Diana's Kitchen at Festival Indonesia
Location: Swanston St & Flinders St, Melbourne VIC 3000, Australia (Fed Square)
Featured Items: Nasi Sate Ayam ($20 AUD), Siomay
Note: About a 30 minute queue. Both dishes were served cold or lukewarm. Prices are in AUD.
Verdict: Delicious peanut sauce on everything, but we wish the food had been served hot.
After a food coma breakfast at Pinoy Oktoberfest in Queen Victoria Market, we walked around Fed Square to see the food options at Festival Indonesia. The lines were long, but we settled on waiting about half an hour in the queue for Diana's Kitchen. Spoiler: the wait was worth it, mostly.
Nasi Sate Ayam ($20)
We got the nasi sate ayam ($20). Tender, juicy grilled chicken skewers are covered in a rich, delicious peanut sauce, and they sit beside soft triangles of sticky rice that soak up all that sauce. The combination is perfect. My only wish is that it was hot, or at least warm, because it felt unusual eating cold food.
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| Nasi Sate Ayam ($20): chicken satay in peanut sauce with sticky rice |
Siomay
We also got the siomay, and oh my, I was surprised by two things. First, how giant the dumpling pieces are. Second, that they are covered in peanut sauce! It is so yummy. I wished the dumplings were hot, but the thick, nutty sauce cooled them down faster than I expected. My colleagues told me they are supposed to be this size, since I thought they would be similar to Filipino siomai.
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| Siomay: giant dumplings covered in peanut sauce |
Final Thoughts
Between the long queue and the lukewarm food, I would not call this perfect. But the flavours, especially that rich peanut sauce, were definitely worth it, and it was great to try something so different from what we can find in Vancouver. If you go to a festival like this, bring patience and eat as soon as you get your food while it is still warm. Prices are in AUD.
Have you tried siomay or sate ayam before? Do you prefer your siomay small and Filipino-style or giant and Indonesian-style? Tell me in the comments!
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