Tenderness of Young Goat’s Meat

At Sepanjang street, Sidoarjo, you may possibly bump into this view: a pushcart display of a goat meat. The goat is about still intact, fresh, and small (that means it is still young). Sweet-scented smoke that signifies a grill emerges. You’re quite monk if you don’t drool in seconds. Warung Sate Barongan Pak Uniq (Mr. Uniq’s Barongan Brochettes Stall), that’s the name of this stand, open from noon until night.

For you who don’t know yet, “sate” or “satay” is small pieces of meat roasted on skewer. This is a common food in Indonesia. Meanwhile, “barongan” may be likes barongan in Barong Temple (Candi Barong) or in context of Reog Ponorogo’s art: someone who used to eat everything. Or, even Barong Temple?

Coincidently, in this food stall, you can eat (almost) everything too. Its service is semi buffet. The customer may take cooked rice and chips in the corner of the stall room, as much as he wants! So, the customer with a big appetite would be spoiled here.

How is reputation of this stall? Since Warung Fiksi visited it only once, we don’t know precisely. But occasionally the artists and high functionaries of East Java took a lunch or dine here, like Arif Afandi (ex Surabaya Deputy Mayor), Butet Kertarajasa (national artist), et cetera. That’s what I heard from Uniq himself.

Uniq applies modern-kitchen concept in his Warung Sate Barongan, i.e. set the kitchen in the frontage. Thus, they cook young goats, its main menu, publicly. By that, the customer is always able to verify the quality of the meat, spices, and technique. S/he can also choose which parts of the goat desired to be brochetted.

The flavor of young goat meat is not much different from a beef. Just, beware if you have a hypertension (which will give you a little dizzy after you eat a lot of goat meat). Nevertheless, some said the meat of goat is a kind of aphrodisiac, and could be jack up man’s sexual capability.

Although there is no clinical research supported such statement yet, many have believed it without question. “They devoured numerous skewers of young goat particularly in favor of the beloved wife. For me, I think it works,” claimed Ibnu, one of Uniq’s Warung Sate Barongan loyal customer who dwell in the neighborhood.

Well, of course we don’t have to believe that only for tasting the young goat’s grilled meat. This is good, end of story.

• Photo by Ihsan Maulana