[EVENT] Sailendra Restaurant JW Marriott Mega Kuningan Jakarta

June 15th, 2015. JW Marriot Hotel Jakarta invited us to join them for dinner in a breakfasting feast at Sailendra Restaurant.

As we enter the holy month of Ramadan, we are delighted to bring the festivity of Ramadan from different countries every week for this year’s celebration. Sailendra Restaurant will take you to the adventure of delicious dishes to break the fast from Morocco, Turkey, Lebanon and Pakistan.

They put us in one long table with many Arabic displays. So beautiful. But please pardon my photos. The place was quite dark so yeah.. pardon my photos.. really really need hard work to make them looked decent.. *sobbing*

THE MENU

ARABIC MEZZAH

Meze or mezze (/ˈmɛzeɪ/) is a selection of small dishes served to accompany alcoholic drinks as a course or as appetizers before the main dish in the Near East and the Balkans. 

Hummus

Hummus or houmous (/ˈhʊməs/, /ˈhʌməs/, or /ˈhuːməs/; Arabic: حُمُّص‎) is a Levantine food dip or spread made from cooked, mashed chickpeas blended with tahini, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and garlic.

Babaganush

Baba ghanoush (Arabic بابا غنوج bābā ghannūj, also appears as baba ganush, baba ghannouj or baba ghannoug) is a Levantine dish of cooked eggplant mixed with onions, tomatoes, olive oil and various seasonings.

Fatoush

Fattoush (Arabic: فتوش, also fattush, fatush, fattoosh, and fattouche) is a Levantine bread salad made from toasted or fried pieces of pita bread (khubz 'arabi) combined with mixed greens and other vegetables, such as lettuce, radish and tomato.

Tabuleh

Tabbouleh (Arabic: تبولة‎ tabūlah; also tabouleh or tab(b)ouli) is a Levantine vegetarian dish (sometimes considered a salad) traditionally made of tomatoes, finely chopped parsley, mint, bulgur and onion, and seasoned with olive oil, lemon juice, and salt. Some variations add garlic or lettuce, or use couscous instead of bulgur.

Zabneh Feta

Strained yogurt, Greek yogurt, yogurt cheese, labneh (Arabic: لبنة‎ labnah), is yogurt which has been strained to remove its whey, resulting in a relatively thick consistency (between that of conventional yogurt and cheese), while preserving yogurt's distinctive, sour taste. Like many types of yogurt, strained yogurt is often made from milk that has been enriched by boiling off some of its water content, and/or by adding extra butterfat and powdered milk.

Mutabe

The Egyptian version, known in the Levant as Mutabbal, is made of roasted, peeled, and mashed eggplant, blended with tahini, garlic, salt, and lemon juice.

Imam Bayildi

Imam bayildi (Turkish: İmambayıldı, literally: "the priest fainted [sciz., from exhilaration]"; is one of the most notable zeytinyağlı (olive oil-based) dishes found in Mediterranean cuisine, particularly in Turkish cuisine. The dish consists of whole braised eggplant stuffed with onion, garlic and tomatoes, simmered in olive oil, and served at room temperature. It is a variation of another popular eggplant dish, Karnıyarık, which additionally contains minced beef.

Pita Bread

Put all of the above into the pita bread, and enjoy it. :)

Pita or pitta (/ˈpɪtə/ or US /ˈpiːtə/) is a soft, slightly leavened flatbread baked from wheat flour.

ARABIC FRITTERS

Falafel, Cheese Samosas and Beef Samosas

Falafel (/fəˈlɑːfəl/; Arabic: فلافل‎, [fæˈlæːfɪl]) is a deep-fried ball or patty made from ground chickpeas, fava beans, or both. Falafel is a traditionalMiddle Eastern food, commonly served in a pita, which acts as a pocket, or wrapped in a flatbread known as lafa; "falafel" also frequently refers to a wrapped sandwich that is prepared in this way.

A samosa /səˈmoʊsə/ or samoosa is a fried or baked pastry with savoury filling, such as spiced potatoes, onions, peas, lentils and also with minced meat (lamb, beef or chicken), and sometimes pine nuts. 

SORBAT ADDAS

Lentil Soup with Arabic crouton

I think lentil soup wasn't my favourite, but this soup was fine for me. Tasted good but not special. But quite good. :)

Lentil soup refers to a variety of vegetarian and meat soups made with lentils. The soup may consist of green, brown, red, yellow or black lentils, with or without the husk. Dehulled yellow and red lentils disintegrate in cooking, making a thick soup.

MAIN COURSE

Moroccan meatballs with tomato

The meatballs were made of ground beef with onions, garlic, chili powder and some herbs. Mixed the meatballs with the tomato sauce, and voila.. Moroccan meatballs. Ready to be served. Tasted a little bit spicy, but the tomato sauce balancing the flavour.

Chicken tagine with olive and lemon

The chicken was tender with delicious taste. They marinated the chicken with onion, ginger, cilantro, olive, lemon and other ingredients. This is a traditional Moroccan dish, designed to be prepared in a tagine, a special pot shaped with a wide but shallow base, or just heavy-based casserole dish.

Braised snapper fillet in tomato

With a fine textured, mild white meat, this red snapper was perfect for the dish. It was a good combination between snapper fillet and tomato, because the snapper was a little bit plain, so the tomato really enhanced the taste.

Braised chicken wings with coriander leaf, tomato and lemon juice

I knew some people that really like chicken wings, and that's including my bestest friend. I myself not really a huge fan. I like it but no love in it LOL. Yeah, I'm a picky person. :D But, I love this dish, the coriander leaf is a great addition to it. But, it's a delicious one, without weird taste because sometimes herbs gave weird taste for me. *sigh*

Cilantro is one of the popular Mediterranean herb, which commonly recognized as leaf-coriander in Asia. It is widely employed in savory dishes in almost all parts of the world.

Pakistan beef kofta and chicken

Simple one. Easy as pie. LOL. A  combination of onion, chillies and of course beef or chicken, with other ingredients. Grill!! Too bad, the beef was a little bit dry. But I love the chicken. The meat was tender and the flavour was delicious enough for my taste bud.

Kofta (see section Name for other names) is a meatball or meatloaf and is a part of Jordanian, Albanian, Afghan, Azerbaijani, Arab, Armenian, Balkan, Bangladeshi, Greek, Indian, Israeli, Iranian, Kurdish, Pakistani and Turkish cuisine. In the simplest form, koftas consist of balls of minced or ground meat—usually beef or lamb—mixed with spices and/or onions.

Moroccan spiced lamb shanks with preserve lemon and prunes

What a tender lamb. Lemon and prunes enhanced the flavour of it. I know that it's really a homework to cook lamb. The smell of it sometimes made it less appetizing. I think this lamb shank was a little bit too much herbs, but other than that, it's perfectly fine.

Cous cous with chicken, lemon and raisin

I didn't try this menu. I had no idea why, I think I missed it. LOL. Too many dishes that night. *sigh*

Couscous (/ˈkʊskʊs/ or /ˈkuːskuːs/; Berber: seksu, Arabic: كسكس‎, kuskus or كسكسو kseksou) is a traditional Berber dish of semolina(granules of durum wheat) which is cooked by steaming. It is traditionally served with a meat or vegetable stew spooned over it.

Durum wheat or macaroni wheat (Triticum durum or Triticum turgidum subsp. durum) is the only tetraploid species of wheat of commercial importance that is widely cultivated today.

Eggplant and tomatoes

It's a dish about eggplant and tomatoes. LOL. I love eggplant, but I think they used too many herbs. Not only tomatoes. Not my favourite, indeed.

Lebanese beef Makloubi

Rice dish. Always love rice dish. But I just tasted a spoonful, my tummy was too full with other dishes. But, it's quite good. The beef was quite tender, and the rice was just the right texture.

Maqluba (Arabic: مقلوبة‎; Turkish: maklube;) is a traditional dish of Jordan and Palestine. The dish includes meat, rice, and fried vegetables placed in a pot, which is then flipped upside down when served , hence the name maqluba, which translates literally as "upside-down".

DESSERT

Umi ali

I think it's my first time trying Umi Ali. It's like a cereal for me. Sweet and a little bit crunchy from the nut. Aaaaargh, delicious.

Umm Ali (ام على, [omme ˈʕæli]), a national dish of Egypt, is a raisin cake soaked in milk and served hot.

Baklava

My first baklava LOL. Turned out, I like it because it's a dessert. :) And.. melt in your mouth. My tummy was full, but as I read somewhere, "There's always room for dessert."

Baklava (/ˈbɑːkləvɑː/, /bɑːkləˈvɑː/, or /bəˈklɑːvə/; Ottoman Turkish: باقلوا [bɑːklɑvɑː]) is a Middle-Eastern dessert. It is a rich, sweet pastry made of layers of filo filled with chopped nuts and sweetened and held together with syrup or honey.

Katayef

It's a sweet dumpling, but definitely not my favourite. Too sweet and I prefer a lighter dessert.

Qatayef (قطايف) is an Levantine dessert commonly served during the month of Ramadan, a sort of sweet dumpling filled with cream or nuts.

Thanks JW Marriott and Sailendra Restaurant for the Ramadan Gathering. Happy Fasting all!

JW Marriott Hotel Jakarta
Jl. DR Ide Anak Agung Gde Agung
Kav. E.1.2 No. 1 & 2
Mega Kuningan, Jakarta 12950
Phone: 021-57988888
IG: @jwmarriottjkt