PUBLICO : full of 1920's classics

With that classic 1920 underground mafia setting, Publico has definitely completed my expectations for what it might feel like to be in a mafia movie setting. The whole level is basically divided into two parts, one is the brighter side with enough sunlight coming naturally from above, and the other one is the dimmer side which is filled with leather sofas. The only missing thing was men with long coats, fedora hats, and vintage guns. It really made me feel that this is the place to be for a conspiratorial meeting.

The brick walls and the black shelves, chairs, tables are perfect! It really brought up that sense of vintage elegance. To sum up, the place is what I would call a 'vin-chic' (not trying to be emo with the whole black theme, but I have always loved the color black)

The bar was gorgeous and it is presented like it's the center piece of the whole place. You might not be able to see this, but there are classic green table lamps on the bar. I feel like stealing one home.. hihihi.. Pardon moi on the interior photo, as you can see, it was quite packed and I didn't feel like making the other customers and myself uncomfortable with me roaming around the whole place snapping pictures.

We didn't order much that day because we were still going some place else for dessert. The thing is, I forgot to take the receipt with me, thus, I lost track to some of the names and prices. Sorry -____-?

Besides from serving western food with charcoal-grilled oven, which they have pride upon, some of the food has strong Asian influence.. It's kind of a set back to the whole theme of the place because the food might sound like they're taking the easy way out.

Orange Latte. I would call this a "cute" drink. It has a pungent citrus smell and taste mixed with that velvety thick latte..

Stuffed chicken wings (45k)--> not sure, once again SORRY! This was one of the dishes with the most Asian influence that we ordered that day.  The waiter said that this is the most favorite appetizer. However, it was kind of a let down because there was nothing special actually. The sauce was basically oyster sauce-like with sprinkles of sesame seeds.

This, I completely forgot. What I only remembered, it was written to be spicy in the menu. It turned out to be not spicy  (and I am one of those people who can't stand spicy food). The mayo was way very heavy that it has overtaken the whole flavor. The salad itself was very much coated with mayo. Trying to cut back some calories won't be reaching any success with this dish. The chicken itself was good though.

Creamy smoked scallop pasta (80k). I am really not trying to make it sound bad, but this pasta was really creamy! The scallop texture was almost similar to crabstick's texture. 

I didn't know whether they are trying to adapt their dishes to typical Indonesian taste buds so they can be easily accepted by most people, or maybe I just ordered the wrong things, but the whole experience was ended with a disappointment to the meals, after an overlapped expectations due to the  harlequin exciting rush of being in such a wonderful "vin-chic" mafia setting. The food wasn't that bad, but they just seemed not to compete with the beautiful interiors and the prices given.

However, I love the place so much that I think I will come back to taste more, especially the food using their charcoal-grilled oven (Now I'm being one of those mainstreams who go to places for only the place itself).

PUBLICO
Senopati Raya No.65
Kebayoran baru, Jakarta, Indonesia
Phone : 021-52964960
Twitter : @PUBLICOJAKARTA
Facebook : PUBLICO