
Jakarta never seems to run out of pleasant places to eat. Entering 2014, several new eateries around the city are set to entertain visitors' palates with their new concepts.
Love trying new things? Here’s three interesting newly-opened eateries in the city that The Jakarta Post Travel has picked out for you.
Suntiang Restaurant
West Sumatran food is a matter of national pride as well as a favorite among local residents, but despite its scrumptious popularity, West Sumatran traditional cuisine still hasn't offered curious foodies much creative variation. At least not until now.
Try to visit Suntiang Restaurant at Pondok Indah Mall 2 in South Jakarta.
Strategically located within the shopping mall's Restaurant Row on the third floor, Suntiang serves more than 50 various fusion dishes that uniquely combine West Sumatran and Japanese food.
Upon visiting Suntiang's establishment, guests will be greeted with a blend of Japan and West Sumatra's décor, dominated by modern grey and yellowish hues as well as minimalist Japanese designed sofas and tables.
In contrast, an orange West Sumatran songket pattern can be found adorning the walls while the region's contemporary music is played in the background, which emphasizes its uniqueness as a fusion restaurant.
As for the food, a smorgasbord of spicy and rich-scented food stacked on a table as well as a round-shaped sushi bar complete with its conveyor belt showcasing rows of dishes ready to lure visitors' taste buds.
The eatery's signatures include rendang (beef simmered in coconut milk and spices) roll, edamame balado, rendang tamago bowl and sizzling beef tongue served with green chili and asam pade (sour and spicy stew).
The rendang beef tasted rich in flavor - though the fact that it was served with a cold sticky rice might make it look less appetizing for those used to eating it with a plate of hot steamy white rice.
Other varieties of West Sumatran-style sushi you might want to try are ayam pop roll (seasoned chicken sushi roll) and dendeng roll (spicy dried beef sushi roll).
For an appetizer, a dish called Gyoza Duo Raso (two flavored Japanese dumplings) offers a great scrumptious snack. The savory dumplings were filled with ayam pop (seasoned chicken meat) and dried rendang beef and served together with rendang, asam pade and curry dip sauce to jolt your palate.
As a thirst quencher, various fresh fruit juices are available as well as refreshing flavored teas such as mango green tea and lemongrass lychee tea. If you still have room, you can also try Suntiang's signature dessert - laman katan sarikayo - made of glutinous rice, coconut milk, brown sugar and pandanus leaf with a sticky delicate texture and sweet taste.
Suntiang opens daily from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Udon-Ku
If you ever wonder what it feels like to time travel back to Japan's Edo period, when the Tokugawa Shogunate was still in power, a visit to the recently opened UdonKu restaurant might be an exciting option.
This latest addition to the Kawano Group's management, hidden on the basement floor of the Mid Plaza building in Central Jakarta and claiming itself to be an edgy and casual dining restaurant.
Stepping inside, guests will be drawn into an old Japanese street during the Edo period and immediately feel comfortable due to its intimate ambiance (thanks to the yellowish warm low light) and overall authentic details that highlight the owner's commitment to stay true to its origin.
As for the menu, the restaurant's name says it all.
Serving fresh and aromatic udon (Japanese noodle), Udon-Ku offers a customizable bowls of noodle with a wide variety of delicious toppings. Three kinds of savory soups, namely the spicy Japanese curry, Shiro (the white soup) and Kuro (the black soup), are available according to a guest's liking.
Using only the freshest ingredients, Udon-Ku provides guests with not only the freedom to select any toppings to go with their noodles, but also to pick how their eggs are cooked and what their tempura sauce will be.
Udon-Ku's exclusive signatures include ebi ten tetsu nabe udon with crispy light prawn tempura on top of deep stewed udon served in a Japanese kettle pot and a delectable dipping udon served with chicken called tori nanban tsuke udon.
Udon-Ku opens daily from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Howdy Hello Holla Hey Ho
Craving for some Asian street-style dining? The newly opened Howdy Hello Hola Hey Ho (or also called Hey Ho Asian Street Eatery and Bar) offers you Southeast Asian delicacies, especially the diverse flavors of Thai, Vietnamese, Malaysian and Singaporean street hawker-styles of cuisine.
Located on the 5th floor of the Grand Indonesia West Mall, the establishment - which is owned and managed by the OPCO group, which also runs other eateries in the city such as Portico, Yellowfin and Stark Bierhaus - offers a rustic industrial yet funky feeling. On one side of its wall, there is a vibrant illustration of a street food scene in Vietnam while a small antique TV is placed on one of the tables.
The dining area, adorned with a cozy yellowish dim light, is divided into two parts - the non-smoking area on the inside and the smoking area outdoors.
For an appetizer or snack, you can opt for salt and pepper squid with a chili sauce. The squid is soft and the chili sauce is not too hot yet is still tasty.
As for the main dish, there are several on Hey Ho's popular menu, such as bahn mi (grilled pork or shredded chicken, pate, pickles and coriander wrapped in a thick baguette) and com tam (pork or chicken served with broken rice, meatloaf, fried egg and pickles).
The chicken com tam was soft and delicious and the fried egg that goes with it was cooked perfectly and melts in the mouth. The bahn mi baguette was a bit hard to chew, but the chicken's flavor mixed with pickles and coriander was very savory.
Partly a bar, Hey Ho also serves alcoholic drinks and liquor at a reasonable price. One of its highlighted drinks is called Leslie Chow's orgy party that will be enough for a booze party up to six people. The drink itself is actually a refreshing white sangria mixed with infused absolut blue, triple sec, chardonnay with lemongrass syrup, cloves, lemon juice, longan, pineapple and water guava, served in some kind of a box along with six tin cups.
For a mouthwatering dessert, mango mania can be a good option. It comprises white sweet sticky rice served with slices of mango and a slice of mango sorbet. The combination of the warm sticky rice and the cold mango sorbet creates a surprising sensation in the mouth.
Hey Ho opens daily from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekdays and until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays.