Home-style Chinese Cooking at Paradise Inn

Thanks to OpenRice and Paradise Inn for the foodies and OpenRicers gathering last Thursday. This was actually my very first gathering experience with the OpenRicers and I enjoyed it uber much. 

Paradise Inn is one of the members of Boga Group, which brings out the concept of “Home-style Chinese Cooking”. Previously, they specialized in soup, however now they have expanded the dish selections and they want to serve the customers with the Chinese dishes, which you mostly find in the home of a Chinese. As a Chinese descendant, dining here reminds me of my mom’s cooking.  

 

 

Talking about the venue, the design basically reflects the name of the restaurant, as it is made to look like an inn. Using the ‘inn’ word, the restaurant wants to give their guests the comfort ambiance, which is exactly what you get when you stay at an inn. For the guest who needs more privacy, Paradise Inn does provide VIP rooms, which can occupy approximately 10 – 12 people. The total size of the outlet itself is quite big and thus able to accommodate quite many people. However, the occupancy rate is quite high as well even in the weekdays.

At my visit, I experienced very pleasant service from both the management and the waiters/waitresses. They were highly responsive to any requests raised by the guests and they were enthusiastic in answering all the questions raised to them. Besides, it didn’t take them too long to prepare all the dishes ordered although the venue had quite high traffic at that time.

Crisp Fried Eggplant Tossed with Chicken Floss (IDR 28k)

Coming as the appetizer was this fried eggplant. If only I didn’t read the menu, I might not notice that it was eggplant. Served in golden brown color and topped with chicken floss, this dish looked stunning, despite that the components were actually quite simple. The taste was quite lovely as it was crispy, not greasy, and the batter’s thickness was just right. As the fried eggplant was not too tasty, the chicken floss came as the perfect companion to enjoy it.

Hot Plate Tofu with Preserved ‘Cai Xin’ and Minced Pork (S IDR 48k / M IDR 68k)

Served on a hot plate, I still could enjoy this dish while it’s warm though I had taken quite long time to take pictures before enjoying it. The tofu’s texture was great as it was so soft that it could easily melt in your mouth. Besides, you could have your taste bud pampered by the mixture of minced pork and preserved ‘Cai Xin’. Preserved ‘Cai Xin’ itself was also known as “Century Egg, Hundred-Year Egg, Thousand-Year Egg, and Millennium Egg”. It was made by preserving duck, chicken, or quail eggs in a mixture of clay, ash, salt, quicklime, and rice hulls for several weeks or even several months; causing the yolk turned to be dark green to grey with creamy texture, while the white became dark brown with jelly texture. It’s been a long time since the last time I ate this egg, and this time, this dish made me recall the egg’s great taste.  

Poached Chinese Spinach with Egg Trio and Minced Pork in Superior Stock (IDR 58k)

Combined with eggs, this veggie menu was not only looked quite photogenic, but also tasted delightful. The stock was well-seasoned, and the idea of combining it with minced pork made the taste become richer. This dish has proven that you don’t need to suffer just for eating healthy food.

Crisp Pork Ribs with Marmite Sauce (IDR 88k)

Coming in quite simple presentation, this dish was actually the signature one from Paradise Inn. At first, my foodie friends and I had the same opinion on the ribs’ texture. We thought that the ribs were slightly too hard and dry. Thinking that this might happen as we didn’t enjoy the dish when it’s still warm, we then requested the restaurant to make another portion for this dish. I then tried the second version of the pork ribs and I found out that the texture would only be hard and dry at the side where the meat was quite thin. On the other hand, at the side where the meat was thick enough, it was juicy and tender. The marmite sauce itself was adorable. If you wonder what marmite was, it was basically brown spread made from yeast extract. This sauce let you enjoy the mixture of both sweet and savory flavors.

Prawn Mayonnaise with Katsuobushi (S IDR 88k / M IDR 108k)

Now we arrived at the star of the day, the mayonnaise prawn which was uniquely served with Katsuobushi; dried and fermented Skipjack Tuna that you usually found to be served with Takoyaki or Okonomiyaki. For me, this was the most distinctive mayonnaise prawn I’ve ever had; and I immediately fell in love with this innovative recipe. Most importantly, the prawn itself was so fresh that the texture was chewy inside but crispy outside. Hěn hào chī (very delicious)!

In a nutshell, I enjoyed every single dish served on the table. As I mentioned before, I just felt like I was back at home, dining my mom’s home-made dishes at my own dining room. I thought Paradise Inn was successful in delivering the concept of “Home-style Chinese Cooking”, which it indeed intended to realize at its establishment. Thanks for letting me have my tummy prosperity moment, Paradise Inn :)

Taste: 8/10

Place: 8.5/10

Service: 9/10

Price: 8/10

Thanks for Reading! :)

PARADISE INN

Address: Puri Indah Mall 1st Floor

Phone: (021) 5822 459

Other Locations: Plaza Indonesia Basement Level, Baywalk Mall 1st Floor

Operating hours: Mon – Sun 10am – 10pm

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