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Monday, 08 July 2024 10:11

Medina Asian Restaurant, culinary remedy for Indonesian hajj pilgrims

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The existence of Indonesian restaurants in Saudi Arabia is really needed by the Indonesian people, especially those carrying out the Hajj or Umrah pilgrimage as Mecca and Medina are home to more than 200,000 pilgrims from Indonesia during the Hajj season. On average, pilgrims stay for 40 days to do various rituals of the Hajj pilgrimage. At times like these, Medina Asian Restaurant, owned by Abah Umar, cures the congregation's longing for Indonesian food.  
 

The Indonesian restaurant started opening in 2015, when Abah Umar left for Arabia as an Indonesian migrant worker. From his hard work, he collected capital little by little until finally he succeeded in opening Media Asian Restaurant at the foot of Jabal Uhud. The restaurant is famous not only among settlers, even many Indonesian officials and celebrities visit it during their Haj pilgrimage. Slowly but surely Medina Asian Restaurant continues to grow, until now Abah Umar has opened 14 restaurant branches by employing 23 salespeople from Indonesia and Bangladesh.

 

The head chef and owner of Medina Asian Restaurant is an Indonesian citizen named Muhammad Sarwoni, known as Abah Umar. According to Abah Umar, every day this restaurant serves at least 300 to 400 customers and take around one quintal of rice per day, especially during the Hajj season. Abah Umar, who is an alumnus of the Al Amin Kediri Islamic Boarding School, said that he tried to maintain the quality of his dishes and ensures authentic taste by using spices imported directly from Indonesia, including fresh Cayenne devil for meatballs. 

 

This restaurant, which is located at the foot of Mount Uhud, is only a three-minute walk from the Nabawi Mosque, Medina, making it an alternative choice for Hajj pilgrims who miss Indonesian cuisine while performing the Hajj or Umrah. Medina Asian Restaurant offers a variety of Indonesian dishes on its menu such as Betawi soto, chicken soto, vegetable lontong, fried rice, mixed rice, gado-gado, ketoprak, fried noodles, fried banana, and bakwan. Visitors to this restaurant are not only Indonesians, but also local residents who are familiar with the spice-rich food typical of the archipelago.

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