Cosmo Pony: Redefining Jakarta’s Cocktail Identity

Jakarta’s bar scene has long battled a reputation for excess, filled with noise, neon, and novelty. Yet Cosmo Pony continues to prove that substance and style can coexist without compromise. In just over a year since opening, the bar has evolved from one of Jakarta’s most exciting newcomers to a confident institution shaping the city’s next cocktail chapter.

Indra Kantono, Co-Founder

Fresh off its Asia’s 50 Best Bars debut, Cosmo Pony enters a new era with the launch of its second menu, “Cocktail Power.” If Rising City was about prediction and imagining Jakarta’s potential, this new chapter is about confidence. As co-founder Indra Kantono puts it, “It’s incredible to see Jakarta welcoming us with open arms, and now we want to keep pushing that energy forward.”

Design & Atmosphere

Cosmo Pony still feels like the cosmopolitan living room of a rising city. The layout remains sleek yet unpretentious, with warm lighting, clean lines, and an undercurrent of movement that mirrors Jakarta’s pulse. Music shifts seamlessly from upbeat lounge tracks to late-night energy, reflecting a city that never quite winds down.

What defines the atmosphere most is its openness. Guests wander in after work, locals celebrate milestones, and visiting bartenders find a home base. “Jakarta can be chaotic, but people here know how to have fun,” says Indra. “We wanted Cosmo Pony to capture that energy while offering world-class hospitality delivered with Indonesian warmth.”

Drinks & Program

The new menu, Cocktail Power, builds on the success of Rising City but with sharper intuition. “We know more about our crowd now,” says General Manager Silvio Daniele. “The first menu was a bit of a guess on what people might enjoy. This one reflects what they actually love.”

That deeper understanding led to a more confident and targeted approach. “Some of the drinks came from special requests from our regulars,” Silvio explains. “We adapted those into proper cocktails for the new list. Like the Tequila Vesper, which started as an off-menu favorite.”

Silvio Daniele, General Manager

The idea behind the menu’s name came naturally. “Cocktail Power isn’t about strength or ego,” he says. “It’s confidence in liquid form, the belief in what we do, in Jakarta, and in how cocktails can shape culture.” The name also nods to the concept of soft power, the influence of culture beyond economics or politics. “We see cocktails as a soft power,” Silvio adds. “Something that can push Jakarta to the world stage through creativity, hospitality, and flavor.”

The new Cocktail Power menu features several chapters, each exploring a different side of Jakarta’s cocktail identity. Among them, Local Pride, Better Together, and Flavor Forward stand out. Local Pride celebrates Indonesia’s biodiversity through ingredients like lobi-lobi, kweni, and Andaliman pepper. Better Together reflects the city’s collaborative spirit and the idea of gotong royong, featuring partnerships with creative local brands. In its first instalment, the bartenders teamed up with the fashion artisans of 3Mongkis and the baristas of Kurasu to craft two collaborative cocktails that showcase the beauty of shared creativity. Flavor Forward draws inspiration from Indonesian comfort food, using spices and seasonings to highlight each drink’s natural essence. Each drink, in its own way, tells the story of a city learning to speak the global cocktail language with its own accent.

Two new signatures define this progression. The Lobi Lobi Club, inspired by a native berry from Sumatra, reinterprets the Clover Club by swapping raspberries for the tart, tropical lobi-lobi fruit. “It’s familiar but unpredictable,” Silvio says. “That’s Jakarta in a glass.”

Then there’s the Rujak Punch, a clarified, fruit-forward cocktail inspired by the classic Indonesian fruit salad of pineapple, guava, cucumber, and spicy peanut sauce. “We put all these ingredients, even peanut butter, through clarification,” he explains. “The result is crystal clear but packed with flavor.”

Of course, not everything has changed. Icons like the Tequila Cosmo and Ugly Bananas remain as anchors of identity. The former, a creamy oat-milk Cosmopolitan twist with tequila and roselle, continues to embody the bar’s cheeky sophistication. The latter, made with overripe bananas infused into whiskey and dotted with banana-peel agar-agar, still represents the inventive heart of the program.

People & Impact

Behind the bar’s evolution is a team that has matured alongside the concept. Indra credits much of Cosmo Pony’s steady rise to Silvio and bar manager Marsya, who have built a culture of precision and warmth. “They’ve been exceptional ambassadors for Jakarta’s bar community,” he says. “They’ve shaped a team that not only serves great cocktails but genuinely connects with people.”

For Silvio, the greatest change over the past year has been in mindset. “At first, some people saw us as too serious or too quiet for Jakarta,” he admits. “But over time, they understood what we were trying to do, to create a bar built on care and attention, not chaos.” That consistency has earned the team both recognition and respect.

Jakarta itself is evolving fast. Once overlooked compared to Bangkok or Singapore, the city is now home to a dynamic network of bars and bartenders who are confident in their own style. Guest shifts, international takeovers, and local collaborations are common, fueling a cycle of creativity that feels uniquely Jakarta. “We now have a group of bars that are confident in their concepts, going against the status quo,” Silvio says. “It’s a scene defined by confidence, ambiance, and people.”

Even with international accolades, Cosmo Pony stays grounded in its purpose. “Award or no award, we just want to get one percent better every day,” says Silvio. “The real magic happens nightly, when guests come in, relax, and feel at home.”

That relentless refinement defines both the bar and Jakarta’s cocktail identity. With Cocktail Power, Cosmo Pony isn’t reinventing itself so much as evolving, showing that confidence, not complexity, is what makes a great cocktail city.

In a landscape once dominated by spectacle, Cosmo Pony’s quiet conviction stands out. It’s not just a bar, but a statement that Jakarta’s hospitality, creativity, and flavor are its true soft power, and that the city’s rise has only just begun.