Celebration For All: Chinese New Year and Valentine at Gran Mahakam

We’re soon to flip our calendar and be ready to welcome Chinese New Year celebration and Valentine romance into our agenda. The question remains, where should we celebrate these special moments? I personally love Gran Mahakam after the first visit because I can feel the love in the atmosphere. The comfortable buffet with centralized work station and the Chinese New Year decoration are all up for the upcoming festivity.

Nian Gao at Gran Mahakam

I arrived to a decorated long table with red basket on each seat. Apparently it’s Nian Gao (better known locally as kue keranjang or rice cake). Nian Gao is central to Chinese New Year celebration because it symbolizes the increasing fortune we hope to achieve on the upcoming year. Its stickiness is believed to glue the kitchen god’s mouth shut so he won’t badmouth human family to the Jade Emperor. It’s also quite easy to “cook” this sticky snack because all you have to do is steam it for 4 minutes before eating. But my favorite way to prepare Nian Gao is by cutting them into squares, dipping into a flour and egg mixture before deep frying them. You’ll get the perfect combination of crunchy and chewy.

But that’s for later. Right now, let’s focus on the delicacy served on the table.

Chinese New Year Festivity

Welcoming the year of the monkey at Le Gran Cafe can be quite a traditional one, making sure that each good wishes is represented through the ingredients. You can expect a wonderful Yee Sang Salad with Sliced of Salmon, a must-have on every New Year dinner or lunch. They also served Bird Nest Soup which reminds me of the one my mom used to make. It tastes as tasty, combining the crunchy, soft and sour from the classic ingredients. 

 my favorite crispy seafood noodle

Bird Nest

The list on the set menu continues with Exotic Fruit and Prawn Avocado Sauce, Szechuan Hot & Sour Soup, Roasted Duck with Chinese Pancake serve with Hoisin Sauce or Steam Chinese Cabbage with Mushroom and Ham Brown Sauce. As well as a dessert overload with assorted Chinese pudding, Es Shanghai and Thai Coconut Pudding with Ceng Teng on Ice Bowl.

But you don’t have to stick to the menu all the time because Gran Mahakam is home to my favorite crispy seafood noodle, with mini noodles, veggies, and soup packed with big mussel, fresh prawn and mushroom. They’re surely delicious too.

Sweet Valentine

The day for couples are scheduled to arrived a week after Chinese New Year and Gran Mahakam is ready for the love season too. Let’s the deliciousness tempt you to taste Crab Meat Salad with Orange Dressing, Pomelo and Scallop salad, Lobster Bisque Cream Soup and Salmon wrapped in Puff Pastry. Then as the conversation goes, you may surprise him (we’re girls so it’s always “him”) with the cafe’s juicy steak, plated beautifully with baby carrot, asparagus and mashed taro. I even forgot to pour the sauce in, which is actually awesome when eaten with the taro. Who says steak can’t be the most romantic dish? It is for me.

Don’t stop indulging because it’s Valentine. Because Le Gran Cafe still have a long list of menu (and dessert) to make your special day even more special. Sautéed Prawn with Cereal and Dry Chili Sauce, Green Mussel Provencal and our Indonesian signature dish Nasi Madura, Valentine’s cake, Belgium Heart Cake, Éclair, Macaroons, selections of Indonesian desserts as well as the signature Chocolate Melt with Vanilla Ice Cream.

Beyond Food

On February 7-8, 2016, Gran Mahakam is bringing Barongsai dance performance at Lobby, Le Gran Café and AOKI, as well as Tarot Reader to unveil the good fortune you may have within the year of the monkey. While on Valentine’s Day, both brunch and dinner will be entertained by live music performances, A glass of sparkling wine, a stalk of rose for the beloved and a photograph to preserve the memory. Don’t miss the chance to bring your loved ones here.

Where is This?
GRAN MAHAKAM HOTEL
Jl. Mahakam I No 6 Kebayoran Baru
Jakarta 12130 - INDONESIA
Tel : + 62 21 7209966
www.granmahakam.com