Easily the most famous and historic restaurant in town, Café Batavia is housed in a restored 19th-century Dutch colonial building just opposite the old Dutch city hall (now Jakarta Museum). The place is a living reminder of Jakarta's luxurious (as well as oppressive) colonial past, when Dutch officials would wine and dine their nights away in luxury while the local residents barely scratched out a living.

Now full of tourists and expats, Café Batavia is both gaudy and sophisticated at the same time.