Peace, pleasure and pancakes at Milas
Zora Rahman, Contributor, Yogyakarta
Indonesia is not exactly what you would call a popular, overcrowded tourist destination these days. While Khao San Road in Bangkok is bursting with travelers from all over the world, corresponding areas on Java or Bali are trying hard to get even a small fraction of those tourists to come this way.
Walking along Jakarta's Jl. Jaksa or Jl. Sosrowijayan in Yogyakarta, one can't help but notice that hardly any restaurants have more than a handful of guests.
This is not the case, however, for Milas, a vegetarian restaurant close to Prawirotaman, the southern tourist area of Yogyakarta, near Jl Parangtritis. Guests coming here for dinner might have problems finding a place to sit, especially if they had their heart set on sitting in one of the bamboo pavilions in the garden.
Simple but creative furniture dominated by wood, bamboo and kain (traditional fabrics) greet diners as they enter the house. The light is pleasantly diffused by lamp shades made from kukusans (traditional bamboo baskets used for rice). Flagstones and a wooden walkway lead to the airy pavilions in the garden, where guests are able to stretch out on large cushions beside low tables on a floor covered with wicker mats.
The exclusively vegetarian menu promises freshly prepared Indonesian and western food, using organically grown rice and vegetables, as long as they are available. The restaurant also guarantees that all raw ingredients are only washed with cooked water.
A lot of travelers seem attracted to this offer, perhaps after suffering less than comfortable experiences after their stomachs have had a taste of oily noodles or spicy chicken.
Milas offers traditional Indonesian meals as well as a wide range of western dishes and other international fare. So you can find gado-gado (mixed vegetables in peanut sauce), lodeh (boiled vegetables in coconut milk) and nasi goreng (fried rice) alongside potato and pasta salads, pumpkin and carrot soups as well as Indian curry, Mexican guacamole or creations that include tempeh burgers. But the best thing is all the dishes cost less than Rp 10,000. Unfortunately, the Asian dishes have been westernized, and apart from the chili, the Indian curry resembles a Dutch vegetable soup. Another letdown is the tempeh rujak (fermented soya in spicy sauce) in coconut milk, which is not yet ripe enough to develop its full taste.
Very recommendable, however, is the menu choices for breakfast: sandwiches, pancakes, yogurt and fruit, porridge, omelettes and even Swiss roesti or muesli are available. It's a pity that the restaurant is open only in mornings during the weekend and not the rest of the week. Beverages range from coffee, tea, the common commercial soft drinks and lassis (yogurt shakes) to traditional hot beverages, such as bandrek (made from cinnamon, cloves and ginger) and bajigur (similar ingredients cooked in coconut milk).
For many travelers coming here, food may not be the main thing on their mind. Milas provides not only daily newspapers and magazines in English, but also a library with books in more than one language, travel guides and even language course books on Indonesian, cards and board games and -- not to forget -- a community information board as well as a drinking water fill-up station.
In addition, there is also an art shop selling handicrafts and the work of local artists as well as street children. The latter's involvement is a result of the restaurant's cooperation with Girli, an organization that helps children and youth living on the streets of Yogyakarta by encouraging them to develop their creativity and use environmentally friendly materials in the hopes of maybe earning them a better life one day.
Both the restaurant and art shop are nonprofit and whatever income they do make is used to support social and cultural programs, although donations are welcome, of course. The management describes their mission as: "striving to increase awareness and offer healthy, creative alternatives in a world of fast food and mass production".
Consequently, the traveler's world at Milas still seems intact, and worries about terrorism and war stay outside. Australians meet with German backpackers, while French travelers settle into conversations with tourists from Japan -- the global village is peacefully united while eating organic food and playing backgammon or dakon (a Japanese board game).
This is obviously what the restaurant's visitors are looking for. A German tourist wrote in the guest book: "This place is frequented by people with good hearts. I wish the world was like Milas, with a good spirit, calm and positive energy, silence, consciousness and pleasure. Thanks for the experience".
I-box:
Milas Jl Mantrijeron MJ III 897 A Yogyakarta 55143 Opening hours: Tuesday to Friday: 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday and Sunday: 10 a.m. to 9 pm; closed on Mondays.