I visited on a Friday night (9/11/2018), following a friend's recommendation.
The bar is located in the basement of the Soho building on Jalan Gunawarman. You need to go down a flight of stairs, and then you arrive in a medium-sized L-shaped room. There are no windows and no natural light, but the ceiling is high enough to prevent you from feeling too claustrophobic. Everyone is smoking inside so it can get a little suffocating.
The design is pretty cool, they tried to recreate what could be a student bar in Europe in the 1990s, the sort of cheap but cozy place that would play bands like Nirvana, the Pixies, etc. One major difference here is that you are in the most expensive neighborhood in Jakarta, and the pint of Bintang costs a heavy IDR120,000.
The whole place was completely packed, and since we had not made a reservation, there was no table available. We just stayed at a tiny spot at the bar.
The atmosphere was lively. The band was playing an interesting mix of popular rock and pop hits from the past 40 years. I was surprised to see that even though the clients in the bar were in their 20s, they could sing along each song. They were staying within large groups, sometimes spread on several tables, and they all seemed to know each other.
Since the tables are next to each other, it is quite easy to meet people. The persons I talked to were all students, from upper-middle-class families. Few girls were unaccompanied. They didn't look like the type who would go on a one night stand with a random guy.
Open every day except Monday from 6PM to 3AM
Duck Down Bar
SOHO Building, Basement
Jalan Gunawarman No. 61
South Jakarta 12180
Phone number: +62 (0) 21 2751 9786
Instagram: Duck Down Bar Jakarta
Facebook: Duck Down Bar Senopati