DINE, DANCE AND PLAY. MANDALA HANDPICKED THREE INTREPID SOULS TO MAKE THEIR CHOICE OF THE CITY’S 25 BEST RESTAURANTS, CLUBS AND NIGHTCLUBS, REPRESENTING JAKARTA’S AFTER DARK EXPERIENCE. SO READ ON TO FIND OUT ABOUT THE PERFECT EVENING IN THE CAPITAL

PHOTOGRAPHY | TIMUR ANGIN

DINE

Words: Ve Handojo

If you’re on a diet, avoid Jakarta. Here, you can leap from one truly distinctive culinary experience to another and, before you know it, have the whole world inside your stomach.

Authenticity and originality are the keywords. Fusion is over, classic is back. This is obvious at the 12-year-old, Toscana. Still crowded nightly, Chef Mario de Carlini’s secret is simple: “Italian food is home cooking. It’s a friendly cuisine, and will never be arrogant.” Expect traditional spaghetti with an authentic Italian taste inside a friendly and intimate trattoria.

At Puro, thin, crispy pizzas reach new alluring heights. Pretty by day, thumping after dusk, this resto-bar-lounge is a Yuppy playground complete with expansive bar and DJ lounge.

The Indonesian culinary art is celebrated in Bunga Rampai and Lara Djonggrang – each with a different twist. Dressed in bright natural colors and floral ornaments, Bunga Rampai’s atmosphere is elegant and friendly, with a nostalgic hint of Dutch colonial romance. It elevates Indonesian fine dining to the next level, so if you’re looking for a perfect lunch with local flavor, this is it.

For jaw-dropping finery, try Lara Djonggrang. This historic house in Gondangdia has a majestic tree-lined courtyard and was rebuilt based on its original layout, then colored with vivid hues and stuffed with antiquities from Indonesia, Myanmar, Afghanistan, Morocco, Turkey, and Cambodia. Described as “the most mystical place I’ve ever been to” by one Australian hotelier, Lara Djonggrang serves sophisticated imperial Indonesian cuisine from across the archipelago, with secret recipes spanning generations. Be sure to ask the staff to take you for a mini-tour.

With a similar charm and exotic ambience, the Moroccan Maroush boasts Chef Sezai Zorlu, once featured in Time magazine. Zorlu presents richly textured and flavored Moroccan and Ottoman delights, from filo pastries and kebabs to tagines and couscous.

At Jakarta’s heart is the Bunderan Hotel Indonesia with two different grill restaurants. At Grand Hyatt’s C’s, enjoy seafood and grills in a dazzling open kitchen. And be sure you try the mango pudding.

Across the street in Wisma Nusantara is Y Grill, which looks like a New York loft and serves pedigree certified fresh pure-bred Wagyu marbling grade 9+ beef. There are only 50 Wagyu cattle of such a grade produced in Australia each month. To score a business deal or win someone’s heart, Y Grill is just the ticket.

Sophistication reaches its peak at The Papilion. This glass-panelled building is home to famed interior designer Anouska Hempel’s French fine-dining creation, confidently called Shy. The best deal at Shy is on Sunday mornings, when an elegant brunch is served. If you’ve got a sweet tooth, head downstairs to Huize van Welly – a holy ground for chocolate lovers.

The new kid on the block, just around the corner from Wijaya’s residential area, is Birdcage, where posh late diners gather around solid wood tables, sipping cocktails and feasting on pasta, meat and tapas. The attic is superb for private parties.

Wine buffs should head for Cork & Screw. Here they can select a meal from the menu and then head to the wine cellar to pick their own tipple of choice.

Eat, enjoy, and then eat some more. And whatever you do after leaving Jakarta, avoid the weighing scales.

DANCE

Words: Simon Pitchforth

A cheeky person once said of Indonesia’s capital: “It’s a nice place to live, but I wouldn’t want to visit.”

There is more than a grain of truth in that statement when it comes to Jakarta’s dance scene. It does take a while to get a handle on the variety of clubs and bars the city has to offer. Yet with the right advice, the reward is well worth the effort.

Jakarta’s best venues are spread all over town, hidden away inside skyscrapers, rather than an easy entertainment district. The city’s clubs and bars also open, close and reopen at a dizzying rate. We in Jakarta are a fickle audience and the flavor of the month is soon deserted for trendier pastures. Few become truly established. Yet this constant flux means there is always somewhere new.

Lush surroundings are increasingly the rule. New additions to the Jakarta night scene appear locked in an interior decor contest to produce the most opulently extravagant and artfully lit surroundings. And while weekends are the busiest time, Wednesday is an established midweek night out, a chance to de-stress in a city of 12 million.

And the patrons? Aside from misfits such as myself, they can simply be called the beautiful people. Jakarta’s clubs are places to be spotted, and Indonesia’s uber-glamorous night clubbers are as hip and elegant as any on the planet. Here’s a quick spin around some of the city’s highlights.

For music lovers, there is plenty on offer. Serious clubbers head to Embassy in Taman Ria, a custom-built club that plays host to the hippest international DJs on the dance music circuit. Arrive after midnight on Fridays or Saturdays for some devilishly deep grooves and the chance to mingle with the mobile-phone brigade.

Centro in south Jakarta, a branch of the once-famous Singapore club, also plays host to big name spinners, who rocket through the amazing sunken dance floor with regularity. To keep abreast of club nights, consult Jakarta Kini or Kabar magazines.

If music comes second to a chance to mingle with a champagne-sipping crowd in artful surroundings, then Dragonfly will be to your tastes. It oozes style and has been the city’s hippest bar-restaurant-club for a couple of years. The dance floor here is well lit and friendly, but there are often long queues to get in.

Public is more mellow and features chunky grooves. Its lengthy bar runs from the entrance to the large Taman Ria Lake at the back. Here, one can sip martinis with the young crowd who flock in. Just don’t fall in the water.

For a multi-room, cavernous club experience, try Blowfish. With its House and R&B tracks, it’s a neon-lit pleasure-dome – think MTV studio stage meets Starship Enterprise, packed with young BMW drivers. Inside, a quieter wine bar offers sumptuous white leather furnishings amid what must be 1,000 bottles of wine.

Another popular disco bar is Nu China on south Jakarta’s famous Kemang strip. A small, stylish darkened lounge bar, Nu China serves a fine cocktail. For a more kitsch and theatrical experience, head to the Soviet-themed Red Square, which is perhaps the most densely packed club in town and one of the friendliest. However, finding the rest rooms presents a major challenge – alternatively, just keep dancing.

PLAY

Words: Erza S.T.

Jakarta is spoilt for choice when it comes to sophisticated night fun. A host of entertainment venues, coffee shops, modern cinemas, salsa clubs, upscale karaoke – even shows by the likes of Björk or Beyoncé – are opening the city up for night owls and insomniacs alike. For those with an eye for the refined, here’s a six-stage program to get you started.

Indonesia’s cafes are starting to match the quality of its coffee harvest. Anomali focuses on single origin beans from Sumatra, Java, Toraja and Kintamani, and first-grade coffee ranked by the Specialty Coffee Association of America. Try the fusions, like the creme brulee. Delicious.

Speaking of fusion, or confusion, how about ten-pin bowling while dancing in sparkling lights to disco hits. Twilight Zone? No, it’s Twilight Bowling, the weekend offering of Spincity inside the Plaza Indonesia. Spincity offers 22 synthetic bowling lanes, with six lanes reserved for children. Also on-site, Q-Billiard offers 20 superb Brunswick tables, in one of the most luxurious billiards centers in the country. Game on.

In Jakarta most of us love to sing, so for a karaoke encounter of the plush kind, try XKTV in Senayan City. No seedy surroundings here – the black tiles, glass lights in bamboo shapes, and mirror ceilings bring the sexy back to singing. With 64-inch plasma TVs, quality controls, and half-price happy hours, the only thing XKTV can’t guarantee is your control of the song.

Or leave the singing to the professionals down at Black Cat, the home of live Jazz. From Monday to Sunday, Black Cat jams to Indonesian artistes like Idang Rasjidi, Otti Jamalus and Oele Pattiselano, as well as international guests.

For more live music, Burgundy at the Grand Hyatt Hotel is the city’s most chic cocktail music spot, offering a range of music from chart toppers to disco and rock and roll. It is a playground for Jakarta’s Yuppies and socialites. Dress up and have yourself a chocolate martini as you watch the live performances.

Salsa is one of Jakarta’s favorite dance alternatives and Thursday night is salsa night at The Champagne Lounge in Mistere at The Ritz-Carlton Jakarta, and features live performances from the Primavera Latin band.

If you prefer curling up with a good late-night movie, sink into a sofa bed inside the exclusive Velvet Room at the new Blitz Megaplex in Pacific Place Mall.

Whether you prefer popcorn or salsa, cocktails or coffee, Jakarta has a rich menu of options to help you play your night away.

WHERE TO?

Birdcage:
Wijaya 9 No 23, Kebayoran Baru 12160 Jakarta, tel +62-21-7392430

Bunga Rampai:
Teuku Cik Ditiro 35, 10310 Jakarta, tel +62-21-31926224

C’s:
Grand Hyatt Jakarta, MH Thamrin Kav 28-30 10350 Jakarta, tel +62-21-3906056

Cork & Screw:
Lara Djonggrang, Teuku Cik Ditiro 4 10310 Jakarta, tel +62-21-3153252

Maroush:
Crowne Plaza Hotel Jakarta, Jalan Gatot Subroto Kav 2-3, Jakarta 12930, tel 62-21-9290 1313

Puro:
City Plaza @ Wisma Mulia Jend, Gatot Subroto 42 12710 Jakarta, tel +62-21-52971212

Toscana:
Kemang Raya 120, 12730 Jakarta, tel +62-21-7181216

Shy:
Kemang Raya 45 AA12730 Jakarta, tel +62-21-7190789

Y Grill:
Wisma Nusantara 3rd Fl, MH Thamrin 59, 10350 Jakarta, tel +62-21-31936026

WHERE TO?

Blowfish:
City Plaza at Wisma Mulia, Ground Floor, Jl Jend, Gatot Subroto No 42, Jakarta 12710, tel (021) 5297 1234

Red Square:
Plaza Senayan Arcadia Unit X No 105, Jalan New Delhi No 9, Pintu 1, Senayan, Jakarta 10270, tel (021) 579 01281

Embassy:
Taman Ria Senayan East End, Building Unit 704, Taman Ria Senayan, Jl Jend, Gatot Subroto, 10720, tel (021) 570 3704

Public:
Taman Ria Senayan East End, Building Unit 101, Jalan Jend. Gatot Subroto, Jakarta 10270, tel (021) 574 5494

Dragonfly:
Graha BIP, Jl Jend, Gatot Subroto 23, Jakarta 12930, tel (021) 520 6789

X2:
Plaza Senayan 4th and 5th floor, Jalan Asia Afrika No 8, Jakarta Selatan 10270, tel (021) 572 5559.

Centro:
Jl Dharmawangsa IX, South Jakarta (next to Citywalk), tel (021) 7278 0818

Nu China:
Jl Kemang Raya No 24, South Jakarta, tel: (021) 718 2968

WHERE TO?

Anomali Coffee Shop:
Jl Senopati No 35, Kebayoran Baru, Jakarta 12190, tel +62-21 5292 0102

XKTV:
Senayan City Lower Ground 06, Jl Asia Afrika Lot 19, Jakarta 10270, tel +62-21 7278 1536

Spincity:
Plaza Indonesia, Entertainment X’enter 1st Floor, Jl MH Thamrin Kav, 28-30 Jakarta 10350, tel +62-21 315 7227 or +62-21 315 7225

Black Cat – Jazz Supper Club:
Plaza Senayan Arcadia Units X 208/209 Jl New Delhi – Pintu 1 Senayan, Jakarta 10270, tel +62-21 5790 1264

Burgundy:
The Grand Hyatt Jakarta 4th Floor, Jl MH Thamrin Kav 28-30, Jakarta 10350, tel +62-21 390 1234.

Mistere Salsa Night:
Lower Ground, The Ritz-Carlton Jakarta, Jl Lingkar Mega Kuningan kav E1.1 No 1, Mega Kuningan, Jakarta 12950, tel +62-21 2551 8888.

Blitz Megaplex:
Pacific Place Mall on SCBD, Jl Jend, Sudirman Kav 25 Jakarta, tel +62 -21 514 00 800.