Gusti Ayu Nyoman Sari Normadani is her name. The woman who was born at Delod Peken on November 5, 1971 was formerly a tourism worker at Bintang Bali Resort. She used to work in the Accounting Department of Food and Beverage Cashier. When tourism was in good condition, she planned to carry out this work after retirement. However, in reality she did not. This calm woman must be willing to leave her comfort zone to rise up to promote ancestral culture through Warung Pojok Sarima. “I sell menus like those in the past, serving traditional menus that are rarely known by children today,” she said.

Warung Pojok, located at Banjar Delod Peken, Timpag, Kerambitan, Tabanan, has a lot of customers. They come from various areas in Tabanan, some even from outside Tabanan. They are fanatical customers, so they usually order through social media. “We have regular customers because my mother has been selling since I was not born. Well, I am the one who resumed. Our customers usually order through Sari Norma’s FB and IG and telephone or WA 0818-0547-6550 only,” she admitted plainly.

The menus on sale include porridge, tipat cantok, mixed ice and others. Probably, the menus on offer may be the same as other food stalls offer, but the products of Warung Pojok do have a different taste. For instance, the porridge menu has a distinctive taste. The porridge is made from rice with a traditional process. First of all, the rice is soaked from night to morning. After that, it is processed until it becomes porridge. As for the seasoning, she uses coconut ingredients to make condiment, gecok, coconut milk broth of banana blossom plus bean sprout vegetables, papaya and sometimes chayote. The vegetables are added with peanuts and fried sprouted bean, according to the buyers’ taste. Not only that, it is also added with fried egg flour, so that it becomes a very delicious Balinese rice porridge.

For tipat cantok, all of them apply natural ingredients and they are processed traditionally. Tipat or rice bag is made from young coconut leaves woven into rice bag and then filled with rice. After that, they are cooked using a pressure cooker, so that the cooking process is faster. Once cooked, the rice bag is drained and ready to be sold. If someone orders, the rice bag is cut into smaller pieces, and then filled with tofu, papaya vegetables, water spinach (winged bean) and bean sprouts. “We also complement it with cooked chili sauce and sweet soy sauce, so that it is getting more delicious. Likewise, our mixed ice is combined with fruit, jelly and others,” she said.

She further added that morinda herbal drink is no less interesting. It is said to have 30 health benefits. It is processed by rinsing and then crushing. The water that comes out is then boiled. After that, boil the sugar, prepare tamarind paste, mixed with chili and then filter. After everything is ready, mix them in hot water having been cooled down. Do not forget to add salt to taste.

The woman who is usually addressed Gek Norma stated that selling such traditional menu is enough to support her family. However, when compared to the revenue of working at hotel, the results are indeed much lower. However, this new job also gives her pleasure in living the life of this new era. Apart from earning life, selling traditional menus also serves as a form of preserving Balinese culinary tradition. “This activity is also to keep the mind from being stressed which will have an impact on the decline in immunity. If tourism is getting normal, I will return to work at hotel,” she concluded. (BTN/015)