Thinking "Wow, she bought too much food. It might be rude if I don't eat from it all," you say ""yum," "ena-ena," and "lamak-banak" to show how great you think the food tastes (which it does, so you actually enjoy it!). Soon, you start to feel like you can't eat yet another morsel of rice. At the end of it all, the waiter comes to the table, eyes the plates, and gives your host the bill. Apparently, you pay for what you eat...
The food that I described above is a staple meal setting of Indonesian cuisine. Nasi Padang, or Padang rice, describes first, the taste of the rice and accompanied meal that originates (or comes from) West Sumatra, and second, the style of how the previously mentioned meal is served. In Nasi Padang restaurants, hungry patrons can expect to be served diversly prepared meats and vegetables all at once, and you eat as little or as much as you want. Nasi Padang resturants carry staple West Sumatran, or Minang Kabou, foods, such as rendang, ayam pop. Teh telur, and more general Indonesian dishes like gado-gado and bakso. These restaurants are actually widely popular in Indonesia, and you can find them in Java, Kalimantan, and the Flores Islands, for example. Outside of West Sumatra, these places have local twists to the original flavors, such as sweeter rice in Java or more fish items in Flores. I like to think of Nasi Padang restaurants as being as popular in their communities as diners are in New Jersey! The people here love them and will eat Nasi Padang food for breakfast, lunch, or dinner, and this type of food is equally popular as to-go meals (bungkus).
