Traditional Food Stall "Warung" in Bali

DENPASAR (indo.com): Balinese fast food is an essential part of the daily diet. To the Balinese, having a snack is part of daily activity although they have meals twice a day. While women busy preparing dishes for their families, men drop in a warung nearby for a coffee before going home from their rice fields.

Most Australians, Americans and Britons visiting Bali are familiar with warung. In fact, warung is more than just a place to have a snack, to buy a packet of clove - scented kretek cigarette, a box of mosquito coils or a small packet of washing powder. It is somewhere to meet friends and a major place in the village.

With plaited bamboo striped walls and a packed dirt or cement floor, most warungs' interiors simply contain a large table crammed with merchandise and a long wooden bench set on both sides and lined up along the front of the tables are bottles of local soft drinks, beers and bottles of mineral water.

Most markets have a cluster of very rudimentary food stalls consisting of a trestle table, benches, and a plastic canopy to provide some shade. Market food stalls generally offer non - Balinese food.

If we are fortunate, there may be a stall selling a range of Balinese food. Ask for nasi campur (mixed rice) and you will receive a bowl with perhaps a few shreds of fried chicken and a leaf wrapped bundle of finely chopped seasoning and meat. You will also get some steamed vegetables with shredded savory coconut, fried peanuts, coconut milk, a sprinkle of crisp - fried shallots and a dollop of spicy hot ground chili paste.

On market days, in smaller villages, or daily in major urban centers, there is sure to be a stall selling the popular "be guling celeng" (suckling pig). The suckling pig is better known as "babi guling". Order a plate this and you will get a little succulent spit - roasted pork; slices of a couple of types of sausage made with the intestines stuffed with finally chopped pieces of highly seasoned meat and some spiced coconut.