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Gastrodiplomacy: Indonesia wants to advance soft power with good taste
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Gastrodiplomacy: A cooking demonstration of Indonesian food in the Paris Store in Marseilles receives a warm welcome from locals. (Courtesy of Consulate General of Indonesia in Marseille /-)
E
veryone eats and, therefore, food can be a universal language that connects the world -- a nonverbal tool for global citizens to engage with each other and help governments in their public diplomacy.
But with geographic distance being a barrier, Indonesia is now seeking extra hands from the diaspora to introduce its national delicacies to people across the world.
Aries Tjahjadi was around 30 years old when he decided to move to Amsterdam, the Netherlands, from Jakarta in 1998. Now, 21 years later, he runs Aries Noodles. Opening in 2012, the restaurant receives around 10 to 100 customers every day, around 30 percent of whom are Dutch. Most of them come to order mie goreng (stir-fried noodle) or nasi goreng (fried rice).
“At first, it was challenging to introduce ordinary dishes like mie goreng or nasi goreng. However, since it was the Netherlands, which historically is related to Indonesia, it was not that difficult afterward,” Aries said.
Aries is not the only player abroad. Many others are spread across the globe with various businesses, from Indonesian food trucks in the United States to Padang restaurants in Portugal.
Indonesian missions abroad also play a vital role in introducing Indonesian cuisine. The Indonesian Embassy in the Netherlands, for instance, holds the Pasar Malam Indonesia (Indonesian night market) annually to showcase Indonesian heritage and cuisine and gathers the diaspora that is spread across the country.
The Indonesian Consulate General in Marseilles with support from Paris-based Visit Indonesia tourist office hosted recently an exhibition of Indonesian food products and cooking demonstrations of nasi goreng, mie goreng and sate. “Right after the cooking demonstration, the Paris Store ran out of sweet soy sauce as visitors wanted to try out the nasi goreng recipe,” Consul General Asianto Sinambela said.
