`cause you got personality,
Walk, personality
Talk, Personality
Smile, Personality
Charm, personality
Love, personality
And of Cause you´ve got
A great big heart

So honk those horns for the Jaya Pub – doubtless the most authentic and unaffected survivor on the expat entertainment map. Kicking off in ’75 as Jakarta’s only pub, the Jaya has – thru krismons, political upheavals and the growing glitz of upmarket bars and bistros – made the transition from a trend-setting, jam sessioning Seventies pub to more laid back, still honking Seventies nostalgia. OK, after almost 30 yrs of strutting her stuff, there are a few wrinkles but this grand old girl has still got loads of charm, more than a bit of cheek and handles herself with the poise expected of a veteran entertainer.

To stay near the top, damned good pubs must have damned good atmosphere and the Jaya Pub is overloaded with it. In a way it’s seriously retro – not in the buzzy pop culture re-creationist sense – we’re talking throwback, time machine type retro. Inspired in part by the traditional Brown Cafes of Holland and the old English Tudor-styled pubs that became so popular in the Seventies, the Jaya’s décor is founded upon heavy exposed beams and aged, dark wood, paneled walls. But at the heart of the pub, the Jaya creates its own piece of tradition. By positioning the oblong bar up against the stage, the two main pillars of the Jaya – cold beer and great music – are fused into an altar-like center of attention. Bordering this inner sanctum are wooden booths and tables, catering for grouped diversity without losing the desired pub unity. On the “outer” but with a mostly unimpeded view of the stage are the bistro, pool table and cocktail bar. All this is literally awash with a paraphernalia-powered assortment of clichéd signs and posters of just about every pop culture icon that ever existed – Cagney, Bogart, Chaplin, Marylyn, Marlene, Jimmy Dean – they’re all there striking the same poses they did in their heyday. Sure, some kitschy overkill at work here but as one sign defiantly declares – “This Mess is a Place” – and it does all add to an anything goes feeling.

If the décor is Seventies, woody and anything goes, the music is Seventies (and Fifties and Sixties), rocking and any request made. Jaya legend, the late great Felix (see inset) was the pulsating power behind the pub for almost 20 years and his ability to turn a passively appreciative audience into a rocking, hip-swiveling, bar dancing mass has been sorely missed. But the Jaya Pub bounces on and the music of the Seventies – rock, blues or country – is still the anchor that holds it all together. The Jaya has attempted to give itself a face lift with the introduction of a few of the ubiquitous 2 cute boy/2 cute girl type bands and although some of their more modern stuff doesn’t quite resonate with the wooden walls and rock-on ears of the Jaya, no one can doubt their talent and enthusiasm. Many however still prefer the old time wrinkles and the raw, uncomplicated, three-piece music of the Big Donny Group. A typical bracket from these veterans might contain songs from as diverse a range of artists as the Stones, Patsy Kline, Santana, the Righteous Brothers, Elvis, the Beatles, Clapton, the Animals and Wilson Pickett.

Jaya Pub’s bistro serves “up-market” pub food. There are a full range of tender charcoal grilled NZ and US steaks, European pub staples such as bratwurst and weissewurst, seafood – all served with salads or vegetables – plus Indonesian favorites, soups and appetizers. The menu is complemented by a wide selection of imported wines from Australia, California, South Africa and France.

But perhaps the underlying strength behind the longevity and amazing continuity of the Jaya Pub is the concept of family; not family as in bring the kids along – please don’t – but in the sense of permanence engendered by the loyalty between the owners, staff and patrons. Some of the staff have been at the Jaya Pub for around 20 years, a rarity in the shiny youth-driven Jakartan nightspots. And the owners, Frans and Rima, who still make regular cameos, have ensured that the pub has remained true to its projected image as a “bring the missus – and the mother-in-law – music pub”.

For their part, the pub patrons – generally from the over-30 group – have responded through the decades with their own brand of loyalty by making the Jaya Pub their ‘local’ while in Jakarta. There has been some evolution. In the seventies and eighties, Jaya Pub patrons were pretty much exclusively expatriates. Nowadays, Jakartans are discovering the pleasures of having a local pub and currently comprise around 30% of the pub’s patrons, providing a nice mix of expats and likeminded locals.

Yes, after 30 years, the Jaya Pub does have a few wrinkles but as the grand old girl herself might say:

Come up and see me some time.
IN MEMORY

Long live the Legend!
Felix Raharusun, long time lead singer and Jaya Pub legend, passed away in November 2003. He died doing what he loved doing most. While on his honeymoon in Bali, he volunteered for a stint at Jaya’s Bali pub and half way through a jam session with a local band he was called to the great gig in the sky.

Felix entertained Jaya Pub patrons for over twenty years. This dude knew how to get the joint rocking and when he took the microphone, rock it did. “Nobody is irreplaceable” is an oft used expression but Felix – with his powerful voice, his unique mimics, his warm personality and an ability to get everybody involved in his performance – was instrumental in putting the Jaya Pub on the map as one the best, if not the best live rock ‘n roll pubs in Jakarta. That the Jaya Pub is still up there with the best rock ‘n roll pubs in Jakarta is Felix’s legacy to all of us who love music.

Felix – you will be missed but if there is a heaven then there’s no doubt it will be a more rocking place with you there.

Vale Felix!

Jaya Pub
Jl. M.H. Thamrin 12 Phone 319-27508/319-25633
Open 6pm-1am-ish
Bistro Price : Rp. 45.000 - Rp. 150.000,-
Shouldn’t Miss : Black Pepper Steak/French Wine Selection/Big Donny Group
Happy Hours : 6pm - 8pm (Monday to Friday)