Visitors flock food courts, games centers

Visitors flock food courts, games centers

M. Taufiqurrahman
The Jakarta Post
Jakarta

The prolonged Idul Fitri holiday and the absence of housemaids,
who have returned to their hometowns, have made families to flock
to malls in the capital to dine in and take children to the games
centers available inside the malls.

The number of visitors has been increasing compared to regular
days.

International fast food chains, restaurants and food courts at
Atrium Plaza Senen in Central Jakarta, Blok M Plaza and Pasaraya
Grande in South Jakarta were packed by people queuing up during
lunch time.

Rubi, a staffer with a local franchise restaurant at Blok M
Plaza, said on Thursday that such an increase in the number of
visitors has been taken place annually during Idul Fitri
holidays.

"However, compared to last year's holiday, the number of
visitors this year was only a slight increase," he said.

Every year, many families swarm restaurants and food courts to
have meals as their domestic helpers go home to celebrate Idul
Fitri, which fell on Nov. 25 and Nov. 26. With only supermarkets
operating during the holiday, as many vendors at traditional
markets also went home, families preferred to dine out instead of
cook.

Rubi failed to provide the number of visitors as he said only
the management could give the figure but they would only resume
working on Monday.

At Pasaraya Grande food courts, some families even had to
stand for a while before they could get seats to enjoy their
meals.

Besides dining, parents also used their time with their
children at the amusement center inside the malls.

"After spending their money on clothes to celebrate Idul
Fitri, parents now bring their children to dine or to enjoy the
amusement center," said Ingrid, an attendant at the Blok M Plaza.

Most malls now offer various kinds of toys and games to
children from merry-go-rounds, video games to bumper cars.

Agus, a staff member at the games center at Atrium Plaza, said
that the number of visitors had doubled compared to other holiday
seasons, like school holiday.

"The number of visitors peaked on Wednesday, a day after the
Idul Fitri," he said, adding that more than 300 visitors came to
the games center every day on regular holidays.

Hartono, a father of two who came all the way from Cileungsi,
Bogor, said that he decided to take his two children to Senen
because they had visited other recreational sites in the capital.

"I had taken my children to visit the Ancol Dreamland Park in
North Jakarta, Ragunan Zoo in South Jakarta and the Indonesia in
Miniature Park (TMII) in East Jakarta, during previous Idul Fitri
holidays," he said.

"But visiting a games center like this is a new experience for
them," he added.