This is what I call food!

(Clockwise from top left) Ikan Terbang Gurami, Peppermint Curry Sotong, Udang Bakar and Satay Madura.

Pondok Laguna is one of those off-the-beaten-path type restaurants. Tucked in (literally) between a whole row of outlets in Crown Square shopping centre, in Padungan Kuching, this rather nifty Indonesian restaurant serves what they claim to be "authentic Indonesian cuisine". Adding to that, seeing that it is located within the heart of the City of Kuching where people often choose "variety" when it comes to dining, diners who come to this humble establishment can also expect some Nyonya cuisine if they feel like adding those to the Indonesian selections.
I have been to this restaurant a couple of times, and yes I do find the food here to be some of the tastiest ones I have ever dug into. As far as authenticity goes, I have to be honest... I don't really know how authentic Indonesian food tastes like because I have never been to Indonesia. In fact, the closest I've been to Indonesia was when I stood just inches away from the border that separates it from Malaysia (if you're wondering where that is, it's at the Malaysian-Indonesian border high up in the Borneo Highlands Resort). But in any case, Pondok Laguna does employ a team of Indonesian chefs and staff members, so I guess the question of authenticity is pretty much covered here.

What you see here are just some of the new items you can find in the menu the next time you visit Pondok Laguna. The highlight is the funky-looking fish on the top left of the combo picture above, aptly named Ikan Terbang Gurame, which literally translates to Fried Flying Fish. The way the fish is prepared makes it look like it has wings... hence, Ikan Terbang. Truth be told, there is nothing that special about this fish. But what makes it different is the timing and proper techniques in deep-frying the fish - which is Ikan Kaloi in case you're wondering - resulting in a perfectly tender and flavoursome fish with just the right amount of crispness on the outside. What I like about the Ikan Terbang Gurame is its simplicity. Instead of being coated in some kind of fancy sauce, it's served just as it is, plus a rather humble dipping sauce made with soy sauce, sugar and chillies on the side. I gotta tell ya, nothing beats a simple fried fish with sambal kicap and a plate of piping hot steamed white rice! Darn it, my mouth's watering again...

Nyonya Ikan Tilapia

Downing all the dishes laid out on the table at Pondok Laguna that day was a rewarding experience for me. It's been a long while since I've had anything like this. The flavours were spot on, the meats and seafood were cooked just right, and there was a handful of surprising dishes - by that I mean they were surprisingly good! Anyway, before I get carried away like I always do, the dish just above this paragraph, Nyonya Ikan Tilapia, was one of two curry dishes I had that day - the other being the Peppermint Curry Sotong or Peppermint Curried Squid (or, for all you "stylo" people out there, Calamari). The Nyonya Ikan comes in two choices of fish, one being tilapia and the other a garoupa, or grouper... however you choose to spell it! Kudos to the chef!!! I mean, this curry is so lip-smackingly good that I ended up even taking my time to pick the bones out of the fish just so I could get one last bite of this insanely delicious MASTERPIECE!!! This is, by far, the BEST tilapia dish I have ever had! No, make that the best FISH DISH I have ever had... and I don't even like tilapia!

As for the squid curry, I guess I was too slow to act. I mean, I went to have this meal with a bunch of other people. One of them, unfortunately, seemed like he had just discovered an abundance of food in an oasis in the middle of a scorching desert after days of a seemingly hopeless search for food and water. I mean, damn! He was stacking up food all the way to the edges of the bloody plate! Hello! Other people are hungry too??? Okay, to sum up this nonsense of a crap talk I just gave you, he robbed the rest of us of the squid curry so I never got to taste it. Blim blam!

Mie Soua Special Laguna

Another surprising dish was this funky-looking one here just above. First thing's first, I love how they named it Mie Soua Special Laguna - for a simple fact that my parents looooove Mee Sua, a type of noodle that symbolises longevity, by my understanding. Yes, my parents do adore the Mee Sua, but always in soup style. Either they would throw in a can of sardines in it or just simply add in some anchovies. As for myself, I don't mind Mee Sua. I'm not crazy about it, but I'm okay with it. This here dish totally changed everything for me. I have never tried Mee Sua wok-fried before, so this was some kind of an awakening for me. (Sheeh, how cheesy!)

Anyway, after a first bite of the Mie Soua Special Laguna, my taste buds were certainly teased, alright! I loved the smokiness of the noodles and how the Mee Sua was springy and was neither undercooked nor overcooked. I didn't care much about the prawns, eggs and whatever else that came with the noodles. I just wanted to have more of the long, vermicelli-like noodles. Actually, I had two helpings, and I was still contemplating having more. It's seriously that good!

Special BBQ Chicken Wings

Honestly, I can't remember the name of the dish above, so I just call it Special BBQ Chicken Wings. Come on! Nobody's perfect! Anyway, moving on. I mean, who doesn't like BBQ wings right? But I gotta tell ya, I've been to a lot of places selling BBQ wings. And they always have choices like normal BBQ or honey BBQ. I always go for the honey ones because the normal ones, well, are just normal. Honestly, I can make a batch of kick-ass BBQ wings, ones that would put all other businesses out if I decided to sell them. Muahahaha!!! Anyway, yea, I have not found a single BBQ wings stall that sell even decent BBQ wings. They're always either too sweet or too hard. Not tough, hard! That's why I dare say that Pondok Laguna's new BBQ chicken wings are by far the best one yet! The meat was nice and juicy, the skin was crispy, (which was awesome!!!), and the sauce (Padang sauce, if I can remember correctly) that covers the chicken was oh so magnificent! You know what? Just go try them yourself!

The new menu also includes some other really good stuff, but alas, my back is aching now writing this rather lengthy blog post, so I'll just end this post. If you're curious to find out for yourself how these dishes taste like, drive over to Pondok Laguna. Tell them "Mr Foodie sent us here"... Lol... Just yanking your chain... Anyway don't forget to try the restaurant's famous Air Kedondong (see picture below), which a beverage made from the kedondong fruit. Till next time, this is Mr Foodie signing out...

Air Kedondong