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Xin Hwa Restaurant Review

Xin Hwa is another restaurant in Jakarta that welcomes vegetarian diners. It comes highly recommended from several vegetarian friends of mine. Xin Hwa at the Mandarin Oriental features authentic Szechwan or Sichuan cuisine that warms both body and soul.

While there are only four vegetarian dishes actually listed on the menu there are actually over 15 choices available. Chinese-Indonesian Master Chef Kurdi Wijaya will also bend over backwards to accommodate special requests and whip up almost any dish of your choice a la vegetarian Szechwan. Special care is taken that the food is cooked in vegetable oil and only vegetable stock is used, says restaurant manager Noerdin Hidayat.

The opportunity to sample Xin Hwa's fare arose when Mandarin public relations manager Dhaneswari invited this lucky writer to visit the restaurant. Xin Hwa's gifted chef also graciously joined us to explain the finer points of his culinary craft, and how he has developed a menu to suit the taste of Jakarta's vegetarians. The dishes sampled therefore were guaranteed to be exemplary, being the favorite of the chef.

Among the recommended dishes are: Sapo Terong Pedas Vegetarian a la Szechwan, plump sliced eggplant in chili sauce cooked in a clay pot -- absolutely heavenly (Rp 27,500). Sweet and spicy Tofu Kong Po, is silk tofu braised in Kong Po sauce -- a caramelized sugar sauce with dried red chilies (Rp 45,000). The color is extremely attractive with the bright red and slightly black chilies. Surprisingly it is not too hot, unless of course you eat the chilies! Another surprise is Buncis a la Sichuan Dengan Jamur, Sichuan style French beans and mushrooms. The French beans (imported) are tiny, crisp and fresh with a taste of sesame oil and vinegar - delightful (27,500). Another style of preparation of tofu was the Tahu Masak Lada Hitam - silk tofu cooked in a black pepper sauce with a touch of Lea & Perrins sauce according to Kurdi. Served with capsicum the color is also almost black and has a very intriguing taste (Rp 45,000). I also ordered the usual Sup Jagung Muda - sweet corn soup with chopped crunchy asparagus. A brilliant yellow and green, the taste was spot on. For dessert I tried the mango pudding, made of Hung Kue or bean flour and mango pulp (Rp 20,000). Served in a heart shape mould, milk is poured over it before eating to accentuate the heart design, a fitting ending to a beautiful meal. All the dishes were not only attractively prepared and presented, but a wondrous combination of tastes; Xin Hwa is definitely a place that I will be coming back to.

Xin Hwa, on the second floor of the Mandarin has been around since 1996, formerly the site of the Spice Garden restaurant. Noerdin says it took about one year to develop the vegetarian menu based on customers' requests. The restaurant features red upholstered wooden chairs with the round tables and sofa-style seating along the walls. The Chinese bamboo parasols and antique urns that adorn the room and the wooden lacquered floors give a warmth that suits Szechwan food, which is basically hot and spicy. The restaurant can accommodate around 70 diners at a time and has also a private dining room for 10 people.

Xin Hwa
2nd Floor
Mandarin Oriental Jakarta
Jl. MH Thamrin
Jakarta 10310
(Opposite Hotel Indonesia)
Tel. 3983 8888 ext. 5320
Hours: Monday to Friday 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., Mondays to Sundays 6:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m., Sundays and public holidays 10:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. Closed for lunch on Saturday.
All prices are subject to tax and service charges

by Melinda Hewitt

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