Ain't we got class?
One really fun thing about Indonesia is that we occasionally get to pretend we're high society and do things like dine and/or stay overnight in five-star hotels.
We've adapted pretty well, pretending we know what fork to use and managing not to gape openly at the crystal chandeliers and mahogany furniture. We weren't exactly five-star hotel people at home, but we weren't Bubba's Motel 'n' All U Can Eat Vittles folks, either. We had no dead automobiles being used as lawn ornaments, didn't carry around Mt. Dew bottles half-filled with chewing tobacco spit, took down our Christmas lights by the second week of January and realized that, absolutely, the mullet was no longer an acceptable hairstyle.
While seeing how screwed-up some of our students (the overpriviledged youth of Indonesia) are gives me no desire to be in the same social class as The Donald, it is kind of fun to pretend to be fabulous for a short while.
One fancy hotel we've been to several times is the Shangri-La. The Shangri-La itself is a sight to behold. We've been to Margaux, the hotel's French restaurant, several times for their famous Sunday brunch. It's a favorite with our fellow expats for special occasions, and we also took Kristin and Mark and Kim there. It's a buffet that includes all the champagne, red and white wine and amazing food a person could possibly stand. Very fancy-schmancy, but kind of tricky because the second you take a sip of champagne and turn your head, your glass is refilled. This means two hours into the brunch things can get interesting...as in "let's all make our crystal glasses sing!" or "let's sing our different national anthems at top volume in the middle of this crowded restaurant!" interesting. Never wear high heels to a champagne brunch...or go to a mall that's frequented by students directly afterwards. Anyway...
Tonight a bunch of us made reservations at Satoo, the Shangri-La's new international restaurant. On weekend evenings it's supposed to boast a pretty fabulous buffet, with everything from seafood to Indian to Italian to a dessert bar with a chocolate fountain. "Chocolate" is basically the only word I need to convince me to go somewhere, so we thought we'd give the place a try.
Travis and I arrived 45 minutes before our 7 p.m. reservations, because our driver wanted to leave home early in case of bad Jakarta traffic. We decided to sit in the swanky lobby lounge to wait for our friends. Travis ordered a vodka Collins, I ordered a glass of cabernet sauvignon (using my wealth of wine knowledge, meaning I asked the waitress for her recommendation and then took it hoping it didn't taste like turpentine as she was most likely Muslim therefore does not drink wine) and we sat back to listen to the live piano music. When our drinks came, I almost burst out laughing. There, sitting in a scalloped sterling silver dish among the crystal and cut glass, was a stack of Pringles potato chips. How very...normal. In the middle of the silk-papered walls and the upper crust of Jakarta society, this Nebraska girl sat and very happily munched away.
The same sort of thing happens at the Sunday brunch. It never fails that, over by the cheese, fruit and pastry table, one can find mini chocolate donuts. These little guys are usually nestled on a tray of pastries that are almost too gorgeous and intricate to eat. Ah mon Dieu, les donuts chocolats. I always make a point to eat at least two.
Dinner at Satoo proved to be amazing. Italian, Indian, Japanese, Indonesian, Korean, Chinese, seafood, a grill station where they'd serve up any meat you could want (and then some), and a dessert buffet with a chocolate fountain. This was the best part. There weren't any Pringles or chocolate donuts, but between the ice cream station and the chocolate fountain there was a gigantic glass bowl full of rainbow-colored candy sprinkles. I gleefully drenched my skewered strawberries in the cascade of chocolate and then proceeded to sprinkle away. I added a few M&Ms to up the fancy factor, since all of the other desserts were of the artsy French variety. Food on a stick+candy sprinkles=five star in my book!
Wine snobs are always talking about which wines go best with which foods, so I thought I'd offer my alcohol+food suggestions, as I have now dined at fine establishments:
Champagne or sparkling white wine: best with donuts, preferrably the little ones that come in a big bag
California cabernet sauvignon: pairs nicely with Pringles plain potato chips, though if the vintage is a 2000 or older, may I suggest Cheez-um or Rockin' Ranch flavored instead
Bintang, Indonesia's version of Pabst Blue Ribbon: for maximum taste, serve after other beer...lots of other beer.
We've adapted pretty well, pretending we know what fork to use and managing not to gape openly at the crystal chandeliers and mahogany furniture. We weren't exactly five-star hotel people at home, but we weren't Bubba's Motel 'n' All U Can Eat Vittles folks, either. We had no dead automobiles being used as lawn ornaments, didn't carry around Mt. Dew bottles half-filled with chewing tobacco spit, took down our Christmas lights by the second week of January and realized that, absolutely, the mullet was no longer an acceptable hairstyle.
While seeing how screwed-up some of our students (the overpriviledged youth of Indonesia) are gives me no desire to be in the same social class as The Donald, it is kind of fun to pretend to be fabulous for a short while.
One fancy hotel we've been to several times is the Shangri-La. The Shangri-La itself is a sight to behold. We've been to Margaux, the hotel's French restaurant, several times for their famous Sunday brunch. It's a favorite with our fellow expats for special occasions, and we also took Kristin and Mark and Kim there. It's a buffet that includes all the champagne, red and white wine and amazing food a person could possibly stand. Very fancy-schmancy, but kind of tricky because the second you take a sip of champagne and turn your head, your glass is refilled. This means two hours into the brunch things can get interesting...as in "let's all make our crystal glasses sing!" or "let's sing our different national anthems at top volume in the middle of this crowded restaurant!" interesting. Never wear high heels to a champagne brunch...or go to a mall that's frequented by students directly afterwards. Anyway...
Tonight a bunch of us made reservations at Satoo, the Shangri-La's new international restaurant. On weekend evenings it's supposed to boast a pretty fabulous buffet, with everything from seafood to Indian to Italian to a dessert bar with a chocolate fountain. "Chocolate" is basically the only word I need to convince me to go somewhere, so we thought we'd give the place a try.
Travis and I arrived 45 minutes before our 7 p.m. reservations, because our driver wanted to leave home early in case of bad Jakarta traffic. We decided to sit in the swanky lobby lounge to wait for our friends. Travis ordered a vodka Collins, I ordered a glass of cabernet sauvignon (using my wealth of wine knowledge, meaning I asked the waitress for her recommendation and then took it hoping it didn't taste like turpentine as she was most likely Muslim therefore does not drink wine) and we sat back to listen to the live piano music. When our drinks came, I almost burst out laughing. There, sitting in a scalloped sterling silver dish among the crystal and cut glass, was a stack of Pringles potato chips. How very...normal. In the middle of the silk-papered walls and the upper crust of Jakarta society, this Nebraska girl sat and very happily munched away.
The same sort of thing happens at the Sunday brunch. It never fails that, over by the cheese, fruit and pastry table, one can find mini chocolate donuts. These little guys are usually nestled on a tray of pastries that are almost too gorgeous and intricate to eat. Ah mon Dieu, les donuts chocolats. I always make a point to eat at least two.
Dinner at Satoo proved to be amazing. Italian, Indian, Japanese, Indonesian, Korean, Chinese, seafood, a grill station where they'd serve up any meat you could want (and then some), and a dessert buffet with a chocolate fountain. This was the best part. There weren't any Pringles or chocolate donuts, but between the ice cream station and the chocolate fountain there was a gigantic glass bowl full of rainbow-colored candy sprinkles. I gleefully drenched my skewered strawberries in the cascade of chocolate and then proceeded to sprinkle away. I added a few M&Ms to up the fancy factor, since all of the other desserts were of the artsy French variety. Food on a stick+candy sprinkles=five star in my book!
Wine snobs are always talking about which wines go best with which foods, so I thought I'd offer my alcohol+food suggestions, as I have now dined at fine establishments:
Champagne or sparkling white wine: best with donuts, preferrably the little ones that come in a big bag
California cabernet sauvignon: pairs nicely with Pringles plain potato chips, though if the vintage is a 2000 or older, may I suggest Cheez-um or Rockin' Ranch flavored instead
Bintang, Indonesia's version of Pabst Blue Ribbon: for maximum taste, serve after other beer...lots of other beer.
posted by Erin @ 10:46 AM
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