CHEF AKIRA BACK'€™S DARING IS REFLECTED IN JAKART'€™S BEST FINE-DINING JAPANESE RESTAURANT

Words and Photos Kevindra P. Soemantri

Akira Back'€™s energetic Indonesian-born No. 2, Andri Dionysius, appeared at my table with a rectangular block of frozen pink Himalayan sea salt, which from afar resembled an unhewn piece of marble.

On top was a beautiful arrangement of delicate hirame carpaccio and crispy shallots, surrounded by garden of precisely picked frisse and mini-medallions of tomatoes, both red and green.

As I watched, Andri began to pour an intense nanbansu sauce, hunched over like a hermit caring for his garden. The aroma that arose was relaxing and seductive.

Akira Back, the most talked about fine-dining Japanese restaurant in the capital, is a pristine expression of its eponymous chef.

It'€™s no coincidence that the restaurant, which opened in 2014, is located on the penthouse level of the MD Building, which is also home to the entertainment house. The chef is a star.

He is omnipresent. Akira Back'€™s soul and spirit resides everywhere, from the octagonal ornaments around the restaurant'€™s glass partitions to the shiny kitchen apparatus that allure you to peek inside the restaurant'€™s immaculate open kitchen.

In the dining room, I saw guests entertained when one of Akira Back'€™s signature dishes, a tuna and mushroom pizza, was brought to my table.

The crust was made with finesse, each part equally flat and golden-brown in color and cooked crisply to perfection.

Half of the pizza was topped by thinly sliced tuna sashimi and half by paper-thin sliced king oyster mushrooms, grilled to bring out an earthy and robust flavor.

The halves were connected by a creamy and tangy ponzu mayo, drizzles of sensual white truffle oil and sprinkles of salt and black pepper.

The pizza was a duet of earth and ocean'€“the best of both worlds.

Although chef Akira is Korean born, his cooking reflects years of training in the Japanese culinary arts. Before changing tack, Akira was a professional snowboarder, picking up the sport in Aspen, Colorado, when he moved to the US in 1989.

Several years later, Akira worked at Kenichi Aspen restaurant under the master chef Kenichi Kanada.

In 2006, at the Food & Wine Classic in Aspen, held by Food & Wine magazine to showcase the US' brightest culinary talents, Akira was chosen to join the Iron Chef America cooking competition series, alongside Food Network grill-boy Bobby Flay.

Akira later debuted his Yellowtail restaurant at the Bellagio Las Vegas. It quickly became a favorite of many celebrities, including Taylor Swift and Eva Longoria.

The chef'€™s bold character and courage as an extreme sportsman is evident in every dish on the menu, as well as in the cooking of his proteges, among them chef Andri.

Akira'€™s reverence for Japanese cuisine was also evident as I bit into a single roll of toro, tasting the fatty tuna inside, along with julienned vegetables, cilantro, a spread of spicy Korean gochujang and a crown comprising a dollop Oscietra caviar.

The crunchiness of the fresh vegetables mingled with the delicate slightly burned fatty tuna, while a hint of umami emerged, thanks to the spiciness of Korean gochujang married to the subtle, softly nutty caviar.

Chef Akira'€™s surprises were not over yet: A waiter brought to our table what seemed would be a boring dish'€“a cucumber roll layered with another roll of tuna sashimi.

Inside, however, was finely chopped yellowtail and blue crab. The dish itself sat on top of a tomato carpaccio.

We started to dig in when the chef told us to wait, bringing out a futuristic looking tube tool.

Suddenly, a shower of fragrant drops of tomato and basil water fell on top of the cucumber roll, giving the dish the appearance of Aspen in the winter.

The dish was executed brilliantly and playfully. Textures mingled deliciously: The crispness of the cucumber and the fragrant snowflakes that melted into a sauce inside your mouth.

Next was a more traditional dish featuring fine A5 grade beef from Kagoshima cattle, cut with original Laguiole knives and cooked on top of Japanese stone grill (ishiyaki) coated with beef fat instead of oil.

It sizzled, bursting with an intense dark robust meat aroma that awakened a primordial craving.

Only seconds were needed to cook the meat, so I dipped the beef into a chojang salsa, Korean sesame oil and a spicy and earthy Peruvian antichuco sauce.

Akira Back is a not-to-be missed dining experience. Entertain yourself'€“and your taste buds'€”with the dishes of a most creative chef.

At Akira Back'€™s Table

JPlus contributing food writer Kevindra P. Soemantri sat down for a brief chat with chef Akira Back. Here are excerpts of their interview.

How hard was it to switch from enthusiast snowboarder to superstar chef?

Being in the kitchen really makes me feel like when I was on the slopes back in the day. I get to feel free'€“no boundaries'€“and the freedom to express myself is just priceless.

How has your Korean heritage and Japanese training inspired your food?

The discipline of my training in Japanese cuisine will always impact how I cook and how I choose products, especially seafood. The root of everything is the fact that I am Korean born. I am always happy whenever I can incorporate some of those flavors from my heritage.

Why Jakarta?

The first time I came in to Jakarta was a long time ago. I don'€™t even remember the details'€“it was just another city. But when I came back in 2013, wow, did this city change'€“especially in the food scene. Japanese concepts were everywhere. It seemed like the city loved Japanese food. When I explored more, no one really offered more refined Japanese cuisine in town. Most importantly, no one was offering a modern Japanese restaurant concept. That'€™s when I felt that my brand would work here.

What'€™s your vision?

My vision as a chef is of course is the same as every other chef out there: To let the world know about and enjoy my food. Seeing those smiles in the dining room is definitely the fuel that ignites my passion'€“and that'€™s what'€™s keep me going.

How do you want guests to feel?

The mission is to let diners understand that the cuisine they just experienced is not just typical Japanese food. I want them to experience the journey of my life'€“my extensive training background in Japanese [cuisine], my Korean heritage, my travel experiences and, most importantly, my life in this melting pot of cultures called the USA.

Akira Back

MD Place, 12th Floor Lt. 12
Jl. Setiabudi Selatan No. 7
Setiabudi, South Jakarta 12910
Telp: +6285777788777

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