It's the latest "in" place in trendy Sai Ying Pun; an extension of the popular Potato Head from Bali. The 780-square-meter space includes a small lifestyle store, offering Indonesian artisan items and merchandize, including a stunning collection of ceramics. There is a dedicated dining room, a comfortable lounge and bar area with all-day dining facility, as well as a mini coffee lounge called "I Love You So Coffee" and takeaway coffee shop. Interestingly, Indonesia is the fourth-biggest producer of coffee in the world.

Tucked away further into the complex, there's also a rather nifty Music Room, a dedicated listening space and vinyl library for audiophiles. The emphasis is on comfort, hence the presence of sink-into couches and lie-back armchairs. There's also a "platter spinner" in the room. Already attracting dedicated fans, the venue hosts a diverse line-up of artists and activities such as disco nights, album listening parties and guest DJ gigs. One recent memorable evening highlighted Ethiopian Jazz - you don't hear a lot of that around the area! And, the aforementioned PS says that Wednesdays in August are going to be a time for sunset vibes, whatever the weather!

In Kaum, the main bar and casual dining area, the relaxed vibe is continued in the decor and ambience. Pretty plant boxes hang from the ceilings, sheathed in hundreds of traditional handmade and hand-painted panels from South Sulawesi, and a nice array of mid-century antiques and custom-designed Indonesian furniture.

Kaum (meaning tribe in Indonesian) serves authentic Indonesian cuisine, emphasizing the "Indo Eksotika" style, feel and flavors. Staff in the bar told us that Kaum's owners and chefs took time to build relationships with Indonesian tribal people in order to recreate the authentic flavour in their regional specialties.

Many dishes listed on the menu at the Sai Ying Pun venue are prepared by employing near-forgotten cooking techniques as well as artisan ingredients - and, admirably, there's not a plastic cup in sight.

For starters try a refreshing dish of gohu ikan tuna - slices of marinated raw tuna dressed with coconut oil, calamansi juice, pomelo and toasted nuts.

The gado gado features raw and blanched vegetables - string beans, crisply sliced cucumbers, a variety of salad leaves, crunchy bean sprouts, along with potatoes and tofu mixed in a gently spiced white peanut dressing and topped with a boiled egg, tempeh and garlic crackers.

And a lush dish of nasi goreng komplit features fried rice, prawns and vegetables served with grilled pork satay, sambal relish, pickled vegetables, topped with a fried organic egg and tempeh crackers.

And to go with that and other dishes; there's a variety of drinks, most of which are created by following a "root to flower" philosophy. This admirable concept aims to utilize an ingredient entirely, so as to showcase its original flavors.

Not-to-be-missed drinks include the Millionaire Martini, shaken with passion fruit and served straight up along with a champagne chaser that's also layered with a passion fruit foam!

And if that's not quite your style then there's the Potato Head Bloody Mary. Not for the faint-hearted but well worth the time taken to enjoy it to the full - this is a blend of yellow bell peppers, citrus vodka and pressed tomato juice, seasoned with Indonesian hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce and cracked black peppercorns.

Probably the most noticeable difference between this new Sai Ying Pun venue and the original Potato Head Beach Club in Bali is the lack of the calm-inducing waft of salty sea breezes!

(HK Edition 08/12/2016 page9)