Indonesian
food has been a very important part of my life simply because I grew up with it
and it’s kind of living in my blood, and I have to personally thank them for
giving me such a sharp palate. Indonesian food is known for having rich &
bold ingredients and what’s better for a foodie than growing up with a palate
that could be vibrant yet in the same time versatile.
Short
to say, for me, Indonesian food is the BOMB.
Face
it, no matter where you go, you will always miss that little piece of
comforting home food, and lucky enough, we’ll never be more than a few hours
from home.
A
couple of weeks ago, I visited this restaurant called Puang Oca which
specializes in Makassar food. I have passed this place a number of times but never
actually tried it. The restaurant is located precisely next to Hotel Mulia and
easibly noticeable! It’s spacious with this large “PUANG OCA” signage placed on
the restaurant, upon entrance you’ll have to pass the secure parking gate, you
might have to pay the parking fee, but on the other hand, security is totally
guaranteed.
This
particular outlet in Senayan is their second outlet after opening its first
successful branch in Surabaya, there’s not much difference with the F&B
menu, but the Jakarta outlet clearly has the more sophisticated and homey
ambiance to the large outlet. Specializing in Makassar cuisine, the region is
pretty well-known for its fresh seafood produce, and being an avid seafood fan,
I am definitely thrilled to experience what they have in store, and just like
most Sulawesi food, they’re mostly spicy, but rest assure as you can always
request how you want your food to be.
Sambal Set - FREE
They
have several types of chili here, but the regular serving procedure is to mix
everything you’re seeing here. It has this nice burst of flavor, it’s just
savory with a hint of sweet and nutty.
Healthy Juice (IDR 25k) &
Ice Tea Sangria (IDR 32k)
Kopi Jendral Bintang 4 –
IDR 98k
This
is their signature drink here, if you’ve had Teh Telok before, it’s pretty
similiar to that, only here they infuse the drink with a little bit of alcohol
(baileys). You can adjust the level and amount of alcohol you want in the
drink, had the standard – level 3 and it was perfect for me. I still want the
coffee flavor to come first and overshadowed by the alcohol and it worked just
fine, perfectly sweet and creamy.
Acar Tuing-Tuing – IDR 28k
This dish
is normally Makassar local’s favorite appetizer, it’s basically a fish-roe dish
served with shallot and cucumber pickle. The flavor is unique that it might not
be for anybody, but me? I personally like it! The flavor is overall light with
a hint of sweet from the pickle juice, it also has this very chewy and crunchy
texture on every bite and a good start to warm up my palate before getting to
the other courses.
Tumis Bunga Pepaya – IDR 32k
Just
the perfect side to accompany my rice and the main courses, because when you
have Indonesian food, you need to have everything altogether. It has this
beautiful combination of savory, spicy and bitter (the good bitter).
Udang Sito Balado Pete –
IDR 168k
Fresh
and chunky prawns cooked in Balado sauce and patai. The prawns here very fresh
and perfectly firm without being overcooked. The seasoning was rich but not
uber spicy, I don’t like patai so I didn’t have one.
Palumara
Palumara
is another signature Makassar dish consisting of Turmeric based soup dish with
Ikan Bandeng Cabut Duri (boneless milkfish). I expected the soup to have this
more kick of seasoning to meet my savory-sour standard, but I genuinely love
the fresh fish, and good thing they’re boneless! Eating bandeng can be pretty
tricky at times.
Kudu-Kudu Goreng Tepung –
IDR 175k
Kudu-Kudu
is Makassar’s fish breed and is pretty rare that’s why they’re just a tad
higher when it comes to the pricing. I did ask the staff there and they indeed
have the direct supplier and will make sure that they will not run out of stock.
Kudu-Kudu is usually cooked deep fried but pre-coated with batter to give that
crispy and crunchy coating.
Ikan Sukang Bakar Rica –
IDR 220k
NOW
THIS IS THE BOMB! My favorite dish of the lunch that day. The fish, Sukang, aka
Leather Jacket fish is loaded with meat, that when you grill it, it can be
pretty soft yet dense, which then makes it just the perfect fish type to grill
(do take note).
The
highlight must be the spicy chili dressing and the seasoning of the fish. The
default spiciness is quite spicy for my standard, which is good as an excuse to
have more rice (hahaha), but seriously even the seasoning of the chili is just
perfect. I love it when chili has this savory flavor to it.
Kepiting Jumbo Asap – IDR 288k
Another
must try in Puang Oca, their tasty Kepiting Jumbo Asap. Just like their name,
the crab is very meaty, chunky and coated with their awesome Padang sauce, here
you can choose different types of sauces too. While some would share, I don’t
think I would.
When
you found a pearl in the ocean, big chance is that you’ll love it.
When I
happened to discover a freaking hidden gem, I thought to myself where on earth
have I been all this time.
Eating
in Puang Oca might not be the cheapest, but I seriously had no complaint
towards the food here. The food are typical home food that I can have anytime,
executed beautifully with rich and bold seasoning. Rice is totally needed for
the rescue. Finally a very good Indonesian restaurant which I can happily
recommend to people.
Puang Oca
Jl. Gelora Senayan
Komplek Lapangan Tembak Senayan
Jakarta Selatan 10270
021 - 5785 3680
Average spending for two: IDR 300k
Dresscode: casual
FIND ME HERE
Map for Puang Oca
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