Locavore Rintik Rintik (Akar - Jakarta)

March is still the rainy season in Indonesia and yeah - here and there, most of the times we feel the heat rising in the afternoon, followed by the rain pouring mid-day. I don’t know about you but my favorite part of the rainy season is truly the after rain smell; the earthy aroma is just calming. And yes - Locavore took a chance and create a ‘Rintik Rintik’ theme which means Raindrops.

I’ve been putting Locavore on my list for a couple of years but I didn’t have the chance to visit their place since they are located in Bali. With their POP-UP that’s been taking place a couple of times in Jakarta (and somehow - I still missed it every time), I was still in the unknown, but not until about a week ago - when they came back and brought their newest theme all the way from Bali. I’m not even kidding - I was intrigued and extremely excited and booked a spot right away. They partnered up with Akar Restaurant that’s located in Gunawarman and sure enough - the experience was higher than my expectation though.

With a total of 14 courses and an optional of Indonesian Ingredient Craft Drinks Pairing (6 cocktails & 2 mocktails) - dinner left me speechless. The price for the prix-fixe menu was IDR995,000++ and an additional of IDR 550,000++ for the drinks pairing. Looking at the design of their menu indeed gave me the sense of futuristic type of feeling with the menu idea that is actually a representation of an ‘umbrella.’ They split the courses into 3 different parts from Bites, Main Course and Dessert. I’m quite a big fan of Gastronomy cooking cause it literally shows the science of good eating and also the creative side of Chefs ;) and boy, let’s dig into their dishes, shall we?

Food Rundown:

The Other (extra) Cocktails that we shamelessly ordered:

soooo at first, I didn’t plan to order the 8 cocktail pairings so…… I gave these two cocktails a go…. I like these two cocktails. The left side is actually on the sweeter side and the right side is on the stronger using gin as the base.

Bites

Bites #1 - Crispy Leaves: Sounds weird? you’re not the only one. I had my doubts trying out these leaves but damn. honestly? one bite was all it take to make it unstoppable.

Bites #2 - Black rice blini, smoked egg emulsion, crispy black rice: one word - SEND HELP! These bites number 2 is the bomb! The smoked egg emulsion is smoky enough that tastes so so good when you eat it altogether. Swear, if I can order extra - I would (and salivating while typing rn).

Bites #3 - Deep fried smoked shallot, cashew sour cream, fermented shallot powder - this bites doesn’t make the cut. It’s just okay, nothing too special. The cashew sour cream is just a bit bland after I had bite number two.

Bites #4 - Pickled mangkok leaf, smoked tofu, aromatic cuko dressing: interesting, interesting. I didn’t have a high expectation for this one. But once again, I’m wrong - yup. the smoked tofu makes it perfect and it almost tastes like tuna somehow. Loving every flavor of these bites!

Bites #5 - Hot & Cold Tomato Soup: So… I think they use tomato sorbet for this one to make the ‘cold’ part? It’s a tad weird for me cause it tastes a bit too sweet. Texture wise not really a fan cause it kinda breaks when I eat it together - but good to wash the taste away before getting those main course.

Main Course

& Indonesian Ingredient Craft Drinks Pairing

Main Course #1: - Scallop ceviche, citrus, smoked peanut milk, pickled fresh peanuts, burned lime oil : Refreshing - that’s the perfect combination of this Bites number 6. I like it.

CRAFT DRINKS #1 - Bone Kombucha & Vodka infused orange: too sweet, can’t drink this as the opening of the cocktail pairing.

Main Course #2 - Raw Lamb, Kari Kambing Shio Koji, Wild Leaves, Warm Lamb Fat Vinaigrette, Crispy Aromatics: Interesting, a raw lamb. I think as far I can remember, I never tried a raw lamb before. Usually lamb have the tendency to have that kind of unpleasing smell; however, surprisingly this one does not. The wild leaves - oh, they’re just great.

CRAFT DRINKS #2 - Spiced rum, white rum with some syrup that I embarrassingly forgot the name: kinda reminds me some original cocktails that I kinda like. The combination of the ingredients are unique enough but it works, somehow.

Main Course #3 - Mud crab, egg white garum emulsion, duck egg yolk, lots of chives, pickled spring onions: I can honestly say I dislike duck egg yolk starting today. Yup, the smell of the duck egg was just too strong and I couldn’t eat it anymore. The mud crab and pickled spring onions says otherwise though - thankfully they’re able to help to take the taste of the eggyolk. oof, that was rough.

CRAFT DRINKS #3 - Arak, daun cervio & tomato consume - one sip and I know I couldn’t take it. it’s slightly a bit too unique for me and it just didn’t work with my preference.

Main Course #4 - Fish of the day, charred oyster emulsion, smoked oyster vinaigrette, salted cucumber: easily this fish of the day is good. The crispiness of its skin is oh, perfection. But that was not the highlight of this one - the cucumber though? ohhh nothing else beats’em.

CRAFT DRINKS #4 - Arak kafir lime syrup & cucumber: wow, this drink is super refreshing! It gives the perfect blend of fresh and sweetness.

Main Course #5 - Baby cabbage, grilled with miso dressing, shitake XO, kimchi, burnt kailan emulsion: shut the front door - this vegies party is truly a perfect / unforgettable experience.

CRAFT DRINKS #5 - Vodka, tamarind & homemade ginger: the vodka is quite strong and the semi-sweet, lighter side - this cocktail still works.

Main Course #6 - Black chicken, potato garlic crème, black garlic emulsion, chicken skin cracker: this black chicken is simple yet quite memorable. the potato garlic crème makes a whole lot different!

CRAFT DRINKS #6 - Hendrick gin, coriander & madu: I think the Hendrick gin makes everything else better. Love how simple this drink is and this makes a great team with the black chicken!

Dessert

Dessert #1 - Frozen rice porridge, blood berry sorbet, crispy rice, reduced blood berry kombucha: ok I love the sourness of the sorbet - perfect to reset my tastebud. love the rice porridge too - it gives a sense of after-party kind of vibe ;)

CRAFT DRINKS #7 - Boni kombucha: I think the this kombucha is one-of a kind with the dessert as part of the pair. It gave me a feeling of confusion in a way - so it left me either/or thinking.

Dessert #2 - Arrowroot brioche, french toast style, sourdough bread miso gelato, mulberries: Ohhh fancy dessert that I LIKE! This is truly a unique dessert that I can’t find it anywhere at all.. I guess. Yup, I can definitely say I approve.

CRAFT DRINKS #8 - Arak miso & caramel: in my head it screams “pretend it’s white wine” and surprisingly - this arak miso is quite like it, in an okay side.

Dessert #14 - HAS Chocolate (Dark, Milk & White): I honestly only like Compartes Chocolate Bar cause I’m quite picky when it comes to chocolate bars. Don’t get me wrong, these HAS Chocolate bars are okay but not on the perfect side though - sadly. The dark chocolate is not ‘dark’ enough and the milk + white are just ok. The chocolate drink though didn’t make the cut too sadly - too watery for me.

Overall, I think this is my 4th Gastronomy dining experience in Indonesia and surprisingly enough - Locavore is the best one so far. I really love how the way they are able to create something unique using local ingredients that shows a different side of Indonesian gastronomy food scene. I’d rate this experience as 8/10 for the the food alone and 6/10 for the craft drinks pairing. The service is actually good, the servers were able to explain the food one by one at the right speed and quite helpful whenever we needed something. Honestly? One day, I’d really love to try in their original location in Bali in the next theme so, fingers crossed! Definitely worth to try for this one.