Oh how I love Indonesian food. The taste, the texture, the smell! Maybe I’m biased because I’m Indonesian but I assure you, if you haven’t had Indonesian food, you really are missing out. Even when traveling abroad, I always carry sambal (Indonesian chili sauce) with me. I cannot be separated from Indonesian food. Although I have favorites, I always enjoy trying out different Indonesian cuisine. Now, friends know that I’m a lover of Indonesian cuisine, and feel that I already know all the food from my homeland – and yet the restaurant I’m about to talk about has managed to surprise me. Plataran is located in Dharmawangsa Street, Jakarta, which has been well known as the most exclusive and affluent residential areas of Jakarta since old days. This restaurant is run by Plataran Hotels & Resorts, which has several boutique resorts and hotels in selected exotic areas in desired Indonesian tourism destinations such as Komodo Island and Ubud, Bali. The dishes they served managed to be traditional yet with a modern twist. The first dish I tried was an appetizer called brinjal chips. They’re eggplant chips with chili, garlic and chicken floss. It was so good! Perfectly crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. Although the chili can be a bit overwhelming if you don’t like spicy food. Beware… |
When the second dish arrived, I was yet again surprised. It is called the bebek manggis curry. It’s a duck curry dish with mangosteen! Talk about weird. Although it’s considered a house specialty, I gotta be honest, this was a bit of a miss for me. I would have simply enjoyed the duck curry without the mangosteen.
Now on to the drink, I decided to try the es tiga warna. It literally translates to three coloured ice. It consists of carica papaya, sugar palm fruit and basil. This drink was definitely a hit! Super refreshing and perfect for a hot scorching Jakarta day.