Kudos to Novotel in Yogyakarta

I want to tell you about the wonderful dinner my wife, Jeanne, and I had in Indonesia on New Year’s Eve 2013.

We were staying in Yogyakarta at the Novotel Hotel (Jalan Jendral Sudirman 89, 55223 Yogyakarta, Java, Indonesia; phone +[62] 274 580930). 

Our travel agent had made reservations for us to have dinner at the hotel on the night we arrived, Dec. 30, but we got in too late to eat, so we arranged to eat there the next night instead. 

We then had a choice to make, as the tour we were on included dinner at a New Year’s Eve show we were going to. We expected the hotel’s dinner would be better than the meal at the dinner show, so we confirmed the reservation at the hotel’s first-floor Kedaton Restaurant at 7 o’clock, since we had a pickup for the show at 8.

When we arrived at the dining room at 7, we found that the only dinner being served was the New Year’s buffet, which would start at 8. We went back to the check-in desk and explained the problem to the woman who had checked us in.

She asked us to sit in the lobby, and about 10 minutes later she told us she had made arrangements for us to eat at the buffet early. We were able to go right in.

We were concerned that we would feel in the way as the staff finished setting up, but each staff member was so nice. They made us feel as if the buffet was a private event just for us.

Two of the staff came over to us at different times to chat and wish us “Happy New Year.” And the buffet was GREAT. We were sorry we couldn’t stay to enjoy it longer.

I’m sure the buffet was more expensive than the dinner at the show, but we weren’t charged any extra, so apparently the hotel absorbed the difference. However, prices in Indonesia are very reasonable. A nice, hot lunch in a typical sit-down restaurant — with linen napkins and tablecloth and a couple of beers — cost us $20.

It was truly a memorable New Year’s Eve dinner.

DAVE SMITH

Irvine, CA

Novotel Hotel room prices average about $68-$90 (plus 21% tax) per night for two people,