A new Indonesian food and music festival in Melbourne is presenting a series of immersive pop-up talks and dining events, in celebration of the rich flavours of Indonesia and diaspora culture.
Indonesian-Aussie siblings Moira and Darryl Tirtha have collaborated with a team of Indonesian creatives to curate the festival, named Nongkrong ("hanging out"), which takes place from January 29 to February 3 across various inner-city venues around Melbourne.
Highlights include Anne Hasegawa joining forces with Florian to host Tare Kacang on January 31, a night of mouthwatering sate and yakitori eats that will see the café transformed into a walk-in izakaya-meets-warung.
On February 1, Ayu Saraswati and Dora Mazzeo (Bar Liberty) are bringing Warung Dorayu to Abbotsford's much-loved Cam's Kiosk. This evening of Indonesian food will be accompanied by a panel discussing 'Who gets to cook Indonesian food?' You can book a ticket to the event here.
And get on your dancing shoes, because the festivities culminate on February 3 with an experimental Indonesian-style long lunch at Hope Street Radio, followed by an epic day party at Collingwood Yards. An all-Indonesian music program has been planned by Sophie McAlister – an Australian-born DJ raised in the tropics of Laos, Thailand and Bali – who'll be keeping the party pumping late with her intoxicating blend of jungle, bass, techno and house.
There'll be Indonesia-inspired cocktails and non-alcoholic beverages, a community bain-marie fragrant with dishes from some of Melbourne's best Indonesian restaurants, plus stalls with merch and other products from Indonesian makers.
You can expect live performances from Komang (Rosie Clynes) who will showcase her eclectic array of sound inspired by trip-hop and Rino (Rino Darusman) portraying his brand of melodic electronic music. There will also be sindhenan (Javanese court singing), gamelan, and Indonesian folk-pop and electronica, with sonic storyteller Bayu billed to conclude the musical adventure.
Get tickets to the day party here.
