No birthday cake for me in recent years. I don't mind about that. Everyone has their own stance and opinion. Birthday cakes for adults are not an obligation in my opinion.
Instead of buying a birthday cake, I prefer to take my family to a famous restaurant in Medan City. Also relatively expensive because they already have strong branding. Named Garuda Restaurant.
Why Garuda Restaurant?
Garuda Restaurant specializes in food from the Padang tribe in Indonesia. These foods are very rich in flavor with the use of lots of spices. We can make it ourselves at home but it takes a long time. There is a lot of oil spread all over the house if I as a man cook it at home.
Garuda Restaurant outlets have spread to other big cities in Indonesia. Jakarta, Pekanbaru, and more. The taste of their dishes will remain in our memory.
I can't come to Garuda Restaurant as often as possible. Apart from the price issue, I also have to think about the calories and fat that I enjoy here. We find it difficult to restrain our appetite when thinking about fat. Not having a lot of money can also save us from poor health. According to me.
I can only visit occasionally. That's the reason why I want to label Garuda Restaurant something special for my birthday lunch.
Visiting Times
Skipping lunch time is the right choice. To avoid the Garuda Restaurant being filled with visitors. This method was successful in making me and my family able to get good seats at this restaurant.
At the front of the building, the entrance has a design like the tip of a buffalo horn, typical of the Minangkabau tribe in the Padang area. We can choose to sit indoors or outdoors. I chose to sit in the semi-outdoor area with a classic gazebo concept.
Sit in a gazebo-style building which is usually found in the garden to relax. Classic style building design. With pillars that look sturdy.
Family Friendly Design
Garuda Restaurant is specifically for family restaurants. Created a park for children to play. Make children visitors feel happy to be here.
Green areas are added by using ornamental plant elements. Also a path to the main area of the garden.
Some areas use chain barriers to prevent children from entering the bonsai garden zone and plants that have sharp stems. All of them are safe enough to let children walk around the restaurant.
My Lunch
The waiters there will ask us if we want various menus served on the table, or if we just order the menu we want. For my special birthday lunch, I asked the waiter there to serve some of their best seller menus.
Eating in this style feels like home. When our parents serve a lot of food at family gatherings.
Here are some of the best selling menus that are the menu of choice for me and my family.
- Beef rendang. You have to try the beef rendang. Delicious with creamy coconut milk that has been cooked for a long time to produce a black color. Beef rendang from Padang tribe food is the most famous among other menus.
- salty and spicy squid. A combination of squids that have been dried and salted, then cooked with spicy spices.
- don't forget the chili sauce. Green chili sauce and red chili sauce. It wouldn't be fun eating if it didn't taste spicy.
Eat these side dishes with warm rice. There is also green jackfruit cooked with green chili. It's all about spicy and our family is used to it.
There are several other menus that are also delicious. Like the following pictures. Spicy eggplants with anchovies; spicy shrimps, egg curry. Everything looks delicious but we shouldn't be greedy, eat only a few menus.
They calculate based on the portion of the side dish we eat. So it's best to finish off the side dishes on the plate that we ordered. And don't touch side dishes that we don't want to finish.
As a dessert there is sweet jelly pudding which has a beautiful rose shape. Sweet and refreshingly cool in the throat.
About $17 I spent on my special birthday lunch. Before the year ends. Everything feels worthy of gratitude. Friends here who have supported me, thank you.
I'm Sobat Kelana.
