Bau Haus - Restaurant & Bar

Bau Haus 1933 is a restaurant / bar / club located in the East Building in Mega Kuningan. It is down in the basement so it is a bit hard to find if you don't ask for help from the security.

It was opened by some of the people behind Lucy in the Sky in SCBD. I would define it as a trendy hipster place: The decor is made of vintage, recycled or cheap objects, assembled in a creative way. The place has an artsy feel, with references to literature (quotations in the menu), to painting (you have a large Van Gogh self-portrait on the wall) or to arts in general (the name Bau Haus is a School of Design from Germany).

In spite of this laid-back, kind-of-messy approach, Bau Haus is definitely targeting the upper market crowd. Inside you will meet all the cool people in Jakarta, especially those who are now avoiding the larger bars and clubs. You will be welcomed by a chic team of PRs and waiters, and the prices are those you are charged in Union or Loewy.

I tried the food once and it is quite pricey for the quality you get. The dishes are original and well-presented, but the taste far from exceptional. I would not recommend it for the food. There is also a misunderstanding of what a "tapas" is. They serve tapas that have the size of a main course, for instance the Crispy Tacos or the Potato Tex-Mex below:

Potato Tex Mex (Rp45,000 + 21% tax and service)

Tacos (Rp95,000 + 21% tax and service)

Lobster on Burger (Rp110,000 + 21% tax and service)

Be careful because I ordered those two thinking it would be a light meal and I ended up gaining two kilos...

Overall: The main reasons to go to Bau Haus in my opinion is to have a drink on the weekend, or to attend one of their events. The food is not bad, but for the price you can get better elsewhere.