1. Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your culinary background?
= My name is Patrese Vito, I am the chef here. I studied at Trisakti Hotel Management School in 2010. Then I had the opportunity to do an internship at a Fine Dining Theater Restaurant in Bali. After graduating, I continued working at BLANCO par Mandif, a very modern and progressive fine dining restaurant. There, I learned about Indonesian food and spice balancing.
2. How would you describe the dishes at Lapo Poesea?
= Fine dining is actually more about the type of restaurant, from the service, the cooking, the finishing, and the presentation. You will find arsik, sangsang, everything is here, but the difference is that we don’t use ingredients that are sensitive, such as blood, because the risk is high and not everyone wants it. So we find alternatives, we use wine. We don’t want to alter the original flavor, but we want the presentation and serving style to be different. We aim to elevate the status of lapo because there’s a common perception that lapo is dirty, since it’s usually located by the roadside.
3. What technique are you using mostly at Lapo Porsea?
= We mostly use grilling techniques. In fact, grilling is our main focus. We use the woods from coffee plants, because coffee is one of the most abundant and highest quality commodities in North Sumatra. If you try the food here, you will notice that the smokiness level is quite high. Additionally, we also use the Japanese-style Binchotan technique. The downside of using firewood is that the temperature is unstable. So we use a mix, which gives us the flavor but also more even heat distribution. For example, when making arsik, we cook it until it’s dry like the original. But then, we make a very fine sauce, like a pâté sauce.
4. How do you interpret Indonesian traditional dishes into a modern plate?
= We want to make it more modern, more beautiful, and more aesthetic. Plating is a matter of taste. Just put a little more effort into doing things better. And that’s what we do. Because the food itself is already delicious. The flavors are already rich. Making Indonesian food modern isn’t difficult; it’s just a matter of creativity to present it in a better way.
5. What does the Lapo Porsea logo mean?
= Our logo is actually based on andaliman and kecombrang, ingredients commonly found in Batak cuisine. Even many of the plates we use are shaped like flowers. Some also feature Sumatran tiger patterns. So all the details are important for us to present.
6. How Lapo Porsea was founded?
= The main idea actually came from the owner. He wants this restaurant to go global. He also has a restaurant in London called Toba. So he really wants this restaurant to become widely known. To be world class. He even chose the name himself. Porsea is the name of his father’s birthplace. “Lapo” is a Batak word meaning “restaurant.”
7. Is there anything new from Lapo Porsea?
= Going forward, we want to have a buffet. So on Saturdays and Sundays, we will have Sunday brunch. Usually, after church, people like to eat Our goal is for people to try as much as possible without feeling too much. You can try a little bit of everything.
Fun fact: none of the chefs working here are Batak. But they are making Batak food. In a sense, it’s because they also love the culture. They don’t want to limit themselves to food from their own region.
