The charm and elegance of a French bistro can often feel far from the noise and bustle of a busy Jakarta street.
Yet even the name of Chloes is suggestive of a place filled with charm and enjoyment. On top of that, it has a certain savoir-faire that helps to bring a flavour of France to the city. From its wooden seats to linen tablecloths indoors and wicker chairs atop a patterned tiled floor on the terrace, the design of Chloes both inside and out evokes La France profonde without simply seeking to replicate it. It is described as a brasserie and steakhouse. The atmosphere leans more to the brasserie end of the scale.
The setup of the Senayan venue involves both the main indoor restaurant and an outdoor terrace. That means that, if you simply want to lounge in the shade of an afternoon sipping a café crème and watching the world go by on the street, you can. Selected food is also available on the terrace for dining al fresco (or let’s say en plein air). When a more private setting suits the occasion better, a couple of private rooms are available replete with chandeliers and floral wallpaper for a refined, discreet atmosphere. The whole restaurant is also available for hire for private functions.
But, whatever the weather or time of day, the indoor restaurant offers a slice of European finesse on the plate. Its upscale decoration blends a traditional French brasserie look with modern design flair.
Chloes offers both lunch and dinner menus. Dinner is offered a la carte, or on a multi-course degustation basis which I was fortunate enough to sample on my recent visit. The menu contains classic French dishes including onion soup, snails in garlic butter, pan seared foie gras, steak frites, beef bourguignon, duck confit, mussels, croquet messieurs, crème brûlée, and crepes suzette.
There is also a wider Mediterranean element to the menu, evocative of France’s south coast and its neighbouring areas. That includes pizza and pasta options as well as the luscious tasting “mom’s tiramisu” so called because it is freshly handmade by the mother of the restaurant’s eponymous namesake Chloe, to a secret recipe from an old Italian family.
While the menu is distinctly European, it also draws on Pacific ingredients including scallops from Hokkaido and Australian beef.
For lunch, there is also a prix fixe business lunch menu with two or three courses. While the menu incorporates many brasserie classics, the steakhouse element of Chloes comes out in items like the chateaubriand and côte de boeuf, both served for two. Other notable beef dishes include beef wagyu entrecote, Wagyu beef fillet in truffle butter and various other cuts of Australian wagyu including the house steak de Chloe.
As befits a French restaurant, there is an extensive and rotating wine list. Again, Italy and the Antipodes make a showing, but the selection is predominantly French. At the top end it features bottles including 2011 Chateau Duhart-Milon, 2014 Pagodes de Cos, and 2016 Chateau Latour-Martillac. There are less storied but carefully chosen wines available both by the bottle and in some cases glass. So the wine list offers the right accompaniment for a broad range of dishes, to suit a range of budgets.
I visited one Friday evening and the restaurant immediately passed the test of having bags of ambience even with some empty tables. Soft mood lighting and the elegant decoration drew me in, along with a relaxing soundtrack of background music. Later in the evening as I left, a live band was preparing to perform. The venue has live music twice weekly and a DJ on Saturday nights, as well as on some special events.
Chloes is relatively new and is still experimenting with a variety of promotions, from happy hours to special events like recent Christmas and New Year parties. While I expect it to keep actively finding its niche, that does not mean that the team has not already found its feet. During my visit, I was struck by the friendliness, attentivenessm and professionalism of the staff who were warm while maintaining the elegance of the establishment: not stuffy but equally not overly casual.
The food portions are generous and indeed my degustation menu dinner was so filling that I could have foregone the tiramisu but was glad I did not as it formed the perfect ending to the meal. The meal was well-paced and standout dishes included the signature Wagyu beef and scallops. All of the food was well-cooked, hot and packed with flavour. So, while the menu may continue to evolve, the kitchen is already operating at the right pitch.
For a business lunch, a romantic dinner or a friends’ gathering, Chloes could make an ideal spot. But I am also now tempted to stop by one quiet day, take out a magazine or book on the terrace, and have a coffee and light snack as I unwind with a faint Mediterranean air enveloping me in its mood.
Chloes Bistro and Bar
- Address: Jl. Hang Tuah Raya No.10, Gunung, Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta, DKI Jakarta 12120
- Tel: 0815-1707-1687
- Website: cho.pe/linktree_chloesbistro
- Instagram: @chloesbistroandbar