There weren’t many good things to come out of the pandemic, other
than the rise in popularity of birdwatching, the move towards more flexible
homeworking, and the demise of certain self-serving politicians.
Another positive was the arrival of exciting home delivery businesses that were run by people looking to find alternative ways
of making a living whilst bricks and mortar restaurants were closed.
One such business was Waroeng Nona, an Indonesian home delivery
that was founded by Nona (Sindy) Spiesz. Originally from Indonesia, Nona moved
to Cardiff in 2012 and had worked as a chef in restaurants, hotels and street
food stalls. As the first Indonesian food business that I’d encountered in Cardiff, it was exciting to try a different cuisine.
Since the pandemic, Waroeng Nona has run the occasional pop-up until a few months ago when they opened a dinky street food van at the back of the Queen’s Arcade on Working Street. Open six days a week from 12pm to around 4.30pm, except when they’re doing pop-ups elsewhere, the van offers a compact menu of six dishes, including beef rendang, jackfruit gulai and vegetable crispy rolls.
I ordered two of Indonesia’s most famous dishes, beef rendang (£10) and a side of chicken satay (£8).
Rendang, which I was told means reduced in Indonesian is named after the slow cooking process rather than a specific recipe, which varies according to the country’s different islands. Nona’s recipe belongs to her mum, a street food vendor on the island of Java, and it’s a real labour of love that requires a six-hour slow cook.
It was an absolute belter of a dish and as good as any
rendang I’ve ever eaten. Massive fall apart chunks of slow-cooked beef were
coated in a thick reduced sauce that was heady with coconut and warming spice. I kept on coming across pieces of whole spice, which I may or may not
have correctly identified as included nutmeg, cinnamon, lime leaf, and pandan leaf.
This corker of a curry was sat on top of distinctly grained
turmeric and coconut scented rice and topped with crispy onions, fresh
coriander, cleansing purple pickles, and colourful crunchy kroepoek crackers.
Whilst the rendang was an ample meal all by itself, I couldn’t say no to a side dish of chicken satay (£8). If you’re less greedy than me then it’s also available as a main with rice for £10.
They were superb and up there with the best satay I’ve
eaten. The gloriously tender marinated meat skewers were nicely caramelised
around the edges and drenched in a mildly spiced peanut sauce. Layers of
additional flavour and crunch arrived from crispy onions, fresh coriander, spicy
sriracha and sweet and savoury kecip manis.
Word has clearly spread quickly about the quality of Waroeng Nona’s cooking as Saturday Kitchen TV presenter Matt Tebbutt arrived halfway through my lunch to film for an episode of his new TikTok street food series.
I had a killer meal from Waroeng Nona and it’s great to see them take up a more regular spot in the city centre. It’s street food businesses like these which make Cardiff an exciting city to eat in - not the latest pan-Asian restaurant chain which has received a disproportionate amount of airtime due to the number of free meals that they’ve given out.
The Details:
Address - Waroeng Nona, Queen's Arcade, Working Street Cardiff CF10 2GB
Web - https://waroengnona.co.uk/
Telephone - 07749 172139
