Every steakhouse has its headliners, the ribeye and the tenderloin. At Isabella Steakhouse in Jakarta, the spotlight goes to the rising stars of the butcher’s block: secondary cuts such as the flat iron, rich in flavour and character. As the city’s first Itameshi steakhouse, Isabella builds its menu around them.
Itameshi, a Japanese word for Italian food made the Japanese way, sets the tone. Chef-owner Henry Brata pairs the comfort of an Italian kitchen with the precision of Japanese technique. Each cut is marinated with herbs, then slow-cooked in a charcoal oven until the flavour runs deep.
That skill shines brightest in the flat iron steak, the star of the menu. Tender and generously juicy, it speaks for itself. To balance the richness, the Mix Seaweed Salad tosses baby gem and sliced pear with pickled seaweed in a wafu dressing, a Japanese-style vinaigrette. When it is time for something sweet, the kitchen returns to its Italian roots with a classic tiramisu, layering savoiardi and mascarpone with espresso and chocolate, rich yet balanced.
The setting is just as inviting. Terracotta and cream tiles run in a checkerboard beneath dark timber beams. One wall glows with a painting in shades of ember and rust, a fitting echo of the charcoal oven, while the kitchen works in full view. It feels like dining at an Italian restaurant in Japan, warm and relaxed, familiar yet quietly distinctive, with plates made for sharing.
At Isabella Steakhouse, the rising stars finally have their moment in the spotlight, and on this evidence they are a cut above. Good steak, as the kitchen likes to say, does not have to be complicated, so just come hungry.
