whatsup Jakarta: Buffet Galore at Asia Restaurant

Whatsup!!

From time to time, I found myself in a glutton mode, where coming to a restaurant that serves only one style of cooking is simply not enough.

That’s when self-pampering came knocking, it is that time of the year where I let myself to a buffet galore in a 5 star hotel (not forgetting to wear my ever faithful very elastic pants). The buffet serves the freshest ingredients and dishes from around the world in a not so shabby location, the Ritz Carlton Hotel. The hotel has two locations with one in Mega Kuningan and second at Pacific Place Mall. The buffet place I am about to visit is the one at Mega Kuningan called Asia Restaurant located in the Ground floor.

Walking inside the restaurant, I was mesmerized by the interior, nicely lit that gives off a nice ambience and that subtle glamour that screams grandeur. The restaurant usually is bustling during rush hour, which was about the time I arrived; yet the service was impeccable ushering patrons and with the tables being far apart from one another felt spacious and comfortable.

The food served on the buffet menu was well diverse, from Italian, western, Mexican, Korean, Indian to local Asian flavors. There are endless options from pasta, nachos, ribs, grilled BBQs, salads and sushi to name a few. Menu itself deserves applause for the impressive hefty servings.

Personally, I always rate how successful buffet in hotels by their raw ingredients and the perfect place to test it would be the Japanese section, the sashimi; salmon, tuna, snapper and prawns were perfectly fresh and they passed with flying colors. It was so fresh that it melts once it hits your mouth. The Teppanyaki, sushi rolls and nigiri sushi did not disappoint; the rice was how Japanese rice should be (well balanced of vinegar, salt and sugar) and filling was plentiful. Highly trained chefs are stationed readily at the Japanese section that allows custom requests to satisfy the food snob in you.

Moving on to the Chinese section, I found my favorite food, the dim sums; siomay, hakaos, dumplings are among the few. Dimsums are perfect ‘fillers’, finger food between the heavier food, and they are kept warm in a steamer. Though it looked like they might be dry (placed in the steamer for a bit too long) but they were not, it was moist and still tasty. The heavier meal would be the Bak kut teh, roasted duck and steamed Hainanese chicken, which were skillfully cooked, truly a satisfying meal from the Chinese section.

Moving on to the last section before the tummy would gave up on me was the Italian section. I always have a soft spot for pastas and I had to try the Bolognese pasta, I like my pasta classic, the sauce of Bolognese was on the sweeter side and the meat was hearty. I made one last squeeze attempt of the oxtail soup (it was literally calling my name), the broth was rich in flavor, well spiced and the meat was tender and perfectly cooked.

Just when I thought I could not take in any more food, dessert sections beckons and I had to comply. I tried everything they served; from local desserts, slices of cakes, pastries, chocolate fountain, churros, ice cream and fresh fruits. I was bombarded with sugar heaven and it was such sweet ending to end my BIG meal.