The interior of Iniko Toys Café resembles a spaceship.

At first glance, people might think Iniko Toys Cafe is a place designed for kids. Seeing the robot-like figures that decorate its roof, many would think so.

On stepping inside the cafe, you feel like you are entering a different world. The gray and futuristic interior resembles a spaceship, like the kind we often see in Hollywood science fiction flicks.

A one-and-a-half meter high Gundam robot, the famous Japanese anime character, in a glass-enclosed diorama catches your attention, standing directly in front of the entrance "welcoming" guests.

As the name suggests, the place is full of toys.

As you go deeper into Iniko, you notice the many animated toys displayed in attractive detailed dioramas, depicting settings ranging from a battlefield, to a palace and a restaurant, with great lighting and mechanics to make the toys move.

The animated toys also vary, ranging from Disney characters such as Alice from Alice in Wonderland, Mickey Mouse, Nemo (from animated movie Finding Nemo), and characters from Toy Story, The Incredibles and Monsters Inc., to Japanese anime characters like Saint Seiya and Astro Boy.

Iniko also has a number of movie figures on display, including Master Yoda from Star Wars', the Gundam robot and a one-meter-high Terminator T-800, made of steel. The collection is full of rare and limited-edition pieces.

In the center of the room, there is an upside-down model of a city skyscraper with action hero characters such as Batman and Superman hanging from it. The owner of Iniko, Budi Santoso Liman, says the cafe is not just for kids.

"People get it all wrong. Some people used to think this was a toy store, and others thought that it was a children's cafe."

"This is a cafe for people of all ages - for those who want to have fun," Budi said, adding that the toys were all original.

All of the toys are from Budi's personal collection, which he has compiled since the early 1990s.

"Through this cafe, I want to educate people, especially the youngster generations, to appreciate original products. Collecting original toys is like investing in gold, you know," he said.

"The value [of the toys] will increase over time. For instance, you buy a robot for about Rp 500,000 (US$50). One year later, the price can double or even triple," he said.

Look around at the collection, you can also try solving the funny mystery questions at each of the displays. If you succeed, you will be given a special gift and your picture will be taken for placement on the Wall of Mystery Breakers.

Iniko also has a lot to offer game lovers, providing gaming tables, ranging from serious games like chess and sudoku, to more lively games like Uno and monopoly.

Traditional games such as snakes and ladders and congklak (a wooden board with indentations) are also available.

For people who are into hi-tech games, Iniko provides stations with gaming consoles, including Sony's PlayStation 2 and 3 and Nintendo Wii. Wifi is also freely available.

Since gambling is restricted in the cafe, Iniko provides powder and lipstick for punishment, allowing winners to paints the losers' faces.

Besides the variety of games and toys, Iniko also offers various tempting dishes, based on Budi's family recipes.

Light meals and starters range from mushroom cream soup, cheese fruit salad, and sushi omelet temptation, to three kinds of pizza roll. If the aforementioned dishes cannot keep your stomach from growling, you can order one of the main courses.

Mexican Meatloaf is one of the favorites. This is a combination of milled beef with Mexican spices, egg, mozzarella cheese, rolled with smoked beef and served with green peas, chopped carrots and French fries. For the French fries, instead of salt, Budi uses cheese to sprinkle onto the sliced potatoes, making the potatoes tastier.

Other choices include cheesy crackers dory in white sauce, which is a combination of baked dory fish with cheese crackers, parmesan cheese and Iniko's very own creamy white sauce.

Craving local cuisine? The cafe also has Indonesian food including oxtail soup, rendang, opor ayam (chicken curry), sayur asem (sour vegetable soup), soto ayam and iga penyet (beef ribs with chili sauce).

For dessert, creamy pancakes is the best choice. The dough of pancake is more soft than common pancakes you find at other eateries.

One thing that you should keep in mind once you decide to spend some time at the cafe is not to expect a quiet and peaceful meal, since Iniko is a place to have fun where everybody is free to laugh loudly with relatives or friends.

"If you go by yourself and want to play at a gaming table, you can ask one of our waitresses to accompany you. Our employees have been trained to play several games," Budi said.

Iniko also welcomes regular guests to become its members, who can enjoy several fun privileges.

With an annual membership fee of Rp 100,000, a member can get a 10 percent discount on food and beverages, and use Sony PlayStation 3 and special gaming tables.

So, if want to have meals while playing scrabble or monopoly with friends, put Iniko on your agenda.

Iniko Toys Cafe

Jl. Gunawarman 11A, South Jakarta
Phone: 021-7220267
Opening Hours:
Monday-Thursday 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Friday-Sunday 11 a.m. to midnight

Popular

Stocks sink, oil surges on reports of Middle East attacks

Israel launches strike against Iran: US media

North Sulawesi volcano eruption forces evacuations, airport closure