March of the Martinis
The legendary 101 Martini Brunch at The Ritz-Carlton Jakarta, Mega Kuningan’s Lobo restaurant offers an unbeatable array of tasty tipples as well as fine Italian fare.
The Ritz-Carlton Jakarta, Mega Kuningan has long been known for its singular contribution to Jakarta’s Sunday brunch tradition – the 101 Martini Brunch. It’s a beautiful boozy exercise in extravagance and an ideal way to laze away a Sunday afternoon with fine food, good friends and endless drinks. Lobo, the hotel’s acclaimed Italian Steakhouse, is the setting for this alcohol-laden affair, and it is as luxurious as you would expect from The Ritz-Carlton Jakarta, Mega Kuningan, with rich red interiors and tables spaciously spread out, meaning you need not worry that your loud, martini-fueled conversations might disturb the next party over.
Encyclopaedia Martinia
The massive martini menu, which does indeed include 101 different takes on the cocktail classic, is divided up into different families of drink, including sections focused on classic versions like the dry and dirty martini, light and refreshing versions filled with fruits and sweet concoctions composed of dessert-like ingredients. For my first cocktail I opted for the Hazelnut Latte Martini (one of numerous coffee-laden concoctions), consisting of vodka with espresso, milk and hazelnut syrup. Lobo’s skilled bartenders know restraint, and the sweetness of the syrup was nicely balanced against the strong coffee and liquor.
As my compatriots and I sipped from our tall stemmed cocktail glasses, we studied the menu before launching into the buffet. The 101 Martini Brunch features a wide selection of salads, appetisers and desserts served buffet style, as well as a selection of mains cooked to your liking. Many of the mains are duets of protein, and I chose the dish featuring tenderloin steak and king prawn. There are also pasta and risotto options as well.
By the time we had to make the difficult choice of choosing our entrées, my friends and I had already polished off our first martinis and made our second choice. This time I went with the Perfect Martini, which is a mix of a Classic Dry Martini and a Sweet Martini. The nicely proportioned mix of gin with both sweet and dry vermouth was indeed a perfect match.
Delicious Diversions
At last we launched ourselves at the buffet and were again stumped with an overabundance of choice. There was a range of interesting salads such as Chicken Waldorf, tempting slices of pizzas, an array of Italian cold cuts and slices of Iberico ham with accompanying melon slices. Each demanded sampling. There were also iced plates loaded with shrimp, mussels and raw oysters. Defying culinary traditions, I also filled my plate with some of the fine cheeses on offer, like a particularly gooey and rich Camembert, well before the end of my meal.
After a few more martinis and two plates loaded with antipasti, I was feeling slightly tipsy and full. But then our main courses arrive – the sight of my beautifully cooked steak and plump prawn made me forget all that I had already eaten. The two grilled items came with minimum adornment, which served to highlight the skill with which they had been cooked (Lobo is a steakhouse, after all). The tenderloin was smoky and a perfectly pink medium rare while the juicy prawn retained its natural sweetness.
After devouring my dish, I decided to use what precious little space remained in my stomach to eat as many sweets as I could. I also decided to pair my desserts with a dark chocolate martini, thinking it would be weaker than its siblings. I was wrong. My recollections become a little fuzzy at this point, but I do remember enjoying a light and airy tiramisu and a raspberry white chocolate cake that was so tasty I might have dreamed it.
All in all, the 101 Martini Brunch more than lives up to its reputation as one of Jakarta’s most delicious, extravagant Sunday brunches. Come ready to eat and drink and drink some more, and plan to not do anything for the rest of the day.
The 101 Martini Brunch is available every Sunday from 12.00 pm to 03.00 pm. Price is at Rp. 488,000++ per person without alcoholic beverages and Rp. 678,000++ per person with free-flow of Martinis, sparkling wines and house wines. (www.ritzcarlton.com/en/Properties/Jakarta/Dining/lobo/Default.htm)
