By taking a single step into TORIBRO alone, any patron immediately discovers that the bar owners really love Japanese pop culture.

Case in point, once a patron opens the sliding entrance door, they are immediately greeted by a large, framed poster of Japanese gothic metal band Dir En Grey. As they explore the bar's interiors, they find more Japanese pop culture adornments, including a flat screen that, instead of playing smooth jazz music typical of most nightlife spots in Jakarta, plays Japanese pop music and anime soundtrack of the patron's choosing. It completely caters to its otaku target market: those who are deeply into Japanese pop culture. 

"Everyone is welcome to this bar, actually. Nonetheless, this bar is warm to people who have a massive love for J-pop. You won't feel out of place if you play Naruto soundtrack here," quipped Ekanda Susaptyo Hidayat, 30, one of the co-founders of TORIBRO during The Jakarta Post's visit on June 13. 

His fellow co-founder, FX Mario, 42, chimed in: "This is a safe place for wibu [a slang term for people who are obsessed with Japanese culture, especially anime]. No one will judge you. Just enjoy yourself. We offer good food, we offer good drinks. People usually come here for the food, but they stay for the drinks." 

Located in the Little Osaka Food Town (LOFT) compound in the Fatmawati area, South Jakarta, TORIBRO is keen on offering a leisure and nightlife experience unlike most establishments in the city. Combining the quirky and the inebriating, TORIBRO is built and run by a group of close-knit buddies who understand very well that pubs can reach market segments beyond the hard-partying yuppies.

'Shōnen' shindig

Ekanda, Mario and their pals had the idea of opening a bar when they started spending their off-time at Tori Bar Fatmawati, another Japanese culture-inspired pub that is also located in the LOFT compound. To boot, the owner of the pub happens to be a close friend of both Mario's and Ekanda's.  One day, the publican offered the latter a vacant space across from his pub in case they were interested in launching their own establishment.

Taking up the offer was a no-brainer for Mario and Ekanda; so was the name of their future cantina. “We are like Tori Bar's little brother, so that's why we named it TORIBRO," Mario said, chuckling. "That, and also, the owners of this bar consist of 10 people and we're all guys."

The proprietors of TORIBRO had understood very well that, despite the given business opportunity, undertaking a venture with close pals could potentially harm their friendship. On top of the awkwardness, some of the proprietors had no prior experience in entrepreneurship. To dispel such concern, Ekanda, in particular, decided to ask for advice from a certain confidant.

"My father encouraged me. Running a business with one's friends can indeed get ugly. If the business falls apart, so will everything else. Still, why are you afraid? Do you have no faith in your friendship?" Ekanda asked, rhetorically.

Fortunately, the proprietors of TORIBRO came with their respective sets of skills. Ekanda commended Mario's "business instinct" whereas Mario gave props to Ekanda's "diligence", especially as the latter started taking charge of the bar's menu and choice of cuisine. "I wouldn't have the energy to come up with the menu and supervise the miscellaneous stuff. Ekanda is the one who deals with the menu and the food," added Mario.

The proprietors of TORIBRO decided to, more or less, incorporate a concept similar to Tori Bar Fatmawati's – insofar as the bar is heavily decorated with references to Japanese pop culture which includes, but is not limited to, anime, manga and video games. That said, Ekanda acknowledged that it took more than quirky decorations to draw customers to TORIBRO. He decided to pitch another idea to his fellow proprietors.

"If we incorporate the exact same concept, we wouldn't have any value and they would end up beating us. That's why I suggested we offer fusion cuisine, we come up with our own cocktails and we work on our brand so that we could endear ourselves more to [fans of Japanese pop culture]," Ekanda explained.

The concept of TORIBRO might seem alien to the layman, but in the eyes of its proprietors, they were convinced that the offbeat concept would reach an untapped market segment that had never crossed the minds of most barkeepers and publicans in Jakarta.

Ekanda added, "It seems like there are lots of people out there who love Japanese culture, but such love is yet to be somewhat accommodated. I mean, where else can you play [Japanese pop music and anime soundtrack] in a bar? There's no way you can play songs like these in a Senopati bar. That would be kind of out of place."

'Otaku' saloon

TORIBRO officially opened its doors to customers on Dec. 13, 2021 -- a decision that, Ekanda and Mario concurred, was pretty bold considering, at the time, the COVID-19 pandemic was derailing most food-and-beverage establishments in Jakarta. Ultimately, the proprietors decided to apply a “now-or-never” state of mind.

"It's like when you swim -- if you make strong kicks at the beginning, the path before you is certainly untroubled," Mario analogized.

In establishing a rapport with the patrons, the proprietors and the staff deliberately went for "somewhere in between -- we're not aloof, but we're not being too 'matey'," said Mario, the goal of which was to create a "congenial" vibe without coming across as "annoying" to the patrons.

Ekanda described the food menu of TORIBRO as a fusion between traditional Japanese cuisine and the more rustic, Indonesian cuisine. He personally took pride in the bar's signature dish rawon ramen, which is a traditional Japanese ramen noodle combined with East Java-style rawon broth. Another signature dish of TORIBRO's is soto udon, a traditional Japanese udon noodle paired with Madura-style soto broth.

If the bar patrons are in the mood for a more conventional dish, TORIBRO also fixes plates such as tori chazuke -- a classic Japanese dish made by pouring green tea over cooked rice --and sweets such as dango and mochi. The bar's signature grilled skewers, Sukuna's fingers -- a reference to Jujutsu Kaisen. a popular Japanese anime and manga franchise -- are suitable for patrons looking for some meaty delights.

Looking back, Ekanda's goal for the bar's food menu was to ensure that "our food cannot be found anywhere else -- first and foremost", he asserted. Moreover, he highlighted that authenticity was vital in designing a menu that would prove successful. "Take rawon, for instance. It seems so difficult to find good rawon -- like the one cooked by my mother -- in Jakarta," he added.

Another distinct element of the menu is how the names of most of the dishes and drinks on the menu are references to Japanese pop culture. Have they ever worried that the names might turn off first-time customers? "The way I see it, those names will end up cringe-y if the food is not delicious," Ekanda answered.

Mario offered a similar sentiment: "People will diss you if the food is bad. But, if the food is good and the price is fair, people will embrace it."

TORIBRO's signature cocktails were mostly designed and concocted by Mario. For the first-time patrons, he personally recommended the bar's Shoryuken! which consists of gin, vodka and apple juice. The name of the cocktail is a reference to the Japanese video game franchise Street Fighter. For patrons who might prefer a sober evening, the bar's signature mocktail lemillion -- a non-alcoholic concoction of lime, lemon basil and lemongrass -- might suit their palate instead. The name of the mocktail is a reference to the Japanese manga and anime franchise My Hero Academia.

Bovie, a 33-year-old private sector employee and a regular patron at TORIBRO, applauded how the menu of the bar manages to keep up with its outlandish atmosphere.

"Number one is the anime vibe of the bar. Number two, after frequenting this place, turns out, the food is pretty good. Usually, not all bars with this vibe offer decent food, but in this case, they match -- you can enjoy the Japanese music and the food is great for your hangout," he opined.

TORIBRO opens every day, including on public holidays, from 12 p.m. to midnight. For more details, including reservations, check out its Instagram @toribro.bar

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