Nasi Goreng Bang Gero: Right Fried Rice, Wrong Room

Nasi Goreng Bang Gero was the highlight of my day, and no, this is not the time to psychoanalyse what it says about me that a food is the highlight of my days at home.

I first heard about it from a radio presenter, or it could have been a celebrity. I have no idea who is on Indo radio these days, or what kind of credibility you need to sit there yapping at 21 million of us that if we haven’t tried it yet, we must. Maybe not 21 million. But it worked on one of us. Me. I picked up my phone and haphazardly typed “bang gero nasi goreng” into my to-do list. No context, no plan.

A week later, after a particularly rough workday, I told Amma I wanted to try it (I needed her permission because I was using her phone to order).

One thing I will give Bang Gero is the marketing. He has done well with it since corona in 2020, and I also saw that they give free drinks to Gojek drivers, which I really like as an idea.

Anyway. Let me tell you something. There is something about eating smoky fried rice in a certain mood, and a rainy day is exactly that mood. Unfortunately, the eating conditions were not. I ate it in my room, at my office desk under a harsh interrogative light, with Amma constantly hovering and Appa worrying I was eating too-spicy food.

The fried rice itself was delicious. The box was sweating when I opened it (I really need a better way to describe food). It came with two eggs, one of which I added by mistake. I ordered what I think was the spiciest option and, contrary to Appa’s worries, it could have been spicier. The colour was a deep reddish brown, glistening with oil, because we Indos like our nasi goreng dark. The acar came in a small package, but it meant business.

It was wetter than the kabuli I usually get in Melbourne, and one third the price. (Jakarta food trends are slightly wet these days.) It also doesn’t taste as curry-ey, although they do sell the kari separately.

So, the ultimate question. Would I order it again? Yes, if I lived here. I already texted my cousin about it. But if I did it again, I’d go directly to the place, because eaten in the right circumstances, this would be oh so good.

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