Baked Taro Schotel

The delights of dining around Jakarta are too often tainted by the realization of unhealthy living.

Whether it’s that spicy hot bowl of Indomie noodles in a warung stall by the roadside, cholesterol-laden servings of seafood on dusty restaurant tables or plates of blood-boiling goat satay prepared alongside an offal-filled soup, it is safe to say that too many of the city’s culinary specialties are not particularly health-friendly.

It only makes sense therefore that around the city, food establishments with a focus on healthy dining seem to be on the rise.

From specifically non-monosodium glutamate (MSG, a flavor enhancer) restaurants to vegetarian houses, Indonesians are now looking for something that tastes good but won’t damage their wellbeing in the long run.

As the increasing prevalence of guys wearing tight shirts in public places shows, being healthy and looking toned are all the rage.

Founded two years ago, Jakarta’s Gorry Gourmet is a premium catering service that is all about ridding meals of MSG and other chemicals not meant for the body.

Only three years ago, co-founder William Susilo used to live a fairly typical metropolitan lifestyle; too many late nights, an overweight physique and an endless stream of cigarettes.

Barely in his mid-20s, William realized he wasn’t feeling like someone who was in his prime should be feeling, and an article he read about 27 being the prime year of one’s life made him feel even worse.

Hooking up with now business partner Herry Budiman, who had recently quit his jobs as marketing manager for two well-known food and beverage (F&B) companies, William saw his chance at starting a health food business.

William Susilo

Herry, fresh from his stints at large-scale F&B operators, was soon on board.

“In the local F&B industry, the ugly truth is that a lot of businesses use plenty of preservatives, MSG, artificial flavoring and even artificial palettes [chemically-induced taste enhancers],” explains Herry before adding “It’s scary”.

It also made sense from a business point of view, he added.

“As a growing nation, [Indonesians] are starting to be aware of their health; things like going to Car-Free Day, the gym, running and yoga communities, and even untested dieting methods, which were all the rage a while ago, even if they weren’t medically proven.”

The idea, and the challenge, was to show that healthy food could actually taste good.

“The stigma is that a meal can be healthy but if it is so, there is no way it tastes good,” suggests Herry, explaining Gorry’s campaign for “Smart Eating”.

To ensure this, William and Herry employed a team of nutritionists and “food scientists” including doctors — in their 20s and 30s — from Jakarta and Bandung in West Java.

Organic ingredients and air-tight packaging is one of their key approaches. Their menu consists of premium meals delivered nationwide.

Au Poivre Steak

Williams believes people’s awareness about their health is too often not coupled with an awareness of how medically tested some health food or programs are.

“Society here is still about following a trend — health trends included. And they do it sometimes without making sure whether it actually works or whether it helps them at all,” he says.

“What we want to do [though Gorry’s individually assigned health program] is to introduce a dietary method that approaches every individual case uniquely.”

— Photos courtesy of Gorry Gourmet