Yogya's 'Warung Ijo' still keeping diners satisfied<\/p>\n
By Budi Sardjono<\/p>\n
YOGYAKARTA (JP): As she ladles up a plate of rice at Warung
\nIjo, Ibu Padmosudarmo remembers the day clearly, even though it
\nhappened in the 1960s.<\/p>\n
A sedan pulled up in front of her food stall, called ijo
\n(Javanese for green) because of the color of its front. Vehicles
\nwere still a rarity on the streets, and a luxury car was sure to
\nattract attention.<\/p>\n
An elegantly dressed Indonesian man got out of the car, went
\nto the stall and ordered a plate of nasi brongkos, the eatery's
\nspecialty of the Yogyakarta dish of beef and green beans stewed
\nin coconut milk and spices and eaten with rice.<\/p>\n
He polished off the plate of food, paid and went out to see
\nthe small market, Pasar Tempel, nearby.<\/p>\n
\"I didn't know exactly who the man was, because my shop was
\ncrowded at the time,\" the 75-year-old woman said. \"At Tempel
\nmarket, people whispered repeatedly that this was Ngarso Dalem
\n(Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono IX, now deceased). I was so happy that
\nhe was willing to visit my shop personally.\"<\/p>\n
She has been in business now since 1956, and her eatery
\nremains small, about four meters by five meters. Bu Padmo, as she
\nis known, opened the stall because she felt lonely, with no
\nchildren and her soldier husband frequently away on assignment.<\/p>\n
A neighbor suggested she should use her cooking skills to open
\na sidewalk eatery to occupy her time.<\/p>\n
\"I rented this small house of four meters by 11 meters, with
\nthe front part used for the eatery and the back part for a
\nbedroom and kitchen,\" she said.<\/p>\n
\"It is small, but very strategic as it is close to the Krasak
\nRiver bridge, the market and the Krasak Railway Station, right at
\nthe edge of a highway connecting Yogyakarta, Magelang and
\nSemarang. At the time, the rent was very cheap.\"<\/p>\n
The original menu comprised opor ayam (chicken stewed in
\ncoconut milk and spices), sambal goreng (food such as potatoes
\nfried in chili), and tempeh and tofu. The brongkos was added
\nlater but quickly gave her restaurant its reputation. She also
\nsells juadah bakar (a baked delicacy of glutinous rice).<\/p>\n
Her eatery attracts many different types of diners, including
\nschoolchildren, office workers, traders, train passengers,
\ntourists on their way to nearby Borobudur temple and truck
\ndrivers.<\/p>\n
\"When my stall is crowded, I need about 40 kg of beef and
\ndozens of chickens in a day,\" Ibu Padmo said.<\/p>\n
She is helped in running the stall by some of her younger
\nsisters and nieces, but the cooking is done in the kitchen by
\nfour people she has hired specially for the job.<\/p>\n
Is there something special in her famous dish?<\/p>\n
\"Nothing, no secret recipe,\" she said with a smile. \"I use the
\nsame cooking spices, namely red onion, garlic, lengkuas (a kind
\nof plant from the ginger family), daun salam (a laurel-like leaf
\nused in cooking), red chilis, greater galingale, daun serai
\n(citronella leaf) and kluwak (the fruit of the kepayang tree used
\nas a spice).<\/p>\n
She said the last spice, kluwak, is the one which determines
\nwhether the brongkos will be delicious. Because if the kluwak is
\nrotten and bitter, the brongkos will also taste overly tart. The
\nspice also gives the stew its distinctive brown color.<\/p>\n
In an effort to maintain the deliciousness of her brongkos
\nsoup, Bu Padmo always uses firewood for cooking, never a kerosene
\nstove or a gas stove.<\/p>\n
Customer<\/p>\n
\"I have been a customer of Warung Ijo for 15 years,\" said
\nSudarmaji, 53, from Semarang, who had brought along three of his
\nfriends to try the stew for the first time.<\/p>\n
He said Warung Ijo's reputation was well-deserved.<\/p>\n
\"I once ate nasi brongkos in another food stall like Warung
\nIjo, but it tasted quite different. Bu Padmo's nasi brongkos is
\nthe best, the most delicious one as it has a special taste other
\nstalls do not have,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Bu Padmo said her customers included former Sleman regent
\nArifin Ilyas and family, Malang's regent, officials of the
\nCentral Java regional administration and Yogyakarta, journalists
\nand artists, including noted cultural observer Emha Ainun Nadjib
\nand his wife, actress-singer Novia Kolopaking.<\/p>\n
\"If you want to enjoy the deliciousness of brongkos, you have
\nto eat it in Bu Padmo's Warung Ijo,\" said choreographer Bagong
\nKusudiharjo, another regular customer.<\/p>\n
Other food stalls have opened up around Warung Ijo over the
\nyears, including several offering nasi brongkos as well as those
\nserving satay and Padang food, the country's own fast food of
\ncurries and dishes all served up at once.<\/p>\n
Understandably, their presence has indirectly affected the
\nbusiness at Warung Ijo; an average business day now needs about
\n15 kg to 20 kg of beef and a few chickens.<\/p>\n
\"But one's path in life depends entirely on God,\" Bu Padmo
\nsaid wisely. \"I am old already, and when I die, let this Warung
\nIjo be run by my nephews and nieces. They all are just like my
\nchildren, as I am childless.\"<\/p>",
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