Today TD and I attended the ASEAN Culinary Festival at Kelapa Gading. It was quite a long way to go (North Jakarta) however it was totally worth it! The event is until tomorrow, September 18, so you can still make it if you wanna check it out. See pictures after the jump!
ASEAN Culinary Festival is from September 16- 18, 2011 at the La Piazza Mall in Sentra Kelapa Gading, Jl. Bulevar Kelapa Gading, North Jakarta.
We arrived at about 5pm and there were quite a lot of people, but it was still possible to get tables. First thing to do is to look for a booth with the sign “LOKET” which is a chit counter where you convert your money to chits which will enable you to buy from the participating booths. Booths do not accept cash, only official chits.
Booths with authentic food from various ASEAN countries and ASEAN dialogue partners (like the European Union, etc.)
There is also some entertainment for everyone with mascots walking around, a live band, celebrity chef demos, dances and other performances.
First stop the Philippines’ booth. Food from Manila Connexion (aka Muffin House) and our Filipino pride, San Miguel Beer (for only Rp 20,000 per can!).
The booths with the longest line were Malaysian Booth, Penang Restaurant, and the European Union booth by Metro Sky Garden. Since we miss pork we lined up for Porkchops (and halal Nurnberger sausages)!
The pork chops were so tender and so tasty! And the sausages were so good, that we had to have seconds. We had everything charred on the outside. YUMMMMMMM.
FYI: They deliver frozen/chilled meats, etc. to Jakarta and other areas. Click here for pricelist and details.
The other long line in the EU’s booth was the line for the Curly Cake – a delicacy from Romania. It’s my first time to encounter such a thing, but it looks so interesting. If the line wasn’t SO long we would have tried it. Here are pictures of the 4 person team doing the rolls! 
After rolling they get baked here
Once baked, this guy coats it with goodies like chocolate, sprinkles and what looks like cinnamon sugar (I’m not sure, but if anyone knows please feel free to drop me a comment!), then impressively makes it stand and wraps it to go.
We didn’t get to try the dimsum (steaming below left) but we all shared some kway teow (below right).
Cooked Kway Teow from Penang Restaurant (L) and Fried Vietnamese Spring Rolls from Do An Restaurant(R)
For dessert we shared Filipino Bibinkas and massive, juicy green kiwis from New Zealand. Arent the spoons so clever and cute? Perfect for cutting and scooping out the kiwis! They were a massive bargain at Rp 32,000 for a box of 6 big pieces. We took some home. 
When we left it was night fall and there were so many more people (mostly families) enjoying the festival. The venue was pretty all lit up and there was a pleasant breeze.
What a great event by ASEAN! Truly worth the trouble for foodies like us! Last day is tomorrow so you can still check it out! Spread the word to friends who might be interested, or to friends living in North Jakarta!
Event schedule for tomorrow, Sunday September 18:
- 11 am @MPH – Celebrity chef demo by Chef Ragil Wibowo
- 1 pm @MPH – Chef cooking demo from Pakistan & Malaysia
- 330 pm @MPH – Celebrity chef demo by Chef Ferry (Indonesian President’s Chef for Nutrition Food) & Chef Ida Bagus Made Parwata
- 430 pm @MPH – Chef cooking demo from Sweden & Spain
- 430 pm @Main stage – Bangra Dance
- 630 pm @Main stage – Performance by Martin Carter
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