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f such a thing existed, the Shoppers Association of Jakarta would be certain to find a new headquarters this month, seeing one of the biggest, luxurious and modern malls in the city has eventually reached the final construction stage.

Gandaria City Mall, standing in the center of the planned Gandaria City Superblock at one side of Arteri Pondok Indah, South Jakarta, already has 91 percent of its entire space occupied by more than 129 stores and restaurants.

In the mall’s soft launch late in June, the Pakuwon Group announced that most of its ambitious project yet will be fully operational on Aug. 5, 2010.

The Jakarta Post had the opportunity to visit the mall on the opening night, and the highly informed Jakarta citizens of various backgrounds were already crowding the entrance, chatting and nibbling on delicious fish at the conveniently located Fish & Co and trying their luck at the city’s first Lotte Mart Hypermarket. The entrance hall had a group of street vendors hired to occupy the space, providing street delights at their best quality at the most affordable prices.

Eat & Eat, a considerably catchy name that doesn’t suggest anything but food, was our final destination to fill our empty stomachs after browsing for stationery at Paperclip on the bottom floor. Located on the fourth floor, the food hall kind of reminds us of the one at Kelapa Gading Mall, but with a completely different theme.

Eat & Eat aims to present a modern minimalist atmosphere with delightful hues of green, red, yellow and different pastel colors. Huge black and white images of old food production facilities and famous chefs are displayed alongside similar-size blackboards with different shop’s names written on them. Their idea of coziness is spacious yet compact space arrangements with varieties of interesting historical ornaments. Filling one huge cabinet, for example, are dozens of Coca-Cola cans and bottles of different eras collected from different nations. There are also other cupboards containing cans of different products.

The variety of food is also astounding, as the hall does its best to present local as well as popular international cuisine from neighboring countries like Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia.

The shopping center stands out in terms of overall architecture, with high ceilings, winding wood passages and floral patterns garnishing different floors. The main atrium, where the opening event was centered, has a glass ceiling to make use of the sun as source of light during the day. At the center of the mall is the 300-meter-long double tiered Main Street, highlighted by Batavian, Times Square architecture facing the Piazza outdoor landscaped garden. More than a dozen restaurants open on this street until late at night, making it the perfect place to hang out.

Part of the design is the soon-to-be opened direct underground passage from Jl KH Hadzami to the lower ground of the mall, as well as an additional two lanes alongside Arteri Pondok Indah as part of the mall’s design to facilitate traffic. Its parking space can contain up to 4500 cars and 1800 motorbikes, while 500 security personnel are deployed to ensure customers’ safety.

An interesting design is also applied at the mall’s XXI cineplex, which has seven theaters and two premium theaters in total.

Gandaria City Mall does have what it takes to be a major contender in the business and a new favorite for shoppers.

It has some of the most prominent fashion and food vendors and some of the biggest names in the retail business like Ace Hardware, Electronic Solution, Informa Furniture, Gramedia bookstore, Metro department store and Celebrity Fitness. You can also keep your life on track within the mall through free Wi-Fi access, electricity plugs at the
Concierge to charge your cell phone or laptop, a mosque at which to pray and a wide, private breastfeeding area.

It’s easy to say that shopping malls have become the new centers of life today. At least, that’s what Gandaria Shopping Mall is confirming.