Exquisite Japanese Cuisine at OKU - Hotel Indonesia Kempinski

OKU is a modern Japanese restaurant, located inside Hotel Kempinski Indonesia. This modern Japanese restaurant is helmed by Chef Kazumasa Yazawa who was was Executive Chef at the Japanese restaurant Izy Dining Restaurant & Bar in Singapore. I had an opportunity to visit this place last weekend. So how was my OKU dining experience went on?

The word OKU itself means layers, implying the peeling back of the layers of an onion, representing the culinary journey that visitors will experience at this place while savoring these “life stories”. Such a philosophy. The place itself has this zen-like atmosphere that could accommodate 100 guests. Private room and semi private rooms are available for reservation.

All the food here is the creation of Chef Kazumasa Yazawa or better known as Chef Kaz.  And here goes my culinary experience at OKU.

Geisha's Karma - IDR 190,000 ++

OKU serves many kind of cocktails. One of their customer's favorite cocktail is this Geisha's Karma - Sayuri Nigori, Vodka, Straw & Raspberries, Orange, Cranberries Juice. Sayuri Nigori is a kind of Japanese sake with natural sweetness and smooth aftertaste. The overall taste, combined with vodka and fruit juices was sweet and sour, fresh, and not so alcohol bitter.

Oku Karaage - IDR 110,000 ++

Oku Karaage - IDR 110,000 ++

These 4 pieces deep fried chicken thigh topped with shichimi is out of the world. You would've expected a golden brown colored karaage if you ordered one, instead, these black colored karaage appeared in front of me. Some of you might be wondering, where did the black color came from? Octopus ink? Charcoal? Totally wrong. It came from a month length process of several ingredients until they naturally turn black. You should eat the whole piece all at once and find it popping the balsamic teriyaki filling inside. Truly delicious and the taste was unexpected. Must order dish!

Karasumi Pasta with Sea Urchin and Black Caviar - IDR 320,000 ++

On this bowl, you will find angel hair pasta topped with karasumi (salted mulled roe) - a specialty of Nagasaki, sea urchin, and black caviar. This is one wonderful savory bowl of pasta filled with Japan's sea luxury and rich truffle taste.

Aburi Salmon Roll

Aburi Salmon Roll

I also love their Aburi Salmon Roll!

Uni - IDR 245,000 ++

Uni - IDR 245,000 ++

Another unique dish is this Uni. Uni means sea urchine in Japan. This dish is composed of uni, asparagus , and water shield and served cold. The sea urchin was fresh and so was the asparagus.

 Ajitama - IDR 50,000 ++

Ajitama - IDR 50,000 ++

I believe this Ajitama is a another must-order item at OKU. Ajitama is organic egg (half boiled) on the smoked on the top of rice straw, topped with onion flower, shigureni beef. The fact that it was smoked with rice straw made this dish smells unique. I must say the taste and texture was wonderful. You should try it on your own.

Sashimi (7 Kind of Chef Selected) - IDR 350,000 ++

Sashimi (7 Kind of Chef Selected) - IDR 350,000 ++

Something you must not leave in Japanese restaurant is their sashimi. This 7 Kind of Chef Selected Sashimi was served with soy jelly, angel hair seaweed, gracilaria seaweed, sea grapes. Those seven are Amaebi (sweet shrimp), Hotate (scallops), Ikura (salmon roe), Hamachi (Japanese amberjack), Maguro (big eye tuna), Sake (salmon trout), and Yari Ikan (Japanese spear squid).

Potato - IDR 50,000 ++

Simply delightful cherry blossom wood smoked Japanese potato salad.

Omi Japanese Beef - IDR 1,200,000 ++

Omi Japanese Beef - IDR 1,200,000 ++

And here comes the most expensive dish on the menu, Omi Japanese Beef. This 150gr Japanese highest marbling A5 OMI sirloin was really the highlight! This beef sirloin will melt right away after entering your mouth, leaving that lingering feeling of tenderness and juiciness from the meat chunk. I'll save to eat this Omi Japanese Beef again.

Granite - IDR 60,000 ++

And now we've come to the dessert part. Meet Granite - a pot of three fruit sorbet. The green one is shisho & Japanese plum, the yellow one is pineapple & yuzu, and the dark red one is beetroot & blood orange. I tried the beetroot and blood orange one, it was fresh and a bit sour, still tolerable. 

Yuki - IDR 120,000 ++

And this one is Yuki - prettily composed on the plate with yuzu-chocolate mousse, lemon cloud, dulce sponge cake, crunchy chocolate praline. Have I mentioned that the Chef studied and practiced French cuisine before he went deep into Japanese cuisine? That's why the plating feels a  bit French.  Yuzu is a kind of Asian sour citrus, so you may expect a combination between sweet chocolate, dulce sponge cake taste and sour yuzu, lemon cloud taste. The combination didn't really work well on my tongue, but if you're into chocolate and citrus combination, you might want to give this dessert a try.

Lychee Pannacotta

Another pretty plating dessert from OKU - Lychee Pannacotta with lrose powder, crispy wafer, and raspberry gel.

Green Sundae - IDR 80,000 ++

Green Sundae - IDR 80,000 ++

And my heart winning dessert goes to this Green Sundae - bitter sweet matcha custard topped with azuki and shiratama mochi. The custard texture was just right, with strong matcha taste. Some might find it too bitter for their liking, but I found myself digging this dessert to end. I love this Green Sundae too much. Another must order dish.

I find OKU as a really fine place to dine, lovely ambience and great Japanese cuisine. A perfect place for business lunch and family weekend lunch.

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OKU
Hotel Indonesia Kempinski
Jl. M.H. Thamrin No. 1
Jakarta
Tel. (021) 29704981 ext:241
Instagram @okujakarta