A Family Restaurant in Indonesia

One of the highlights of our recent bicycle tour of Bintam Island, Indonesia, was stopping at a roadside restaurant for food and an escape from the mid-day sun. Not having seen many restaurants along this fairly hilly, quiet country road, and an emphatic "I need to stop right now" from one of our riders, made the decision easy.

Enjoying hot chicken soup and cold iced tea

The restaurant is a slab of concrete with a roof made of rough cut logs and held up by a wood railing around the side. There were five tables covered with plastic table cloths surrounded by light blue plastic chairs. An old, small TV was buzzing in the background.

Stopping at roadside restaurants used to make me nervous, but not so much any more. As a matter of fact, I knew we would be safe eating here because someone (I'm guessing the wife) had carefully placed pots of flowers and green plants in front of the restaurant making the entire covered shelter seem like a lovely little oasis from the sun. 

We walked in the door and said hello. We were met with a smile and a blank stare. The mid-thirtyish age mother wearing a long, flowered dress and a short bob style hair cut looked to the one patron sipping his soup as if to cue him to translate. This man, a truck driver who has stopped for lunch - My mom always taught me that truck drivers know good restaurants! -  spoke to us in English. "This restaurant serves chicken soup and did we want "nasi" or "mee"?" (Rice or noodles) he said.

Now, I don't know about you, but I've always associated hot chicken soup with cold winter days or healing food for colds or the flu.

A de-fanged snake makes a great playmate.

But here was the setting: We had been cycling up and down rolling and steep hills for about three hours. The sun was high in the sky and fry-an-egg-on-the-pavement hot. Sweat was dripping off our elbows, pouring into our eyes, and squishing the pads of our bicycle shorts. We were hot, tired and hungry. But most of all we were hungry. Whatever you've got sounds just fine.

While sipping sweet ice tea and waiting for our food, we had a chance to observe the family business. Mom was in the kitchen cooking over the traditional two burner, counter top, gas stove. The son, a shy, young 6 year old boy was playing with a snake, which, the truck driver informed us, had been de-fanged so it was safe to play with. Did I want to touch it?!

The daughter, a cute, intelligent  girl of about 11 was helping her mom serve between watching the soap opera on the TV and checking out her brother's snake.  Dad was down the hill in the garden weeding, pulling carrots and potatoes, and slitting the neck of an occasional chicken (for our soup - we think...).

I was struck by the simplicity, yet completeness of life for this family. They had a small plot of land, plenty of chickens and vegetables, a roof over their heads, and happy, healthy children.

A few minutes later, the mom and daughter served our steaming bowls of homemade chicken vegetable soup with a side plate of rice. I never knew how delicious hot soup from just picked and just plucked ingredients on a steaming hot day could taste!