Shalom Indonesian Restaurant

Indonesian food is completely unpretentious and practical. There's no great attention to plating and the actual cook itself can be very simple. The regional diversity of the food, the textures, flavours and cooking styles are a completely different ball game. Sambal chilli that sizzle, the sweetness of Javanese cooking or Padang food that can sit on a restaurant windowsill for a week and still be delicious - these are just a few of the cooking philosophies in a country comprised of hundreds of islands that dates back to the third century.Shalom does a great job of representing the diversity of Indonesian food and it is common to see westerners eating here. Shalom has Halal certification - the chicken is lean unlike the caged and factory fed chickens we ordinarily eat in Australia. The menu is incredibly complex with a massive compliment of dishes an drinks - anyone who has travelled Indonesia and sampled the diversity of foods will trigger nostalgia here.The restaurant is clean, tasteful and the staff friendly and responsive. Outdoor dining is available although it pushes up against the always busy Pinelands car park. Which will provide an authentic Jakartan dining experience.Be warned though. The gloves are off here when it comes to chilli heat and unlike other restaurants that dumb down their dishes to western tastes, Shalom don't hold back. The house sambal is a five on the richter scale. so make sure you have a glass of Cendol close at hand- just in case.*Cooking Styles*Goreng - FriedBacem - MarinatedOseng Oseng - quickly stir friedSoto, sup, - soup (there are a lot sub types under each)Kari - curry*Ingredients*Nasi - RiceMi - NoodleAyam - chickenBebek - duckIkan - fishKambing - lambTahu - TofuTempe - a 'meatier' under-processed tofu with a distinct flavour and textureSapi - beef although Rendung is a more widely used term as it's almost exclusively a beef dishBabi - pork (use the word carefully as it is also used as an insult!)*Drinks*Cendol - Rice flour jelly with green natural coloring from pandan leaf, mixed with coconut milk, shaved ice and palm/brown sugarJus Alpukat - avocado shake served with a chocolate syrup - highly recommended on a hot dayKopi Tubruk - local coffee with the ground coffee spooned into the cupTeh - tea

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It was a wet day and my wife and I decided to lunch here on Wednesday 10th May 2017.The seating, decor and ambience were rather rudimentary with foldaway tables and plastic stools. It was reminiscent of street food stalls in South-East Asia and the place was more of a cafe rather than a restaurant. Once we had selected what we wanted from the menu, we had to place our order at the counter and pay before being served. The young waitress who served us was pleasant, well-mannered and exuded typical Indonesian hospitality and courtesy. Our meal consisted of the following:Gado Gado (Mixed Salad with peanut sauce). Besides the vegetables, there were some pieces of kerupuk (prawn crackers) and a hard-boiled egg. This dish was quite delicious with the distinctive taste of the peanut sauce and the sweet salty ketjap manis (sweet soy sauce).Batagor (Deep-fried Tofu with peanut sauce). The puffed tofu pieces were very palatable and the taste was similar to the Gado Gado which had the same sauces.Lamb Satay – 5 sticks of satay with cucumber slices and lettuce leaf, on a plate with a mound of rice. Although the meat had been marinated in satay spices, the pieces had not been tenderised and felt tough, chewy and blubbery. We expected a bowl of warm peanut sauce to dip the satay in, and perhaps some ketupat (rice cakes) to go with it. However, they had coated the peanut sauce onto the satay sticks, drizzled ketjap manis, and served the dish with rice instead.Soto Ayam (Chicken Soup) served with plate of rice. The broth tasted quite pleasant. There were strings of vermicelli, a hard-boiled egg, chicken pieces, spring onions, cabbage and other ingredients in the soup. This dish was less spicy than the Malaysian & Singaporean variety – which often includes bird’s-eye chillies in black soy sauce as an option. Our drinks were Jus Alpukat (Avocado Juice) and Es Cendol (Cendol Ice). The drinks were refreshingly nice.Our choice of dishes turned out to be mild and not spicy. Given our seasoned tastebuds, we would try some of the spicier dishes on their menu the next time.

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This restaurant does not stand out from the outside, where it shines is in its authenticity. The tables and chairs are simple, the decor is white and not ostentatious, the menu has quite a large number of dishes, it rates the spicy from 1 to 5 for those who don't want chilli content. The quality of the food is above average and the service is friendly. I ate here for 2 consecutive nights as I forgot to take main course photo on the first night. The restaurant was busy on both the Thursday and Friday nights and the food still can out quickly.If you have been to Indonesia then this will certainly bring back memories.

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Shalom's specialty are their various sambals (their own made chilly sauces) which are at various levels of heat. If you love really hot...and I mean REALLY hot..then go for the Shalom sauce!Shalom's dishes are simple...rice or noodle dishes with chicken,beef or fish. I personally love the grilled chicken and rice with Shalom sauce. They also have some entree options and some good ol' Indonesian desserts and drinks.Friendly service and tasty Indonesian street food. Love the place...go try it out!

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The Balinese steak was amazing. It tasted so authentic to the south East Asian flavours and so was their Mee abang abang. The portions was more than enough and so so good. I am a loyal customer now. - A SG reviewer.

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