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A powerful gust of rich, smoky aromas greeted me as soon as I entered the restaurant. It was easy to see why: My eyes were drawn to a dazzling display of chefs masterfully handling fire. Elsewhere in the dimly lit room that framed explosive cooking happening in the kitchen, a slew of exotic ingredients was proudly displayed.
I could immediately tell that my taste buds were in for an exquisite night at Charkoal, Ismaya’s newest flame-themed restaurant located at the heart of Jakarta’s SCBD district.
Charkoal is Ismaya’s newest flame-themed restaurant and is helmed by the decorated chef Adhitia Julisiandi. I was fortunate enough to try its inaugural first-season roster of dishes.
“We want to celebrate primal cooking, as each dish we serve utilizes smoke and flames in unique ways,” Adhitia explained. “This method of cooking is very intertwined with Indonesian culture, and this restaurant proudly pays homage to that while also embodying my dreams.”
The 14-course culinary journey I experienced that night was a creative use of open-fire cooking for a dynamic array of culinary styles. I could ramble on about each dish, but I want to highlight a few that I think excellently represented Adhitia’s vision.
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We started with bread from a wood-fired oven that was served with nori butter smoked with rambutan wood, a clear indication of what to expect for the rest of the evening. The delightful smoky taste of the bread was immensely noticeable, paired nicely with an intensely umami butter concoction.
The next highlight was the oyster kataifi, offering contrasting textures of succulent oysters enveloped in crispy kataifi, served with burned butter, a sprinkle of jamon bacon and raisin jam. The burned butter shone through with its rich charred flavor against the sweetness of the raisin jam, making the dish dynamic yet balanced.
When we came to the stellar entrees, the smoked picanha and the duck with foie gras stood out. These two were prepared immaculately, with the picanha smoked for six hours using aromatic coconuts, and the duck and foie gras presented beautifully with a side of tangy onions and a creamy quail egg.
The entrees were an excellent climax to the whole culinary journey, offering two distinct flavor experiences, the rich, velvety foie gras complemented by a tender mellow steak offering.
Closing off the evening was the smoked Negroni bonbon dessert and tiramisu blitz served as a pair of chocolate orbs. Much like the entrees, these two gave contrasting textures that accentuated each other's flavors. The Negroni bonbon was smoked beforehand and had a subtle dark chocolate aftertaste, while the tiramisu blitz exploded with flavor, coating my taste buds with a flavorful sweet syrup.
It perhaps should not be a surprise that Adhitia managed to create such an exquisite menu, given his illustrious 10 year globe-trotting culinary career.
"Every dish presented at Charkoal is not just to satisfy the palate, but a work of art that combines my dedication to detail and innovation," he said.
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This article is part of The Weekender, a biweekly tabloid that appears in the Saturday edition of The Jakarta Post. Offering a variety of feature articles on lifestyle and culture, it aims to enriching your reading experience. Subscribe here to access The Jakarta Post's Saturday edition and all Premium content.
