Blok M

What is Blok M?

Blok M is a business and shopping quarter at the top end of south Jakarta. It's one of the older complexes in Jakarta, not so glass-and-concrete as the more modern developments up towards Kota (central Jakarta), and consequently has a lot of run-down streets and buildings. This also means that it's got a character all of its own, and a thriving night-life as properties are relatively cheap and it's easily accessible from most parts of Jakarta.

Where is Blok M?

The Blok is located on one of the arterial roads that run north-south through the middle of Jakarta, which means it's busy at most times and totally snarled up during the morning and evening rush-hours. It's a local transport hub as well, with a large and busy bus terminus at its heart. Getting to Blok M is easy, as almost every taxi driver in town knows where it is.  Click here for maps

What time does the action start?

The real night life swings into action after 11 pm, and goes on into the early hours (two or three in the morning at Lintas Melawai, later if the place is busy enough).

What time are the shops open?

Shops and malls open late by western standards - it's no use trying to do any serious shopping until after 10.30 am, and many shops don't open until eleven or later. They do, however, stay open until quite late, and evening shopping is the norm for many Jakartans.

Where can I shop in Blok M?

There's a large upmarket department store at the heart of the Blok, somewhat pretentiously called 'Pasaraya Grande', in which you can get almost anything. In the basement there's a large branch of the Hero supermarket chain, and a food court with lots of little eateries serving all manner of local and international dishes. Behind Pasaraya Grande is a more downmarket shopping complex known as Melawai Plaza which is a great place to pick up cheap clothing and household requisites, and to buy watches, gold and jewelery.

At the western edge of the Blok, up the road from Lintas Melawai, there's Blok M Plaza, a shopping mall with a wide variety of upmarket stores and boutiques plus a lot of not-so-pricey shops. And of course, the ubiquitous Hero supermarket in the basement.

How do I get money late at night?

There are plenty of ATMs dotted around Blok M - indeed, the main reason the Reveller opened an account with Bank Niaga is that they've got an ATM right across the road from his regular haunt, D's Place. All the ATMs on the Blok accept international Visa and Mastercard, which is useful if you're an out-of-town visitor. The machines dispense up to a million rupes a throw, with a maximum of four million per day at the main ATMs next to Pasaraya Grande. Beware, though - many of the other machines nowadays only dole out a million maximum per session, as there's so much card-fraud in Indonesia.