Beautika (Manado Food)

Beautika is the most reputed Manadonese restaurant in Jakarta, and my second favourite after Ikan Tude. It actually started as a beauty salon (hence the name), which was also serving some specialties from Manado. With time, the food became the main source of revenue for the owner and he finally opened a proper restaurant in 2001.

The food, as spicy as spicy can be, is mostly delicious and authentic. 2 problems: I imagine that the fish is frozen and I believe they do not serve pork. For these reasons, it won't save you a trip to Manado if you want to experience the original taste...

At last, it is way too expensive. My total bill for two people was Rp350,000, and we only had about 5/6 dishes to share.

 

Overall: I recommend Beautika for anyone who wants to try quality Indonesian food, regardless of the price, in a clean/hygienic setting. The atmosphere is rather functional: Tables and a TV, so I wouldn't advise it for a date or for important dinners.

Beautika Tanah Abang
Jl. Abdul Muis No. 70 A, Tanah Abang V         
Tlp. 021 - 381.2340
Fax. 021 - 350.5162

Beautika Kebayoran Baru
Jl. Hang Lekir No. 1, Kebayoran Baru
Tlp. 021 - 722.6683
Fax. 021 - 739.6137

Email: info@beautika.net
Website: http://www.beautika.net/

D'Marco Café (Martabak)

D'Marco Café is located on Jalan Sabang, 5 minutes walking from the backpacker street Jalan Jaksa. It is a simple place to hangout, with minimalist design and cheap prices. Opened on May 2012, it is becoming a popular hangout spot as the three owners are quite active to promote their restaurant and to organize events. The concept of specializing in Martabak, the Indonesian streetfood favourite (a sort of thick pancake) is also helping. It's a little more expensive than eating it in the street, but still very reasonable as the prices range from Rp10,000 to Rp26,000.

Overall: Recommended for backpackers or tourists staying near Jalan Jaksa and to office workers looking for an after-work hang-out place. They have also hosted a few CouchSurfing events.

Opening Hours:
Daily from 7am to 11pm

D'Marco Café
Jalan Sabang No 43A (Next to Hoka Hoka Bento)
Phone number: +62-21 3190 9015
Facebook: D'Marco Café

Seribu Rasa (Indonesian Food)

 

Seribu Rasa is one of the most famous Indonesian/Malay restaurants in Jakarta. Located near the Plaza Indonesia roundabout, it is popular with locals and expats, and it is a good venue to experience some of the food specialties from the different islands of Indonesia.

I didn't find that the atmosphere inside was exceptional, except if you choose one of the private dining rooms around the fountain. The main room was actually completely full and noisy when we arrived, and I thought it lacked coziness. Also, we had to wait a few minutes before sitting so do make a reservation if you can (Phone number: +62-21 392 8892).

They have a great menu with a picture for each one of their dishes, making the picking easy. The prices are high for Indonesian food, but by international standards it is very affordable. You should not pay more that Rp130k (11 euros) per person for a large meal with drink.

I had the following:

Hokkien Spring Rolls (Rp30k)

Malay Kerabu Mangga (Rp29k)

Lamb Curry Bengalis (Rp82k)

Semilir Brastagi (Rp31k)

Overall: Both the appetizers were great, but I found that the lamb curry was too mild. It isn't the best Indonesian food I've had, but it is rare to have such a variety of dishes in one restaurant. This is the main reason why I recommend you to visit Seribu Rasa, and why I think it is OK to pay a premium.

Also, I usually don't talk about drinks, but the Semilir Brastagi is a must-try. It comes from Sumatra, and it is made with Strawberry, Mint leaf, Cranberry juice and Monin grenadine.

Opening Hours:

Every day, from 11am to 3pm and from 6pm to 10pm

Seribu Rasa Restaurant

Jl. H Agus Salim 128, Jakarta, Indonesia

Phone number: +62-21 392 8892

Website: http://www.seriburasa.com

Facebook: Seribu Rasa

TeSate (Jakarta)

TeSate is an Indonesian cuisine restaurant located in the malls Plaza Senayan and Pacific Place. It is usually very crowded, even though it is quite expensive in my opinion.

I visited the TeSate Pacific Place, where I ordered the Jimbaran Grilled Fish (Rp180k for 400 grams!). The food looked delicious and the recipe seemed creative, but I found it lacked freshness (see the lemon on the picture for instance). For this particular dish, I recommend you to try Baruna Seafood restaurant in Menteng instead.

In spite of that, I recommend TeSate to Indonesian food lovers who are looking for dishes more elaborate than those they can find in warungs or street food stalls. Their menu features an interesting variety of dishes and it is indeed a culinary journey through Indonesia. Expect to pay around Rp200k per person for a full meal + drinks.

Latest news about TeSate Indonesia on Facebook: Click here.

Opening Hours: 

Every day from 10am to 11.30pm (2am on weekends)

TeSate Senayan
Plaza Senayan, 4th Fl Bl CP Unit 414
Jl. Asia Afrika No. 8, Jakarta
Phone: (021) 572-5521
Fax: (021) 572-5521

TeSaTe Pacific Place
Mall Pacific Place level 5 unit 62-63
Jl. Jend. Sudirman Kav. 52 - 53, 12190, Indonesia
Phone number: +62-21 579-73653

Ampera (Sundanese restaurants)

Ampera is the largest chain of Sundanese food restaurants in Indonesia, with so many branches that it would be hard to list them all. I tried the one in Jalan Agus Salim (Sabang), near Sarinah.

As with most traditional Sundanese restaurants, all the food is presented to you upon entering, and after that, you choose the items you want to eat. While you wait, you can take some vegetables, and most importantly, the sambal (spicy sauce). In terms of taste, don't expect something amazing: At best, it will similar to what you could have in any good warungs. 

The only reason to prefer Ampera is that generally speaking, their standards are more consistent. They also have A/C, and the one in Sabang is conveniently opened 24h on weekends. The management of the franchise network is loose though, and I would not say it is impossible that some Ampera restaurants taste more average. If you go to Bandung, the original one on Jalan Soekarno-Hatta is supposed to be the best.

Overall: For Indonesian-food lovers, Ampera should already be among your favourites. For the others, I recommend you to try it at least once. At Rp40,000 a meal, you won't take much risks anyway...

Warung Nasi Ampera
Jl. KH.Agus Salim No.32A
Phone number:  +62 21 31930875
Jakarta

For more locations and to see the detailed menu, check their website: http://www.ampera.co.id/

Bali Jimbaran (Jakarta Seafood Restaurant)

 

Bali Jimbaran is one of the many seafood restaurants located near Mangga Dua, opposite ITC on Jalan Gunung Sahari. I chose to visit Bali Jimbaran particularly because it had the brightest outside sign, and also because it was the most crowded.

The restaurant is large, with two dining areas on two floors. First, you can select your fresh seafood and fish, and then watch how the cook prepares it in the open-kitchen. It is not a beautiful venue: There is no real decoration, the hygiene looks average, the road nearby is noisy and the aircon is not working properly. As in any open-air restaurants in Jakarta, beware of the mosquitoes as well. On the "plus" side, it looks authentic and the prices are cheap.

We ordered quite many dishes, among which Fish, Squid, Sea Shells and Prawns. I cannot find the bill anymore but the cost was around Rp150,000 (for 2 people). The grill was not available so they fried everything, which proved a bad idea because the cooking oil used was not good quality and they put too much of it. I remember I was quite disappointed, but I still don't know if it is because of the taste of my food, or because I didn't get exactly what I had in mind. My friend was not as severe as myself and he told me he enjoyed his meal a lot, especially the prawns.

 

Overall: I think Bali Jimbaran serves average food, not worth the ride to Mangga Dua if you don't live nearby. They could probably improve the overall atmosphere also, because as it is now, it is far from resembling any restaurants from Jimbaran in Bali...

Opening Hours:

Everyday, from 11am to midnight

Bali Jimbaran Gunung Sahari

Jl. Gunung Sahari Ancol no: 6A, Jakarta Utara
Phone number: +62-21 641 5119/ 641 5120

Facebook: Bali Jimbaran Ikan Bakar

Also in Muara Karang and Jalan Juanda:
Jl. Muara Karang Raya no: 121, Jakarta Utara
Phone number: +62-21 666 01901 / 666 01903

Jl. Ir. H. Juanda Raya no: 31B, jakarta Pusat
Phone number: +62-21 384 5215 / 386 5776

Baruna Balinese Restaurant Jakarta

Baruna Seafood is a Balinese chain of restaurants, with one of its outlets located in Jimbaran. The atmosphere in Jakarta is quite different, but for expats who have been stuck in Jakarta for too long, eating in Baruna may at least bring back some happy holiday memories...

The restaurant is organized around a pretty Balinese garden, with a small pond, tropical flowers and decorated tiles. There are a few different areas, some outdoor (the nicest ones), some indoor with A/C. There is free wifi everywhere.

The menu is moderately priced. The specialty of Baruna is grilled fish (Ikan Bakar) so I went for the grilled Kakap Merah (Red Snapper) which costs Rp 60,000++. The presentation is excellent: They will bring your fish on a wooden plate with a banana leaf inside, and the sauce and the spices. My fish was a little small compared to the red snapper I had in Bali, but it tasted just as fresh. I also tried the Bebek Betutu (duck, Rp 60,000), a spicy Balinese dish with the duck cooked in an aluminium foil. Delicious.





We took some expensive dishes so we paid Rp 100,000 each. The average should be less, around Rp 70,000.

Conclusion: Recommended place to eat in Jakarta. Not too expensive, not pretentious, good Indonesian and Balinese food, well presented and in a relaxing setting.

Baruna Ikan Bakar has a live music show in its outdoor garden (pop/jazzy vocals with keyboard) every Tuesday, Friday and Saturday night.

Restoran Baruna Ikan Bakar Jakarta
Jalan Kebon Sirih Timur Dalam No 37
Phone number: +62-21 392 1333

Opening Hours: Monday - Sunday from 10am to 11pm.

Bebek Bengil (Jakarta Branch)

Bebek Bengil is a Balinese restaurant, originally from Ubud, Bali, which opened a branch in Jakarta in 2009.

It was quite a challenge to re-create a Balinese atmosphere in Central Jakarta with the pollution and the traffic, but the final result is not bad. It would have been better to make it in a house in Menteng though because in its current location, you cannot help but see the towers all around the garden. There is another Balinese restaurant nearby which is more peaceful in my opinion, Baruna (see review).

The specialty of Bebek Bengil (which means "dirty duck") is the Crispy Duck. They also have some popular Balinese, Indonesian and Western dishes, but I didn't try them.

Here are a few pictures of the food we ordered:

Appetizer: Crispy Mushroom (Rp34k++)

Main course: Crispy Duck (Rp72k++)

Dessert: Vanilla Ice Cream Tart (Rp35k++)

I also had the "Hanoman street" mocktail (Rp35k++), very sweet but recommended.

I'm not a big fan of Crispy Duck: I find there isn't enough flesh to bite into and also, you never know if it is a bone, the skin or the meat that you are eating... I must recognize though that the one in Bebek Bengil is very tasty, especially if you eat it with the Balinese sambal they give you. I only had small bites of the Crispy Mushroom and Vanilla Ice Cream Tart, and I thought they were average.

Overall: Bebek Bengil is not an exceptional restaurant, but it is worth trying for its relaxing outdoor garden (far different from the original in Ubud, be warned!). Naturally, it is also recommended if you are a fan of Balinese-style Crispy Duck.

Opening hours: 

Everyday, 11am to 11pm. Beware of mosquitoes if you come around sunset.

Bebek Bengil

The Ubud Building

Jl. Agus Salim No.132

Menteng, Jakarta 10310

Phone number: +62-21 391 8016 or +62-21 391 7965 or +62-21 391 8091

Fax: +62-21 391 7721

Email: bebekbengil.jakarta@yahoo.co.id

Also in Ubud: 

Jalan Hanoman, Padang Tegal

Bali 80571

Phone number: +62 361 975 489 / 977 675

Fax: +62 361 975 489

Email: bebekbengil@indo.net.id