Hola, foodventurers! Are you ready to get hooked?
Freshly ventured, there is another new restaurant, named The Hook Restaurant & Bar which is located in one of the busiest area, Senopati. The Hook itself is specialising in Grouper and other fresh seafood. So, since it is vitally about Grouper, don’t ask for Salmon or any other kind of fish here as they will certainly be not available for you.
With this in mind, for you who do not like this specific type of fish (Grouper), don’t let it drive you away too. The groupers here were somehow very good, very fresh with silky smooth texture. Most likely, you will change your mind about grouper once you try the it here. And if you still insist on not having groupers as your meal, maybe pearl meat, banana prawns or Papuan crabs will gain your attention!
A couple of important facts that I need to mention is that, firstly, the groupers served here are mainly from “Arafuras” which is specialised in natural and organically grown Grouper. This means that all the Grouper farmed is free from chemical and synthetic ferltilizers or hormonal essence that boost, or simply force, the growth of the fish. The farm is located on a remote island in the pristine Arafura Sea, just southeast Indonesia.
Secondly, The Hook was born because of a family who owns grouper farm, who breeds and raises their groupers organically. With a strong belief that everyone should have food without all the chemical affair, The Hook was born. The Hook somehow becomes the ‘media’ to showcase and educate people about the fresh local seafood, especially groupers!
Thirdly, The Hook is very supportive about local produced goods, and they’re proud of it! So, most ingredients for the food comes from Indonesia. Afterall, it’s about time that we, Indonesian, should open our eyes about the extensive potential Indonesia has always had in producing quality ingredients and goods. They use Javara products too.
The Hook first opened its door on 12th December 2015. The concept is quite spot on, with casual and modern interior, and a touch of laid-back beach atmosphere every here and there.
My weekend lunch was accompanied by many fellow food bloggers. It is certainly fun to know that throughout the event, I will be in a good time with many familiar faces, and most importantly, nice friends. We ended up quite fussy and loud with all the laughters and smile. This is definitely what I love about attending an event.
Without further ado, I will share my two cents about the dishes I had.
# Mocha Glacier (IDR 32 k)
Started with a cold drink, my glass was filled velvety blended mocha and topped with extra scoop of chocolate ice cream. The overall impression was very positive with strong coffee and chocolate blending flavour. This Mocha Glacier was definitely my cup of tea.
# Prawn Shashlik (IDR 85 k)
An appetizer with prawns, somehow, is the best crowd pleaser. Just for your information, the prawns used are banana prawns caught by traditional fishermen in The Arafura Sea and they are actually seasonal. These banana prawns are then skewered with onion and paprika, grilled and coated with barbecue sauce. For a starter of the day, the prawns were delicious, real fresh and meaty. The barbecue sauce was complementing the prawns nicely as it wasn’t too pungent (as some barbecue sauce tends to be too pungent).
# Fish Roll Satay (IDR 55 k)
The second appetizer came in the form of traditional balinese satay (does sate lilit sound familiar?), but with grouper as the main ingredient. The minced grouper is wrapped around lemongrass stick, then grilled and served with special chili dip. As a result, the fish roll satay did get my attention real quick. The fish turned out to be extremely fragrant with a twist of lemongrass typical aroma. The chili dip did a good job enriching the taste too, with the extra sweet and sour sensation.
# Hot & Sour Fin Soup (IDR 65 k)
This one soup is certainly a strange one. I never actually knew that we can enjoy fish fins (except for shark fins). But The Hook certainly knows how to utilise every bit and part of the Grouper, and in this case, it’s the fin. In this hot and sour soup, which is quite similar to plain and clear tom yam soup, the grouper’s fins and tails are used as the main ingredients. If you like the activity of delicately and thoroughly lick-it-all each and every corner of a fish, then you will find peace in this soup.
# Coconut Prawn Soup (IDR 97 k)
Oh yes, this one was definitely another crowd pleaser. The prawns used for this soup are banana prawns too, and the prawns are dipped all nice and hot in the coconut based spicy soup. The result is quite extraordinary. The prawns were all meaty and crystal-like chewy in texture and the soup was damn good with rich flavour. One word, YUM!
# Steamed Humpback (IDR 200 k/kg) – Whole Fish only
There are several type of groupers, and this one served with Humpback grouper. The estimated weight of this served grouper is about 1.1 to 1.2 kg (which is perfectly suitable for four people). Humpback grouper is somehow, more difficult to be raised. The estimated time of Humpback groupers to grow in size is probably going to take 3 years, more or less. So, I was certainly excited to try this Humpback grouper. This Asia-influenced menu requires a whole Humpback grouper to be marinated and steamed with soya and herb sauce. After trying, I just fully realised how good this grouper meat can be (if cooked right), with its main highlight simply go to the silky smooth meat. There was no sign of typical fishy smell too, as it was completely infused with the light and fragrant soya sauce. This Steamed Humpback was real good, ladies and gentlemen!
There was also another similar dish with Arafura grouper. It was cooked in a similar way. I didn’t get to try it but I heard some of my friends actually loved the Arafura grouper more.
# Prime Admiral Ribs (IDR 65 k)
Another strange menu, as the dish primarily utilises the grouper’s ribs. Like I said, The Hook is very efficient too in serving the grouper, and not single part of the grouper will go to waste. As strange as it sounds, I actually loved this specific dish. The rica rica sauce was spot on, spicy and hot, and the battered fried ribs was perfectly appropriate enjoyed with the rica rica sauce. Though, to be honest, I won’t mind even the slightest bit if it’s just paired with grouper fillet to ease the process of enjoying it. HAHA.
# The Hook’s Aglio Olio (IDR 92.5 k)
Of course we cannot leave pasta out of the menu, can we? The Hook presented their signature pasta with simple aglio olio-styled spaghetti, but with extra spicy fried grouper in chunks. The taste was quite okay for me as I am never a fan of agile olio, but for those who love aglio olio will find this dish attractive, especially with the addition of spicy grouper.
# Pacific Burger (IDR 93 k)
Oh yes, burger time! Lemme spoil you first and tell you that, for me, this Pasific Burger was definitely the most favourite dish of the day! How couldn’t it be? This burger has the goodness fried grouper fillet, with cheese and fresh veggie, and the gorgeous barbecue sauce. The combination left me unhinged, in the most positive way. This burger is definitely my most favourite! In addition, the side given is a bowl of nachos. Really, what’s not to love?
# Orange Blossom (IDR 38 k)
I’ll make it simple, this dessert is pretty straight forward, serving slices of fresh orange with mint sauce.
# Chocolate Overload (IDR 45 k)
A plate of edible chocolate bowl with 3 scoops of velvety ice cream. Another whats-not-to-love dish.
# Mochi Ice Cream (IDR 45 k)
Mochi ice cream is quite mainstream already. In The Hook, the mochi ice cream is arranged like a fish.
# Vanilla Pannacotta (IDR 45 k)
From all of the desserts above, only this one that actually made me love it. The others were quite insignificant, but this vanilla pannacotta with strawberry compote turned out to be the one to watch out.
All in all, this new Grouper-spesialised restaurant and bar is the one to pay attention to. I honestly know that the prices of the menus here are quite steep, but to judge it fairly, the quality of the groupers are in the league of its own. The groupers are undoubtedly fine and fresh, and you will, most likely, not find this in another restaurant in Jakarta.
If you are interested in visiting The Hook soon, do try the Fish Roll Satay, Pasific Burger, Rica Rica Ribs and if you can spend some more, do try the Steamed Humpback, which I’m very convinced that you will love! They also have Crab from Papua. Sounds good, right? 😉
THE HOOK RESTAURANT & BAR | JAKARTA
Jalan Cikatomas II no. 35 (Senopati area)
South Jakarta
Phone: +6221-29704981 ext:972
Website: www.thehook.co.id
Instagram: @thehookid
Operational Hours:
Weekdays 10.00 AM – 10.00 PM
Weekend 10.00 AM – 12.00 AM