Under the Bridge We Ate

After meeting the head of affiliate, Febri (the committee chairperson) and Mery took me to have an early lunch by the Martapura river. I had never tried 'soto Banjar' so I was more than welcome when they offered me that.

It's a small restaurant by a large river, almost directly under the bridge. I wasn't at all surprised looking at the name board. It says, 'Soto Banjar Bawah Jembatan' (Soto Banjar Under the Bridge). Hehehe.


It's not exactly the kind of soup I'd expected. I thought the broth would be thick with fat or coconut milk. The spices would give it an extravagant color. Instead, it's light, clear broth, and I could barely smell or taste a dominant spice. I'd like to call it 'smooth' taste.

I bet the preparation of it took quite a time. To begin with, it has small chunks of rice cakes. Then comes a pile of shredded chicken, some vegetable (the 'soto' tasted so good that I didn't really care what veggie was that), fried potato patty, caramelized onion and a small slice of aromatic lime. I never put lime juice in any food I've had, but when I dropped a little, the 'soto' tasted much fragrant. YYYUUUMMMM....

I was right about my prediction though. It comes in a BIG portion ....