Poké Sushi (Dharmawangsa)
By
Anonymous
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Poké Sushi is a small Sushi chain, with currently 4 Restaurants in Jakarta. I really love this place as I find their sushis and sashimis very tasty. They make the sushis in front of you, which makes you feel safer to eat what you have in your plate. Salmon Sashimis and Philadelphia Rolls are my favourites... The best option in this restaurant is to take the "All you can eat" option for IDR 265++ (on weekday). You will have a decent choice in the All You can Eat Menu, even though you cannot order anything from the A La Carte Menu. The Loyalty Card gives you a 50% discount, which also can be a good option... Overall : I like this place and I recommend it. If you want go to another Japanese Restaurant, please read my review of Japanese restaurants "Good Japanese Restaurants in Jakarta" .
In four years of blogging, this review about the best Japanese restaurants in Jakarta was probably the hardest I ever wrote. I wanted to give the most accurate information as possible, so I did a lot of research, some visits, many phone calls, and spent a week on it. I hope you can help me with your comments if you find any errors (wrong phone number, restaurant closed, etc...). It would be great if you can share your best venues as well. Almost all the good Japanese restaurants in Jakarta are listed here (as of November 2011), by alphabetical order. I will also post separate reviews about the best shabu-shabu, best sushis, most expensive restaurants, best all-you-can-eat, etc... Here are all the Japanese restaurants you should know about in Jakarta: Ajihara (Jalan Melawai "Little Tokyo", Blok M ; Tel: +62-21 7201340): Authentic izakaya, popular with expats, with a karaoke above. Big portions, do not hesitate to share. Recommended dishes: Sashimi, teuc
Blowfish is one of the most popular club among the Jakarta elite, with Dragonfly and now Immigrant , and a classic of Jakarta's nightlife. Lots of Chinese people, some expats as well, and many beautiful girls with expensive dresses and perfect hair. It's glam until 3am, then everybody is drunk. It seems most people don't really go to Blowfish to have fun, but rather to be seen, a glass of Champagne (mixed with Sprite to make it more sweet) in the hand. The music is good though, usually Rnb and on weekends it's always crowded. The club has foreign DJs regularly, and good ones, making it a very happening night club. Apart from the bar and the club, there is an excellent italian restaurant , Puro, with a modern but expensive Italian menu.. It is owned by Ismaya group, who's also behind Dragonfly, Sushigroove, Social House and the future Ministry of Sound Jakarta . You can check their website for all events related to this nightlife spots: Ismaya Group Indonesia
Sakana is a Japanese restaurant located in the MidPlaza 1 office tower. It is one of the few authentic Izakaya in Jakarta, and as such, it is quite popular among the Japanese community. If you are alone, it is probably best to sit at the bar, which looks modern and intimate. Otherwise you can sit in one of the small tatami rooms (private eating areas), in which you need to take off your shoes before entering. I tried Sakana with a friend who eats there at least once a week and he considers it to be among the best venues in Jakarta for eating casual Japanese food. On that day, we tried two sets of dishes: Yasai Itame set (Rp50,000) Gyuniku Udon set (Rp88,000++) Other dishes that my friend recommends: Yakitori, Sushis, and Takoyaki. Overall: A perfect venue to try authentic Japanese cuisine in Jakarta. The food is good but it remains unpretentious and affordable. I will come back. Opening hours: Everyday, from 11.30am to 2pm and from 6pm to 10pm
SushiGroove restaurants are usually located in malls and target young executives and students. They do not serve excellent food and it's expensive, but the place is usually busy and fun for hanging out. Their menu is creative, the setting is funky and the service friendly: Is it worth paying the premium? I think that SushiGroove is fine for a short meal on the way to the movie, but for anything more serious (especially a date), it is too similar to an expensive fast-food and should be avoided. Oh and by the way, in case you didn't guess, the food is Japanese, mostly sushis. Opening hours: Every day from 11am to 10pm.