There's no such thing as a free lunch...Or is there?

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It's official. The next president of Indonesia is former army general Prabowo Subianto. Quite how the next five years will pan out is anyone's guess but hopefully the foreign pundits who always bring up his dodgy human rights record will be proven wrong. Nonetheless, on policy making, Prabowo's popularist move to literally offer the poor 'a free lunch' every day of the week does not augur well for the future. Such a policy - if it ever came to fruition - would cost a phenomenal amount of money and likely lead to huge inefficiencies (food waste) and poor incentives (make people lazy). Another concern is Prabowo's strong nationalist bent. Thus, in the possible event that he finds himself with his back against the proverbial wall in the face of stern economic challenges, there is a big chance that he will simply scapegoat foreigners. But he will have to be careful. Construction of the new capital city, Nusantara, for example, is highly dependent on foreign in
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Sailendra Restaurant buffet @ JW Marriott

The Sailendra Restaurant is located at the JW Marriott Hotel in Jakarta and is famous for its “all you can eat” buffets. It’s been a good few years since I’ve been there and, partly in a desire to take a nostalgic trip down memory lane, but also to see how it stacks up against the competition, I booked a table for a Sunday lunch buffet which ran from 11.30am-3.30pm (or more than enough time to get your gluttonous fill).

But before you can start eating you have to get into the hotel; and that’s something easier said than done! I mean, they are thorough. Really, really thorough. Heck, for a moment I was almost expecting them to strip down the car’s engine and put on the rubber glove and do the unspeakable!

 That, thankfully over, and we soon in the lobby area and I had the feeling that all eyes were on us – and of course they were – in addition to God knows how many security cameras.

 Once in the restaurant we were efficiently seated and it was time for us to eat. Bring it on baby!

Sailendra Restaurant buffet @ JW Marriott

 Verdict

 The restaurant/vibe: very expansive and the seating is located on two different levels. There’s plenty of natural light coming in, which is nice, and the soft indoor lighting helps create a warm and cozy feel. Encouragingly, the restaurant is very popular and the vibe was lively but not overbearing or noisy. Musicians sang at tables, doing requests for birthdays, that sort of thing. Nice.

The Taste: The spread was expansive and the food fresh. From salads to sushi, to roast beef, Indian food, Peeking Duck, dim sum and even, if you want it, pork, there's something for everyone. Best of all, though were the grilled lobsters which were excellent.

 The Service: Hey it’s a buffet, so serve yourself!

The Price: Around Rp300k++ for the ordinary buffet which does include free flow of soft drinks like tea and various juices. For more money you can pay for free flow beer and even free flow wine, but do you really want to get pissed as well as stuffed?

 Verdict: Pretty solid overall, but doesn’t quite have the je ne sais quoi of Satoo, still indisputably, the best buffet in Jakarta!

Sailendra Restaurant
JW Marriott Hotel Jakarta
Kawasan Mega Kuningan
Jakarta

• Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner
• Dress code: Casual
• Telp (62) (021) 579 88888

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