It’s no secret that I am an avid fan of Indonesian cuisine, and as much as I love the street food stalls, sometimes I do enjoy a little luxury, too. When it comes to that part, my first thought always goes to these beautiful restaurants by Plataran Group, which are built and decorated with thick Indonesian cultural atmosphere, and with the line of delicious signature Indonesian cuisine, they never fail to impress. One of these restaurants is Plataran Dharmawangsa, which is the reason why this post exists, and I hope you are as excited as I am!

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As quoted from the official website;

Situated in the elite residential neighborhood of Kebayoran Baru, along Jalan Dharmawangsa where The Dharmawangsa Hotel is located, Plataran Dharmawangsa presents authentic Indonesian cuisine within an atmosphere of Javanese royalty. Since its inception, the restaurant has consistently received recognition and awards, including ‘Best Indonesian Restaurant in Jakarta’ by the prestigious Indonesia Tatler, and is the choice dining venue for Jakarta’s high society and expatriate crowd.

Designed to resemble a traditional royal Javanese family compound, the restaurant includes a 150-year-old wooden heritage Joglo house, wooden Javanese pavilions, a prayer house aged more than 50 years old, and an elegant glass-roofed conservatory, overlooking a beautiful tempo doeloe style garden that is characteristic of houses in this exclusive area.

Personally, I always love history and culture is definitely part of my interests as well. Every details in this place is so rich and meaningful but I won’t include everything here on this post, so you can still enjoy the real experience when you decide to visit. Tell you what, I am still mesmerized by the purple Cadillac parked in the entrance lobby, so pretty! Heard that the vintage car is the owner’s personal collection and it will change periodically as he has lots of them! 😉

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With extensive area of 1,500 sqm, Plataran Dharmawangsa is divided into 4 unique spaces that represent classic residence of Javanese royalty: Sedap Malam Room, Kenanga Room, Melati Room and Kantil Room.

  • Sedap Malam Room is the main dining room located inside an authentic Joglo house aged approximately 150 years or 3 generations, with an 80-seater dining capacity.
  • Melati Room, an area with a capacity of 40 seated dining, is a conservatory room housed under a transparent glass roof and equipped with air conditioning, where patrons get to enjoy the vibrant greenery of Plataran Dharmawangsa’s garden.
  • Kenanga Room is a semi outdoor room especially constructed for all patrons who long to enjoy the fresh breeze underneath a transparent roof, with a capacity of 20 seating capacity. These three rooms are interconnected to each other and can be used altogether.
  • Kantil Room is found in a separate authentic Limasan house aged 2 generations, equipped with its own facilities, and can accommodate a maximum of 60 seated dining. Limasan is an original Javanese house consisting of four rectangle plans housed with four roofs comprising two kejen/cocor roofs and two parallelogram bronjong roofs.

Altogether, these four rooms of Plataran Dharmawangsa are surrounded by lush greenery and trees, where fresh air and natural comfort can be enjoyed right here in the heart of elite Jakarta. With seating capacity for up to 200 guests, Plataran Dharmawangsa is not only suitable for casual dining, but also for special occasions, from private celebrations to wedding receptions and corporate events, where patrons can dine within traditional Indonesian interiors, or semi al fresco surrounded by lush greenery.

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The authentic Joglo house aged approximately 150 years.

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Kantil Room, which is separated from the Joglo house where the other 3 rooms are interconnected to each other.

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Although Plataran Dharmawangsa offers authentic Indonesian cuisine, but you can easily find many Asian fusion dishes as well. What I love about dining here is the extensive selection of the menu, from appetizers to desserts, and variety of (alcoholic and non alcoholic) beverages and concoction. Let’s see what we tried!

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Bola Bola Cokro IDR 69,000

Starting from appetizer, we had Bola Bola Cokro, which are actually deep-fried chicken squid balls served with peanut sauce. I can never say no to any meat balls, especially when they are deep-fried with golden skin. However, to be completely honest with you, we think there is nothing really special about it and there’s no way we order it again in next visit.

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Salad Putri Dewi IDR 54,000

Followed with Salad Putri Dewi, which is fresh combination of guava, jicama (or known as bengkoang in Indonesia), oven-dried tomatoes, drenched in sweet and spicy dressing. I and Mr. K actually love this appetizer as it’s very unique and refreshing especially because I love jicama (bengkoang) so much and this salad has so many textures and flavors in such a simple dish!

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Brinjal Chips IDR 69,000

Our favorite has to be this Brinjal Chips, which are actually made using Aubergine (dark purple eggplant). These Brinjal Chips can be easily mistaken as potato wedges, but they are actually much healthier and less-guilty for sure! The aubergine/eggplants have low calories, and are known to be nutritious and act well as antioxidants. These chips are crunchy and full of flavors, thanks to the companion of chili, garlic and chicken floss. Once you start, it’s hard to stop! Don’t say I didn’t warn you. 😉

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Oyong Telur Puyuh Soup IDR 89,000

For the soup, we had this silky gourd soup cooked with quail egg, fish ball, and shimeji mushroom. The soup is clear and frankly speaking, not something that makes you drool. Surprisingly, the soup was very tasty, and the combination of ingredients work well together resulting in a very favorable simple soup before moving on to the heavier meal.

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Ayam Dharmawangsa IDR 129,000

This menu definitely needs no more introduction! As one of Plataran restaurants’ signatures menu, Ayam Dharmawangsa features chicken high scallopini topped with union mango slaw, pomelo, with sweet and sour spicy sauce. Fresh, fresh, fresh! That’s all I think whenever this comes up to mind. Some think that it resembles Thai chicken salad, but actually it’s different and it has its own originality and authenticity as Indonesian cuisine. Imagine those crispy chicken eaten with crunchy mango slaw, along with the bittersweet pomelo and also the sweet sour spicy sauce? Uh la la, this sounds like the greatest dream a foodie can have!

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Nasi Goreng Keling IDR 80,000

There are many versions of fried rice in Plataran Dharmawangsa menu, but we tried this black kalamata olive fried rice, prawn, chicken, served with crackers. The portion is really good, I think it can be enjoyed by 2-3 person if you order other dishes as well, and it is very satisfying. Surprisingly, I could really taste the olive in the fried rice, and it gave a soothing, unique flavor to the whole dish. I also love the fact that the fried rice was very well-cooked and not soggy, as personally I love dried fried rice rather than the “wet” one.

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Tahu Jamur IDR 75,000

Homemade bean curd with sauteed mushroom is like, a super comfort food and you can also find it here in Plataran Dharmawangsa.

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Bebek Manggis Curry IDR 125,000

Okay, let me state this first, this Bebek Manggis Curry ROCKS!! As a seasonal menu, you have to be really lucky to be able to order this one. As the name suggests, it uses mangosteen, which is only available in limited time/season only. Lucky for us, it’s the harvest season during our visit so we could try! This dish consists of roasted duck served with mangosteen and curry sauce, which is already so appetizing even only from its looks.

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The roasted duck is so meaty and perfectly juicy, and the sweet and sour mangosteen really brought out the curry flavor and helped balancing the density. I can’t say anything negative about this dish as I was extremely engrossed in the beauty and flavor of it, and I am amazed that the chef can create such a delightful combination of strong-flavored ingredients without overpowering each other. This is definitely MUST ORDER item when you have the opportunity!

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Udang Gandum IDR 189,000

Who’s up for butter spicy oatmeal prawn? These irresistible dish is easily found in many seafood or Asian restaurants, but you gotta try Plataran version! The prawns are big, still served with the shells (I prefer them peeled off), and holy moly, the butter spicy oatmeal mountain is so tasty you want to grab your spoon and stuff them into your mouth, no kidding. The prawns are super fresh so it doesn’t take much effort to peel the shells off, but still. XD Well, a little effort for bigger pleasure won’t hurt, right?

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Dendeng Batokok IDR 179,000

Beside Ayam Dharmawangsa, this is definitely the most popular signature dish of Plataran restaurants and rumor has it that even expatriate patrons love it so much and some even take the hassle to bring it back to their countries. The air-dried beef are spiced with traditional Sumateran relish -where it originally comes from. The beef slices are so crispy and tasty, you can enjoy them alone or with rice, spicy enough for the kick, but we don’t mind a spicier one for sure! If you happen to visit Plataran restaurants, don’t miss it.

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Pisang Bakar Plataran IDR 49,000

For the dessert, we had grilled bananas which are uniquely combined with cheddar rosti, and served with caramel sauce. The bananas were the hard kind, but the cheese gave nice texture and surprise in the middle. Perfect companion for tea or coffee after a pleasant lunch.

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Onde Onde IDR 45,000

Another favorite of yours truly, I can’t take this off my mind since the last visit to Plataran Dharmawangsa! These sesame seed coated glutinous rice balls are stuffed with red bean, have slightly chewy and soft texture, and seriously, one of the most addictive things EVER. I am always easily drawn to anything round when it comes to desserts or snacks, and as I really like Indonesian traditional jajanan pasar kind of desserts, having these cute balls on my table is like double happiness for me. These onde-onde are freshly made by order so you’ll need to allow several minutes for them to prepare these for you. I certainly won’t mind waiting!

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Beside the food, we also had Plataran Dharmawangsa’s recommended beverages such as:

  • Es Cincau Hijau Lychee (IDR 49,000): green jelly grass, lychee, coconut milk, and palm sugar
  • Es Tiga Warna (IDR 52,000): fruit carica, kolang kaling, selasih and simple syrup
  • Dharmawangsa Delight (IDR 42,000): blended of terong Belanda, guava, and lime

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Afternoon Tea Special

If you visit during weekdays and you only want to have something light, now Plataran Dharmawangsa also offers delicious afternoon tea experience with only IDR 150,000++/2 persons, valid only Monday – Friday at 2PM – 5PM. Included in the package is afternoon refreshment coffee and tea, and 8 types of treats (4 sweets & 4 savory).

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Dining here in Plataran Dharmawangsa opened my eyes that eating Indonesian food in luxury restaurants can be worth it. Not only they have many food that are only available here and other restaurants don’t have, but I also enjoy every moment I had there. The greens, the natural surrounding, the chirping birds, I felt so refreshed and enlightened. Plataran Dharmawangsa is not only a restaurant or dining place, but it offers much more than that. I am ashamed to say that this was our first visit although I had always wanted to come but never made time to actually do so. This is a kind of place that I will never get bored of, and I am sure more visits will be done in the future. See you again, Plataran Dharmawangsa!

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* All prices are subject to 10% service charge & 11% government tax

** This review is written based on our visit on 10 March 2018.

 

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PLATARAN DHARMAWANGSA
Jl. Dharmawangsa Raya No. 6
Kebayoran Baru
South Jakarta 12160

Ph.
+62 21 290 44 167 | +62 813 9869 8769 |+62 8139869 8768
WEBSITE | FACEBOOK | TWITTER | INSTAGRAM

Opening Hours:
Mon-Sun 11AM – 10PM