Inside DS bar
by ameliachHere is some of the text, the rest is on the blog.
Absolut Cafe
(Jalan Jaksa)
One of the only bar in Jaksa with air-con. Lots of English teachers and journalists. Free pool table, darts, cheap beer, Premier League Soccer games on screen and always quite crowded by the same group of people. Nice.
Alexis Hotel
(Ancol, Jl. R. E. Martadinata No. 1 North Jakarta)
It’s not really an hotel, it’s more like a bordello. You’ve got a good club downstairs, The Play, with house/progressive music and sexy dancers, and a very select lounge/spa on the seventh floor, the Bathhouse, with girls from countries as far as Uzbekistan, Myanmar or Russia coming to entertain the patrons. Entrance fee for the Bathhouse lounge is Rp. 120,000, and no drinks included. Also a karaoke (I forgot the name), very nice, with flat screen TV and audio equipment suitable for outdoor concerts. Goddam expensive though, about Rp 3.5 million for 4 people.
Ali’s Bar
(Jalan Jaksa)
Bar of the african community in Jakarta .
Aphrodite
(Club Rasuna, near Pasar Festival, Jl Rasuna Said)
The bar caters to the expats living in Taman Rasuna. Always quite crowded, good food. English Premier League Football games and Fashion TV on one of the dozen plasma screen. Popular hang-out for Indonesian girls as well. You guessed why.
Asmoro (One of Blog Jakarta Team Nightlife Favourite's)
(Jl Blora)
The most famous dangdut bar in Jakarta. Interesting if you want to experience something different in Jakarta. A bit dodgy and not so dangerous, just a few hundred meters from Plaza Indonesia.
"The first time you hate it because you don’t understand it. The 3rd, the place is yours and you are the queen of the dancefloor, requesting ‘kucing garong’." SZ
Athena
(Kota, near the canal)
Surrealistic club in Kota, on the border of the canal. Loud Music, very dark and apart from the waiters and the usual working girls, no customers.
Fortune
(Jl Mas Mansyur, near Menara Batavia, and in front of Hotel Le Meridien)
Disco/bar always empty. The massage parlour attracts many people though.
Gillian's
(Plaza Semanggi, one floor below Inul Vista Karaoke)
Pool bar, with friendly waitresses.
Golden Crown
(Glodok Plaza)
Most popular disco in Kota these days for many Indonesians. There is one huge Techno Kota room and one lounge with live music and house/progressive DJ. Only serves Anker beer. Very mixed crowd, making it an interesting place to go: rich Chinese, Indian, middle class indos, some bules....
Grand Manhattan
(Hotel Borobudur)
"Has a good live band on Friday evening and a very friendly atmosphere, mix of chinese, hotel customers, prostitutes, Indonesians and expats. Sometimes empty, sometimes full. Bar as surprising as unpredictable". SZ
Hard Rock Cafe
(EX, near Plaza Indonesia)
Never been there... very expensive and everybody says it sucks.
"Hard Rock Cafe is not really in Plaza Indonesia but in the X center next door. But now I see my list also shows Plaza Indonesia. I used to go to HR when it was over the road in the Sarinah Thamrin Building and it was pretty good for a while back then in the early 90s, sometimes with excellent live music. I once saw BB King, with a table right at the front a few metres from the big man." Comment from Rak, from http://www.bycel.com/
Hailai International Executive Club
(Ancol)
The biggest disco in Jakarta, unfortunately playing Techno Kota and quite dodgy. Very strange opening hours, it seems to be closed most of the time.
Happy Karaoke
(Pasar Rumput)
"Strange karaoke, with 3 rooms in the middle of the market. Bad smell, hard fo find the DVDs with the music you like. Voted worst karaoke in Jakarta, but so funny... Opened only during the day." SZ.
Haze Karaoke
(Lokasari Plaza)
The only Karaoke open 24/7 in Kota. It sucks, the sound system is a disaster and they will try to overcharge you. But still, it is a good address to know if you want to find a place to crash after all discos are closed on Monday morning.
Heaven
(Dharmawangsa Square)
The most popular gay club in Jakarta. House/progressive music. Entrance fee around Rp. 50,000. Many foreigners.
Bar of the Ritz-Carlton. Salsa on Tuesday and Friday night. And with a second room with good live music for Jakarta standards. High prices.
ML Disco (or Moonlight/Moonlite Disko)
(Hayam Wuruk)
The gay club in Kota. Dangerous, dark, damn hot and scary. Reports indicates they bought one unit A/C about a month ago to replace the fans.
Monggo Mas
(Hayam Wuruk)
One of the worst club in Jakarta. Completely dark, aggressive, loud Techno Kota, drugs aplenty and prostitutes everywhere. You have to try it once.
Musro
(Hotel Borobudur)
Disco under renovation. Used to be one of the only club opened during Ramadhan
My Bar
(Blok M)
Girls bar with house/Rnb music. 10 girls for 1 guy ratio. Gloomy. Come there late and drunk if you want to have fun.
"Broken mirrors on the dance floor". SZ
Neo Martini Lounge & Bar
(New Menara Standard Chartered, 2nd Floor, Jl Prof. Dr. Satrio)
Ex-Black Pearl Martini Lounge and Bar, Neo is the latest addition in Jakarta's nightlife scene. Aimed at young expats, we hope it can become an escape for those of us tired with Red Square.
New China
(Kemang)
Popular bar with house/progressive music. Rp 60,000 entrance fee on week ends. Open till late (5am). Always quite crowded with university students.
New REM Maestro Dangdut
(Ancol, near Alexis Hotel)
"Another Dangdut bar in Ancol, a good way to escape the high class atmosphere of the Alexis when your are bored of it. Dance free in the middle of nowhere". SZ
New Stardust
(Last floor, in Sarinah Mall)
Funny club, the ***tiest in central Jakarta. Large room with house music/Techno Kota. The pool bar is very old but OK because very quiet and cheap. Good view on the city.
Nine Muses
(on the way to Kemang)
Nice bar/restaurant, with some Live Jazz Band sometimes. Lots of gays and lesbians.
NR Live Dangdut
(Hotel Melati, Hayam Wuruk)
Dangdut bar in Hotel Melati. The ugliest bar I’ve ever done so far in Jakarta, by far. Seems like they started to renovate the place but stopped. Big rats in the entrance, toilets overflooded, dim lighting, ... it can be scaring!!
"Dirty hotel, dirty toilets, strange decoration… Has to be tried at least once !" SZ
Nuansa Permai
(Jl Labu)
Bordello, but also a venue for local dangdut band. Very local.
"The owner of this old and strange bar will encourage you to sing, clapping his hands, in order to make you stay longer". SZ
Nusabunga Cafe
(Jalan Wahid Hasyim)
4 walls, a cement floor and a ceiling: That's the less hip bar of Jakarta. The soft opening on March 92 brought local dangdut star Rhoma Irama for a 30 minutes set.
Oishisha Lounge
(Kemang)
Lounge bar, house/progressive music, cheap drinks and no entrance fee.
One Tree Bar
(Blok M)
Not done yet but knowing that it belongs to the same owner as Bugils and Cazbar, we know what to expect.
Top Gun
(Blok M)
The most popular bar in Blok M, lots of girls and expats. Dirty podium. Pool table, live music, and always quite lively.
Top Ten Singing Hall
(Hayam Wuruk)
Apparently the defecation of the Top One Club in Daan Mogot. There is a large room with a live band playing Indonesian favorites, many prostitutes.
V2
(Jl Gadja Madah, 500 meters before Gadja Madah Plaza)
The bar is quite fun, a bit like the Play in Hotel Alexis. Sexy dancers and Live Band. A little bit too dark maybe.
Velvet
(Hotel Red Top)
Bar with live music and DJ on week-ends.
Velvet means purple
Vertigo/X-lounge
(Plaza Semanggi, 17th Floor)
Vertigo for Techno music, X-Lounge for RnB/Hip Hop. Used to be very hip but it has now lost some of its appeal compared to X2 /Blowfish/Dragonfly. Currently being renovated so we'll check the place again when it reopens.
X2-Equinox-Vintage
(Plaza Senayan)
The BIG club in south Jakarta. Amazing that despites the size and the price (around Rp. 100,000), it always manages to be completely packed. 3 rooms, RnB, House/Progressive/Techno and Lounge. Hosts International DJ's sometimes (recently Gabriel & Dresden, Benny Benassy and on November 16th, Above and Beyond). I don't really like it, too big for me.
Benny Benassi in X2
Zen Club
(Jl Thamrin)
Unofficial bordello. Expensive karaoke/spa for rich Indonesians/Chinese and discreet Expats. Entrance fee is 75,000 min. Amazing looking girls though. Sexy dancers, maybe topless, but I didn't have my glasses that day. Classy enough to bring clients (if you work in oil).
