Main dining at Orient8.

Good ingredients and plenty of love are the building blocks for a superb French dish.

'€œClassical dishes are very important for me but with variation,'€ guest chef Stephane Istel explained during his brief visit recently to Orient8 French and Pan-Asian Restaurant at Hotel Mulia in Jakarta.

The chef, who presented classic French dishes with his signature variations, said that good basic ingredients played most important role in his cooking along with love, of course.

Presented with an eight-course set menu for lunch, guests started the feast with la tarte flambée, from the chef'€™s hometown in northern Alsace.

With its similarity to pizza, the dish was well received by Asian tastes. The savory one-bite appetizer consists of munster-géromé cheese, caraway seeds, beef bacon, onion and cream cheese.

The crisp flamed tart, served as 12 morsels on a wooden board, owe most of their savory flavor to the munster-géromé made of 100 percent cows'€™ milk. Munster-gerome is a strong, soft from Vosges, between Alsace-Lorraine and Franche-Comté in northeast France.

Le carpaccio de saumon.Coming second to the table was le carpaccio de saumon '€” raw salmon with lime and pink peppercorn marinade, a sourdough cracker and watercress chantilly.

With its strong lime flavor, the salmon carpaccio was a pretty fresh dish. Istel added edible flowers from Australia which essentially added to both the visuals and savor.

The third course was a soothing one for the belly: la soupe de topinambours. The Jerusalem artichoke soup with salsify, black truffle royal and parmesan was a bowl of perfect comfort to welcome the fourth course, le foie gras grillé.

As classic as it can be, foie gras will always be the '€œit'€ dish in French cuisine.

In the hands of Istel, the foie gras was grilled with brioche toast, plus apricot duo, mâche salad and duck jus.

Next up was la coquille Saint-Jacques, pan-seared Hokkaido sea scallop with cauliflower, radish, rocket salad and grenobloise sauce. The sauce, from Grenoble in eastern France, is made of browned butter, capers, parsley and pieces of lemon.

The scallop was seared very well, leaving no fishy aftertaste. Instead, slices of raw red radish brought out a beautiful aroma.

Le foie gras grille.Done with seafood, Istel presented le boeuf aux carrottes, Black Angus beef tenderloin with a bone-marrow crust. It was accompanied by crispy braised oxtail with heirloom carrots, shallot confit and a bordelaise sauce.

The crispy braised oxtail was a laudable accompaniment to the beef, making them a great pair for the main course which was just filling enough.

For desserts, Istel made baked Alaska and '€œmom'€™s Alsatian apple tart'€.

To have a sneak-peak of the chef'€™s work in the kitchen, Istel showcased a little flame work on his baked Alaska '€” a slice of flambéed chocolate and pear ice cream with Grand Marnier.

'€œThe baked Alaska is pear sorbet with chocolate ice cream, caramel biscuit and we finish it with Italian meringue in flame. The meringue consists of white egg and sugar, with splashes of Grand Marnier, or orange liquor,'€ said Istel.

As for the mom'€™s apple tart, the dessert was flavored with cinnamon streusel and vanilla ice cream.

'€œThe tart is actually just a simple apple tart; it'€™s not a secret recipe. It is one of my favorites from my mother'€™s kitchen. For such great taste of tart, you just need good apples, good dough and cinnamons for some crispiness. It is a simple food, really,'€ Istel says.

Chef Istel works at Master Chef Daniel Bouloud'€™s bistro, DB Bistro Moderne, in Singapore. He is about to open his own Bar-Roque Grill also in Singapore.

'€œI'€™m in love with cooking; when I don'€™t cook I'€™m sad. When I'€™m on a vacation, I cook for my friends, family, with a bottle of wine '€” cooking all day. I cook a dish that takes 4-5 hours, but I embrace it, give a lot of love to it,'€ said the chef.

Orient8
French and Pan-Asian Restaurant
Hotel Mulia
Jl. Asia Afrika, Senayan, Jakarta
Opening hours: 12 '€“ 3 p.m (lunch);
6 '€“ 11 p.m. (dinner)
Reservations: 021-574777

'€” Photos courtesy of Hotel Mulia