A foodie’s lens: Pope Francis’ visit to Indonesia

bobek goreng

I finally got a taste of authentic Indonesian cuisine in Indonesia!

Pope Francis Tour of Asia

I flew to Jakarta for the Apostolic visit of His Holiness Pope Francis from Sept. 3 to Sept. 6. Pope Francis arrived around the same time as I did, before noon in Jakarta. I was frantically trying to look for him at the airport but it was just business as usual—if you were not informed of his arrival, you would not even know that he was there!

But even without the screaming fans as we would have it here in Manila, Indonesia gave His Holiness an exceptionally warm welcome. While it is a predominantly Muslim country, you could really feel the warmth of the Indonesians and the love for Pope Francis.

President Joko Widodo hosted a welcome ceremony for His Holiness on the second day of his visit, with Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, who is now Pro-Prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization and Archbishop Paul Gallagher, the Vatican’s Secretary for Relations with States, both present. And in the afternoon of Sept. 4, the bishops of Asia, led by the Bishops’ Conference of Indonesia, welcomed Pope Francis to Asia at the Church of the Our Lady of the Assumption or the Jakarta Cathedral.

Fratelli Tutti

Most touching, though, was the welcome by the Indonesian Grand Imam Nasaruddin Umar on the third day of the visit, Sept. 5. At Asia’s largest mosque, the Istiqlal Mosque, the Pope and the Grand Imam signed a joint declaration, entitled “Joint Declaration of Istiqlal 2024: Fostering Religious Harmony for the Sake of Humanity.” The document identifies climate change and dehumanization as two serious crises facing the world today and states that interreligious dialogue is an effective tool for solving both local and global conflicts, calling on religious leaders to deepen their cooperation in order to defend human dignity and fight climate change. Pope Francis is truly living out the values in his encyclical Fratelli Tutti for brotherhood, compassion and peace!

The visit concluded with Holy Mass at the Gelora Karno Stadium in Jakarta for over 87,000 faithful presided by Pope Francis and concelebrated by His Eminence Cardinal Ignatius  Suharyo Hardjoatmodjo, the Archbishop of Jakarta; cardinals and bishops across Asia, led by the bishops of Indonesia, including bishops from the Philippines led by the Archbishop of Manila, Cardinal Jose Advincula, with Pasig Bishop Mylo Vergara, Sorsogon Bishop Alan Dialogo and San Carlos Bishop Gerardo Alminaza.

sambal

Mandarin Oriental Jakarta

The Media Center for the Vatican Accredited Media was located at the Mandarin Oriental Jakarta. At Cinnamon, the restaurant of the hotel serving international cuisine, you will find exceptional beef rendang. Their servers explained that in Indonesia, beef rendang is not comfort food but celebratory food—what is served on anniversaries, graduations and other milestone moments. This is because it takes much longer to cook, to achieve the desired tenderness of the beef. But to me, what makes it extra special is the incorporation of the flavors, which seem to really seep into the beef, not just covering the top.

Another element for excellent rendang is the sambal sauce that comes with it. The Mandarin’s sambal is famous in Jakarta, so make sure to have a taste of it!

Of course, I had to try the nasi goreng. At the Mandarin, you can choose what meat to have it with. I could not resist trying the nasi goreng buntot—or with oxtail beef. This is so good! It’s really just fried rice with a sunny side up. But the oxtail, with its fall-off-the-bone meat, was a winner!

Satay

Satay and bakso

Indonesian cuisine is also famous for satay, which is also popular in Malaysian and Singaporean cuisine. At the Mandarin, I also tried their duck satay! It’s just like barbecue with a deeper flavor, as duck would allow. Of course, what really makes this dish memorable is the special satay sauce.

I had earlier tried duck at Bebek Kaleyo, a casual eatery recommended by Julius of the Philippine Embassy. It was like eating Max’s Fried Chicken, but instead, it uses duck. The difference is the green sambal sauce, which locals line up for! This was my first taste of authentic Indonesian food in Jakarta.

For my final dish, I tried bakso at the airport (between Gate 5 and 6). I was blown away! The broth itself is exceptionally umami-filled while the meatball is oozing with flavor to its very core at the center of the sphere! Make sure to try this!

If you ever find yourself at the Mandarin, look for the restaurant manager Bayu. He had a Filipina girlfriend! Convince him to come and open Mandarin Oriental in Makati so they can reunite!