Pondok Laguna was one of my worst dining experiences in Jakarta. I may have been unlucky, but from what I've seen, I can only recommend you to avoid it.
It was a big disappointment because Pondok Laguna is actually extremely popular with Indonesians, some of whom consider it as one of the best Indonesian restaurants in Jakarta. Most of the time, it is hard to get a table even though there is enough room for at least 200 persons.
The place looks touristy, with a giant fish sculpture towering above it on the outside, and a Balinese-like atmosphere inside. Most of the restaurant is in the open-air, and on each side there is a fountain with tropical plants.
It was a big disappointment because Pondok Laguna is actually extremely popular with Indonesians, some of whom consider it as one of the best Indonesian restaurants in Jakarta. Most of the time, it is hard to get a table even though there is enough room for at least 200 persons.
The place looks touristy, with a giant fish sculpture towering above it on the outside, and a Balinese-like atmosphere inside. Most of the restaurant is in the open-air, and on each side there is a fountain with tropical plants.
The main room does not allow for an intimate or cozy meal. It is extremely noisy, with people entering and leaving all the time. On top of that you have that annoying Balinese music, which reminds me of the worst venues in Kuta.
Most tables can accommodate 20 to 30 people so you might also sit next to random customers. The service is impersonal: It is hard to get just a minute of attention from the waiters, who seemed visibly understaffed and unable to handle complaints.
We ordered Es Delima (Pomegranate juice, Rp13,200++), Es Jeruk (Orange Juice, Rp18,700++), Ikan Gurame Bakar (Fish, Rp54,600++), Cumi Pete Taoco (Calamaris, Rp38,000++). The drinks came rather quickly, but instead of pomegranate, we were served some jelly with the appearance of the fruit. The orange juice was truly terrible. Obviously, it had been done with oranges that had started to rot, and until today I still have that unpleasing aftertaste in my mouth.
We started to wait for our main courses... After 45 minutes, we saw that many people who had come after us were already eating so we asked if our order was on its way. The waiter smiled and asked us to wait, without even checking in the kitchen. I asked him again 15 minutes later, and he did exactly the same. Finally, after 1h15 minutes of waiting, I decided to leave the restaurant without eating. I told the waiter to bring me the bill for the drinks only, and surprisingly, he came back with the fish (the calamaris came 10 minutes later).
We ordered Es Delima (Pomegranate juice, Rp13,200++), Es Jeruk (Orange Juice, Rp18,700++), Ikan Gurame Bakar (Fish, Rp54,600++), Cumi Pete Taoco (Calamaris, Rp38,000++). The drinks came rather quickly, but instead of pomegranate, we were served some jelly with the appearance of the fruit. The orange juice was truly terrible. Obviously, it had been done with oranges that had started to rot, and until today I still have that unpleasing aftertaste in my mouth.
We started to wait for our main courses... After 45 minutes, we saw that many people who had come after us were already eating so we asked if our order was on its way. The waiter smiled and asked us to wait, without even checking in the kitchen. I asked him again 15 minutes later, and he did exactly the same. Finally, after 1h15 minutes of waiting, I decided to leave the restaurant without eating. I told the waiter to bring me the bill for the drinks only, and surprisingly, he came back with the fish (the calamaris came 10 minutes later).
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| Ikan Gurame Bakar (Rp54,600++) |
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| Cumi Pete Taoco (Rp38k++) |
The presentation of the gurame had nothing special, and its was taste just average. They used a sweet soy sauce, very heavy, which was not a good match for a fresh fish. I didn't try the calamaris but my friend told me it was worth a 5/10, and that you could find better food pretty much everywhere.
Finally, I asked for the bill, but it never came so I went to the cashier to pay.
Overall: Personally, I will not visit Pondok Laguna again and I don't understand how it manages to get so many positive reviews. I guess some people must enjoy the animation. The prices are also reasonable.
Finally, I asked for the bill, but it never came so I went to the cashier to pay.
Overall: Personally, I will not visit Pondok Laguna again and I don't understand how it manages to get so many positive reviews. I guess some people must enjoy the animation. The prices are also reasonable.
Opening Hours:
Everyday from 11am to 3pm and from 5.30pm to 10pm
Rumah Makan Pondok Laguna
Jalan Batu Tulis Raya No.45
Phone number: +62-21 345 9991/9992/9993/9994/9995
Twitter: http://twitter.com/PondokLaguna
Jalan Batu Tulis Raya No.45
Phone number: +62-21 345 9991/9992/9993/9994/9995
Twitter: http://twitter.com/PondokLaguna
Sorry to hear you had a terrible experience there, I personally wanted to try it, but reading this review gives me second though. Have you tried other places like those Indonesian style or Chinese style restaurant in Pantai Indah Kapuk? They are not bad and the price is very reasonable :)
ReplyDeleteHi Jeanne, Pondok Laguna is very popular so I'm sure many people will have a great experence there. I still have many places to visit in Jakarta, do you have a particular restaurant to recommend in PIK?
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear about your misfortune there. I make a point to go here everytime I am in Jakarta. The food is to my liking but the price will definitely depends on your budget. I will personally recommend "ikan terbang" and "ayam kampung". These dishes are a must for me plus you can choose the kind of sambal to go with it.
ReplyDeleteThe place may surely be crowded if you go there at peak hours. Try to go after 8 as the crowd should have eased by then. Better luck next time ok.
"Pondok Laguna was one of my worst experiences for a restaurant in Jakarta. I may have been unlucky, but from what I've seen, I can only recommend you to avoid it."
ReplyDeletei must agree that u just might be unlucky that day. every time we visited jakarta, we did had our lunch or dinner over there. one of our favorite place to be. so far not much comment. we all love the 'sambal, gurame goreng, kangkong sapi, ayam goreng'
there might be a room of improvement..
I agree.. my friend and I went there for lunch, it was quiet, even then we did not get good service. We ordered 2 kind of fish, both tasted weird. I would not recommend anyone to dine here.
ReplyDeleteWent I visited Indonesia, my cousin took us to Bandar Jakarta Restaurant. It's seafood restaurant. Affordable price and the food is very good and My daughter and husband as the first timer visiting Indonesia seem they like the food.
ReplyDeleteI heard many positive reviews about Bandar Jakarta and I've planned to try it for a long time (it's far from where I live)... Your comment motivates me to go as soon as possible!
ReplyDeleteYou are really unlucky to be served by some of the "bad waiter or waitress..
ReplyDeleteI highly recommend Laguna, it is a must visit place for all toursit to jakarta. Even Monas is not owrth visiting rather than Laguna
as a food critic or restaurant critic i think u r inadquate.i go to this resto almost every month and i live all the way in selatan area, much effort but always satisfied. i tried resto and fine dining all over the world and yet i crave always to come back to laguna. its the most original sunda food in jakarta in my personel opinion. and i took every of my foreign guests to laguna everyone and everytime they are satisfied. so pls if u wanna comment on a certain good local food pls do make sure hv the right judgement and taste.
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear about your not-so-pleasant visit to Pondok Laguna. But I personally take this restaurant as one of the best restaurant serving Indonesian seafood. What I really recommend you to try is their tahu kipas(fried tofu filled with vegetables and shrimp), fried/grilled calamari, grilled ikan bangkok, gurame goreng garing(deep-fried gurame) for the food, and kelapa puan/kopyor(provides softer coconut texture) or kelapa muda batok (coconut water still in the coconut itself) for the drinks. I can assure their excellence in taste from not only my personal experience(s) but also from the crowd that appears everytime they started to open for business:) but it's true that their service is not really that great, maybe due to the lack of professionality and they might be overwhelmed with the crowd. Try visiting them once again, it shouldn't take more than 30mins for them to serve the food, who knows u'll have a better luck next time;)
ReplyDeleteno, this is def best indonesian restaurant in jakarta. two days ago, one of my old clients took me here. We ordered gulai kepala ikan, tahu kipas, and gurame goreng; all of them just perfect :D
ReplyDeleteThe price said it all. The food and beverages in Laguna are very affordable, compared to Bandar Jakarta. Of course, you always have options to visit better seafood restaurants at the malls like May Star, Jun Njan, Central Restaurant, Angke, Putian (I do recommend Chinese restaurants because they have the best and the freshest ingredients. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteBack then Pondok Laguna is recommendable, but not again since my recent visits. I also experienced bad service, took hours for the food to come, I had to complained several times until my patient run out. On the other visit, people who came later then us, got their dishes first, such an annoying services. If I have to pay I won't choose this resto.
ReplyDeleteHi there, for those who unfortunate with Pondok Laguna, try to do reservation before coming, it helps. And those people who seemed to get their meals first before you did might had pre-ordered their meals prior coming as well. However, for other options, try Bandar Jakarta. They have opened their resto in 3 areas North Jakarta, East jakarta and West Jakarta.
ReplyDeleteYeah you don't know what you're talking about mate. I've eaten there for years and every time I'm in Jakarta I'll make a trip there. If you call yourself a so called food blogger, maybe order their signature dishes. You fucking based your experience on 2 dishes and 2 drinks. This post is a joke, I can only laugh.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad I made you laugh then... By the way, is there less waiting time when I order signature dishes?
DeleteSorry to hear your misfortune day at Laguna. Lucky everytime I and my family go there we always have a great food. And everytime we take guests to try Laguna food, they satisfied. The quality never changed since the first time they opened their business.
ReplyDelete