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Luxury travel inspiration from the Asia-Pacific region

DestinAsian

A second act for L.A.–born chef Rapha Menchaca and British bar director Kabir Suharan — the charismatic duo behind Jakarta’s lauded Pantja restaurant — Bar Marea specializes in coastal Spanish cuisine with a playful twist. Its Galician-style octopus has crispy, millefeuille-esque cubes of potato, while the sublime amaebi crudo includes grilled prawn heads in olive oil flecked with delicate Espelette pepper. The price point reflects a staunch commitment to sourcing top ingredients from handpicked suppliers: think sea bream procured at Tokyo’s Toyosu Market; live Dungeness crab from the United States; and Bellota pata negra ham from Manuel Maldonado, a small-batch pig farmer in Spain’s Extremadura region. Another unifying element is chef Rapha’s passion for cooking over an open fire and the use of Japanese techniques to help round out the flavors.
Inspired by a visit to the Basque seaside town of Getaria, the knockout dish is whole Jeju Island turbot with agua de Lourdes — a sauce featuring olive oil, vinegar, and garlic that’s drizzled over the fish while grilling and applied with a large rosemary brush. (Starchy Jerusalem artichokes in spring onion salsa verde provide the perfect foil for the turbot.) Bar Marea also does the best Spanish omelet in town, featuring a still-gooey center and pieces of intensely savory txistorra sausage. Come early to nibble on made-to-order pintxos at the bar (available from Wednesdays to Fridays) and knock back a cocktail: perhaps the Marea martini with shio kombu vermouth and truffle oil, or a kalimotxo of crisp white wine and housemade cola. —James Louie
<a href="https://barmarea.id/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">barmarea.id</a> 
+62 811 9433 010 
<a href="https://maps.app.goo.gl/Pvz2N6aKC5jXva7r9" target="_blank" rel="noopener">G/F #03-03, Sequis Tower, SCBD, Jakarta, Indonesia</a>

Bar Marea’s gambas al ajillo; putting the final touches on a cocktail.

Bar Marea

Jakarta Dining