Dining with Uniqueness
Known for his role as a judge in Master Chef Indonesia and one of the most famous local culinary experts, Chef Degan Septoadji recently opened his new and first restaurant in Jakarta; situated in the laidback South Jakarta neighbourhood, his Letter D Cuisine & Bar was launched in January 2015. Following the success of Cafe Degan in Bali, which opened five years ago, Chef Degan envisioned another restaurant that represents his culinary journey. Each dish at Letter D Cuisine & Bar is an expression of his extensive travels around the world, coupled with different cultural culinary influences, adding up to a world of unique, palatable local and international tastes.
With a variety of restaurants, cafes and other culinary places in Jakarta, Chef Degan and Nike Kurnia, his wife who manages the place, are convinced that Letter D Cuisine & Bar has its own uniqueness and signature that will garner attention from the masses. “With Letter D, I have a great team to work with and I can’t wait to make my own mark on the fantastic dining scene in Jakarta,” Chef Degan explained. The excellently trained team is very polite and friendly, promising to deliver the best service. The price range is quite humble for such a pretty venue. This restaurant controls the quality of food and all the ingredients, with the chef himself making sure of that. You’ll get a wonderful dining experience in Letter D Cuisine & Bar.
As an Indonesian, Chef Degan has been around the world to learn about and explore cuisine, yet his calling is to make Indonesian cuisine internationally known. Through his dedication and experience, he wants to share his knowledge through different creations and tastes. Unlike Cafe Degan in Bali, which offers a true Indonesian cuisine, Letter D Cuisine & Bar has many varieties on the menu, you will find Western, Asian, Italian and Indonesian cuisine. You’ll even get the chance to taste East-meets-West cuisine, like sayur lodeh (a traditional Indonesian dish) blended with the freshness of salmon, which takes this traditional dish to the next level.
Salmon Lodeh is Chef Degan’s signature creation and definitely a must try! The rich flavour of a super-moist slow-roasted salmon fillet on a bed of vegetables in coconut broth is exquisite. Lodeh is an authentic, tasty Indonesian delight with coconut milk and vegetables. The savoury, slightly sweet coconut milk blends perfectly with the delicate salmon.
The refreshing Seared Prawn Avocado is a nutrient-packed salad with a tomato-parsley salsa, quail egg and citrus-honey vinaigrette. Talay Pao is another one to try. It’s a dish from Thailand containing assorted pan-seared seafood with garlic, chilli, coriander, fish sauce, lime, asparagus and green beans. It was beautiful to look at as it was colourful on the plate. This dish is served with a bowl of hot steamed rice, which makes it just perfect.
There are a few more selections from the grill with premium cuts of meat and delicious sides cooked to perfection that will suit your taste buds. As for dessert, a piece of cake with a cup of coffee would be perfect! Or if you feel like having Indonesian cuisine, you can order the bubur sumsum. There’s a corner on the first level dedicated to coffee and cakes. Tanamera coffee is available here and there are different pastries every day.
This two-storey building is quite spacious. The concept was to keep it simple but unique, with an edgy-modern style. You’ll find the same consistent setting on each floor, dominated by wood with everything laid bare in perfect harmony, much like the ingredients in Chef Degan’s dishes. The first level is dedicated to indoor dining and is a non-smoking area, but don’t worry, there’s also an outdoor dining area that allows for smoking. You can see their semi-open kitchen as you enter through the main door. The second floor houses the smoking area and the bar, serving cocktails, beer and wine until after midnight on weekends. This level is used for private events or small gatherings as well.
(www.letter-d.co)
