegetables and sliced beef.

The Dutch flavor in the Chinese food comes from the use of ingredients like Heinz tomato ketchup, Lea Perrin's Worcestshire sauce, Maggi chicken soup cubes and that real Dutch cream butter. Just like in the old days, the egg fuyong contains real lumps of crabmeat and shrimps, instead of the surrogate stuffings of shredded cabbage and julienne of carrots.

The presentation of the food shows no frills -- there are no garnishings of cilantro, parsley or fancy cuts of tomatoes and cucumbers. Service is quick and courteous, and the waiters, on the average, are 40 years and over.

On any night these days, one sees a mingling of Indonesian government officials, students, groups of Dutch tourists and those of a certain age who witnessed the days of Dutch rule.

The Dutch tourists probably want to relive the days of yore and encounter familiar Indo-Dutch-Chinese cuisine (many Chinese- Indonesians who emigrated to the Netherlands in the 1950s established "Indisch Chinees" restaurants in their new homeland). The food is still delicious, with its traces of home cooking. Prices are as small as the premises of the restaurant. Try an "endangered species" in modern Jakarta, and you will not be disappointed.

Restaurant Trio is at Jl. Gondangdia Lama No. 29A, Central Jakarta. (Tel.336-295). Opening hours: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.