Djakarta Bali

Djakarta Bali restaurant in Paris’ Les Halles quarter is a love letter to a lost country, a recreation of Indonesian cuisine and culture from a family exiled at the end of the Suharto reign. M. Hanafi welcomes you to his delicate, exotic destination restaurant, where the charming servers wear traditional costumes, a serene Buddha head overlooks the dining room, candles glow in brass candlesticks and pierced lanterns, and a collection of authentic marionettes, shadow puppets from Java, and batik hangings transport you far away. The food recreates Indonesian home cooking, neither that of the hotel nor of the street food stall, in a choice of rijstaffel feasts or a la carte selections like beef rendang or nasi goreng. The wine list tends toward the lighter, fruitier end to complement the spicy dishes.