•    HOME   
•    NEWS   
•    BUSINESS   
•    INTERNATIONAL   
•    TECH   
•    SPORTS   
•    LIFE & TIMES   
•    OPINION   
•    MY JAKARTA   
•    BLOGS   

If you know anything about food and Indonesia then Bondan Winarno needs no introduction. But if you’re out of the loop or new to the scene, all you need to know is this: Whatever he says, do it. If he tells you to try it, try it. If he tells you to go to a restaurant, find the address. If he tells you to savor something, then it’s definitely “mak nyuss.”

Hailed as the country’s most celebrated culinary expert, a renowned author and the host of his own cooking show, Pak Bondan reveals a few of his favorite spots in Jakarta, tells us what he cooks at home and explains the joys of Jalansutra.

Where did your love of food come from?

There is an Indonesian saying, “Dari mata turun ke hati.” If I see food, I usually have the urge to taste it, and I usually love the food. When I was young, my mother often asked me to help her in the kitchen. My first Boy Scout badge was for cooking. In my early years as a professional, cooking became an antidote to work-related stress. In those days, I often cooked on weekends.

Why ‘mak nyuss’? Where did it come from?

Mak nyuss is an expletive normally used by people from Yogyakarta when they are surprised by something tasty. It was the late Umar Kayam, a leading columnist and novelist, who used the expression in his popular columns. He was a foodie like I am.

When did you first start saying it?

Around 2007, in one of the recordings for my program “Wisata Kuliner” on TransTV. The producer liked it and asked me to use it more often. It later became iconic and identical with my personality. A lot of people now call me “Pak Mak Nyuss.”

What is your favorite dish right now?

I like Padang and Manadonese food. Both are spicy, but Manadonese food has a fragrance that Padang food usually misses. For Western food, I love Italian food, especially southern Italian food.

Which pleases you more — hosting a television show or writing books and publishing articles?

Writing articles, of course. I’m basically a shy person. Standing up in front of a camera is not my cup of tea. Maybe that’s why most people comment that I look honest in front of the camera, but that’s because I always ignore the camera. I just pretend that the camera is not there, and I’m just being myself.

Can you talk a little about Jalansutra?

Jalansutra is a weekly column on Kompas.com about traveling and dining. Readers of the column formed a mailing list, which now consists of more than 15,000 members. We exchange information and stories on food and travel-related issues. Not only have I gained information from this community, but I’ve also gained a lot of new friends.

Can you talk about your time at the World Bank and your feelings about conservation?

I was a consultant at the World Bank during a difficult time, 1998-99. The relationship between the bank and the government was brittle. We walked a tightrope. I was also tasked with difficult duties, i.e. getting media support to look for evidence to put a halt to the BPPC [clove monopoly], investigating graft in the provision of textbooks for public schools financed by the bank and other things. At one time, I was also involved in the “evacuation” of the bank’s staff and families to Singapore.

Conservation has been in my blood since the early 1980s, when “green issues” started to surface. I was the editor of a newspaper at that time, and I received a United Nations fellowship to participate in a conference for renewable energy sources in Kenya. Since then, conservation issues have become darlings to me.

You’re always trying and tasting food on your show. How do you stay in shape?

Easy, I don’t eat it all, just a few spoonfuls. I also exercise — at least an hour on a static bike, four mornings a week. I have also been very serious in spreading the gospel of “Know Your Food.”

Most people forget that many foods and drinks must be consumed in limited amounts. I love eggs, but I must ration myself to one egg a week because I know each egg yolk contains 212 milligrams of cholesterol while our daily allowance is only 200 mg.

Can you talk about Kopitiam Oey?

Many people suggested that I go into the restaurant business, while some even asked me to be their partners. But I have no track record in this business, and neither am I trained to undertake such an endeavor. Kopitiam is a simple form of food and beverage service on the low end, which I think I can handle. I don’t want the prices to become an obstacle for Indonesians to drink coffee at a place with a nice ambience. I want to revive the old tradition of Chinatown coffee shops. I think it’s unique.

What trends are you seeing in Indonesian cuisine today?

I am happy because many Indonesians now regard traditional cuisine as trendy. While they are open to foreign foods, the love toward Indonesian traditional cuisine is gaining strong currency. I trust this will continue.



Bondan Winarno was talkingto Zack Petersen.