At Artesian Bar Jakarta, its new ‘SLOW ROOTS’ cocktail menu transforms Indonesian terroir into a seasonal drinking narrative where native botanicals, agricultural rhythms and sustainability shape every pour.
Southeast Asia’s cocktail scene is currently experiencing a renaissance, one with captivating narratives surrounding provenance, sustainability and local ingredients. From Phnom Penh and Bali to Bangkok and Kuala Lumpur, bars are increasingly looking inward at native landscapes not simply as garnish or gimmick, but as the conceptual backbone of an entire drinking philosophy.
Joining the conversation is Artesian Bar Jakarta atop The Langham Jakarta with a newly launched ‘SLOW ROOTS’ menu that reads almost like an agricultural calendar, interpreting Indonesian terroir through the rhythms of growth, harvest and seasonality.
Structured into four chapters — Soil, Sprout, Bloom and Harvest — each corresponding to stages in nature while spotlighting indigenous produce and botanicals, the new menu maps an evolving sensory journey through Indonesia’s landscapes. Think earthy roots and tubers that give way to green herbs and aromatics, before moving into florals and ultimately the exuberance of tropical fruits.
The opening ‘Soil’ chapter explores ingredients including purple yam (ubi ungu), cassava, Javanese ginger (temulawak) and beetroot, offering flavour expressions deeply tied to Indonesian culinary memory. ‘Sprout’ shifts towards brighter notes through moringa, pandan, lemongrass and the peppery citrus complexity of andaliman, the prized Batak spice often dubbed Indonesian Sichuan pepper.
Then there’s ‘Bloom’, by which the mood becomes more perfumed with nutmeg flower, jasmine, frangipani and tea, before concluding in ‘Harvest’ with coconut, banana, jackfruit and perhaps inevitably, durian, all of which are fruits emblematic of tropical abundance.
Sustainability threads through the programme. Coffee waste from the bar is transformed into handcrafted coasters through a collaboration with Indonesian social enterprise Liberty Society, while ingredients are sourced from local farms including Yum Organic and Kebun Mama Organic. Artesian also maintains a botanical garden on the hotel’s 65th floor, supplying ingredients such as moringa, pandan and lemongrass harvested close to service. Selected cocktails further contribute 1% of proceeds towards supporting community initiatives linked to partner farms.
If you’re looking for, pardoning the pun, a deeply-rooted Asian cocktail menu that is shaped by Indonesia’s geography, climate, culture and local communities — one that interprets Indonesia’s agricultural identity through cycles of growth — this new ‘SLOW ROOTS’ menu at Artesian Bar Jakarta is one to plow through.
Artesian Bar (Jakarta)
Address The Langham Jakarta, District 8, SCBD, RT.5/RW.3, Senayan, Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta City, Jakarta 12190, Indonesia (Google Maps link)
Opening Hours 5pm to 12am Mondays to Thursdays; 5pm to 1am Fridays and Saturdays; closed on Sundays
Tel (62) 21 27087888
Web www.langhamhotels.com/en/the-langham/jakarta/dine/artesian-jakarta
Facebook artesianbarjakarta
Instagram @artesianbarjakarta
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