Bumbu Desa Restaurants

Bumbu Desa is a chain of Sundanese food restaurants, popular in Jakarta and in other Indonesian cities. There are quite many branches, at least 27, so I cannot say if the quality is the same everywhere. The one I tried was in Bandung, near Paskal Hypersquare.

Compared to other similar buffet restaurant, I was impressed by the standards of Bumbu Desa. The number of dishes is huge, with around 50 to choose from, and they all looked very fresh. Since I cannot handle spicy food very well, I had to stick to only a few specialties unfortunately and could not give you a fair review. Yet, my friend, a native of Bandung, had only good things to say about what we ate, even though she considered that you will find better and cheaper food in many warungs everywhere in Indonesia.

I guess for non-adventurous expats, Bumbu Desa is worth trying since it will familiarize you with Indonesian cuisine without taking too many risks.
The design is traditional, but modern and comfortable, and the service very attentive. Considering all this, I found the value for money of Bumbu Desa excellent: Rp100,000 for two.

To find the location of one particular branch, you can visit their website: http://www.bumbudesa.com/.

Bumbu Desa
Jalan Tengku Angkasa no7
Dago, Bandung, 40132

Phone number: +62-22 253 4460
Fax: +62-22 253 4390

Olive Tree Restaurant (Hotel Nikko)

The Olive Tree is one of the restaurants of Nikko Hotel. If you don't choose the buffet (Rp228,000++), the menu "à la carte" consists of various popular international dishes, plus some local favourites.

We tried 3 dishes, the Tasmanian salmon (Rp155,000++), the Lamb Rack (Rp180,000++) and the Seafood Pesto soup (Rp50,000++). Note that the Indonesian dishes are much more affordable. The food tasted fine, just as you would expect for these prices. However, my overall feeling was that the restaurant lacks charm. We were the only customers that evening and it seemed like the whole place was sleepy.

Overall, if you stay in Nikko Hotel, it is a good place for eating, but otherwise don't bother coming: You won't find anything in Olive Tree that you cannot find somewhere else, especially for such prices.

Opening hours:
Breakfast buffet (5.30am to 10am)
Lunch Buffet: 11.30am to 2.30pm
A la carte: 11am to 11pm

Olive Tree Restaurant
Hotel Nikko Jakarta
(On the upper floor of the Lobby)
M.H. Thamrin No. 59.
Central Jakarta

Phone number: +62-21 230 0288
Website: Olive Tree Jakarta
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/#!/nikkojakarta

Satoo Buffet Restaurant

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Satoo is one of the restaurants located in the 5-star hotel Shangri-La. It has an amazing buffet for lunch and dinner, with food from all over the globe, and in particular Indian, European, Indonesian, Japanese and Chinese. Really impressing!! Considered as the best buffet restaurant in Jakarta.

The décor as well is splendid, but it so big that it is not very intimate. Lots of people walking around and shouting... It is a bit tiring..

The price of the buffet is different during the week and on weekends:
During the week, the lunch will cost you Rp178k++ and Rp188++ for dinner. During the weekend Rp208k++.

You can also go for the light lunch buffet only during the week for Rp100k.

It's expensive but you should try it once, on a day you feel really really hungry (or if you can get your company to pay for it...). It is the perfect occasion to try a lot of different food for each continents.

More information and photos on this website: Satoo Buffet Jakarta and on the official facebook page here.

Shangri-la Jakarta Hotel
First Floor, in front of Shang Palace
Jl. Jend Sudirman Kav. 1
Jakarta Pusat, Indonesia
Sudirman

Opening hours:
Breakfast (Buffet): 6 AM – 11 AM
Lunch (Buffet): 11 AM – 3 PM
Dinner (Buffet): 6 PM – 11 PM
Sunday Brunch (Buffet: 11.30 AM – 2.30 PM)