Garuda Indonesia Colours Magazine March 2014 | Page 100

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Explore | Flavours
similar yet different to those I eat in Bali.
I’m still dreaming about the lapis-style rice
cake I bought that was like dreamy crème
caramel in a slice. I chat to a friendly Ibu
at the market about making sambal. She’s
a passionate cook and waxes lyrical about
local chilli and her favourite dishes.
I promptly jot down her grilled squid in
banana leaves recipe (I will let you know
when I’ve made it). Next visit I will ask
her to cook for me.
I buy papaya flowers (I’m in love with these),
a bunch of watercress and some
tiny squid strung on a bamboo ring, with
a plan to sweet-talk the chef at Hotel
Bintang Flores to cook them up. On the
way home, we stop at Café Selini, one of
Labuan Bajo’s most charming Greek-style
cafés, for a cup of Flores coffee. I am told
it’s Robusta, but the flavour is pleasantly
lighter than I expect, not so earthy. Just
what I need after a morning at the market.
Mission accomplished and the chef agrees
to cook the lunch. The menu includes
wok-fried papaya flowers with watercress,
braised squid in a delicate lemongrass and
tomato broth, more fish soup (because
I love it) and fresh tomato-cucumberchilli sambal. Recipes now in hand!
For dinner we return to town and dine
at the harbour-side night market for yet
another feast of snapper, grouper, bream
and baronang, some lightly basted and
grilled, others braised in a clear tangy broth
with lemon basil, all served with wok-fried
beans, sliced cucumber and sambals and
washed down with chilled Bintang beer.
When you’re surrounded by fresh seafood,
no other food matters. This popular seaside
eatery has all the romance of any Asian food
bazaar with its communal eating, displays
of sparkling fresh fish, colourful food stalls,
casual under-the-stars dining, and the
scent and smoke of grilled fish fanned
over coconut coals.

A local making traditional rice
cakes near the market.
A lunch of papaya flowers
with watercress, braised squid with
turmeric, lemongrass and fresh
chilli sambal.

Time to go Komodo hunting and we speed
across the turquoise-jade seas to Rinca Island
to see these dragon-like creatures. Most
sensibly, they are sleeping in the shade, and
after a few snaps we take a short trek through
the jungle and savannah and then head for
Kelor Island for a swim. I don’t think I have
been to a more beautiful beach. Picture a small
cove, white sand and pristine sea with a view
of the dramatic velvet-green misty mountain
ranges of nearby islands. An expanse of land,
sea and sky. I’m planning my return while
I float on the water.
Afternoon tea and we drop into La Cucina
on the main road for more local coffee, cakes
and home-made ice cream. La Cucina has
that Sophia Loren ‘let’s ride around town on
a Vespa’ feel about it with its Italian accents
and Mediterranean colours. The sun is starting
its descent, and the view from the picturesque
terrace offers yet another magnificent vista
of the harbour, boats bobbing in the
afternoon sun.
That night we venture back into town and
have our final meal at Treetops Café. This
multi-levelled treehouse-style restaurant has
a chilled ambience that’s hard to beat. Our
table, restored teak from old local boats, has a
sweeping view of the bay, and the menu is the
most extensive we have seen yet. We splurge
on sour fish soup, grilled snapper, sambal with
tiny anchovies, wok-fried greens, braised squid
and melt-in-your-mouth tuna satay. Mattheus,
the charismatic owner, gives us the royal
treatment and presents us with an enormous
platter of fruit fritters and ice cream for
dessert. We leave feeling well fed and
blissfully happy.
Four days in this charming town have left
me smitten. Some places get under your skin,
and this is one of them. My dream of a Sea
Trek Sailing Adventure around the islands
won’t leave me alone. Stay tuned, Labuan Bajo,
because I am definitely coming back!