Who doesn’t know about Taliwang barbecued chicken? This restaurant serves food from the Sasak cuisine – Sasak is located in Lombok, Nusa Tenggara Barat (NTB). This place is known both domestically and internationally. Hj. Baiq Hartini, a native Lombok woman, founded Taliwang Bersaudara restaurant – which translates literally to Taliwang Brothers restaurant - in 1986. She first opened the restaurant on the island of Dewata. Why is it called Taliwang Bersaudara? At first glance,Taliwang sounds like a family name, but do you know what Taliwang actually is? Taliwang is an area in Lombok, NTB. The restaurant is called Taliwang, so visitors know where the cuisine originated. In Jakarta, Taliwang’s barbecued chicken can only be found in two different places; at Jalan Tebet Raya No. 10A and Jalan Panglima Polim IV, Kebayoran Baru, Jakarta Selatan. The restaurant in Tebet is larger than the one in Panglima Polim IV, it can hold up to 100 people. The parking space for both cars and motorcycles is also larger. The location is also convenient and easy to locate. If you’re heading from Pancoran, make a left to Jalan Tebet Raya, the restaurant can be seen after about 30-50 meters, on the main street. The restaurant offers a variety of dishes from the Sasak cuisine such as Taliwang chicken, Taliwang fish, Taliwang skewers, Taliwang soup, pepes Taliwang. They also offer other savory Taliwang foods and a variety of sambals. However, their signature dishes are the Taliwang barbecued chicken and the Taliwang fish; especially the Taliwang barbecued chicken – it’s very delicious. When you first order, nothing seems special, however when the food is served and you taste it – you’ll find that it’s fantastic. The outer layer of the chicken has a reddish color to it and has a very spicy taste because of the Lombok chilli. It’s so spicy that you might even shed a tear. The chicken is very spicy because the chilli is from Lombok. In fact, most of their dishes use Lombok chilli. Another unique thing is that everything in the restaurant is from Lombok; Lombok chilli, Lombok chicken, Lombok crackers, Lombok chips, and even the staff are from Lombok. Why is everything from Lombok? The owner explains that she doesn’t want to lose the characteristics and culture of the traditional Lombok cuisine. She also designates people from Lombok to manage the restaurant on a day-to-day basis. Hence, everything in this restaurant, including its workers, is from Lombok. The shrimp paste sambal (sambal terasi) and the Taliwang fish sambals are the two most desirable sambals. Although the barbecued chicken is the favorite of most visitors, the Taliwang palecing chicken is also a favorite of many. The Taliwang palecing chicken is spicier than the Taliwang barbecued chicken. However, one is not necessarily better than the other, it merely depends on your preference. This restaurant is always crowded. Visitors who admire the spicy Taliwang cuisine do not hesitate to travel long distances just to try it. The price is relatively cheap. A piece of Taliwang barbecued chicken or Taliwang palecing chicken costs Rp. 32.000, a plate of steamed rice is Rp. 4.500, and sambal costs Rp. 6.000. You can also get a variety of drinks there, which are priced differently. If you’re eating spicy food, I recommend getting a warm drink; such as warm honey or warm sweet tea. The warm drink will help neutralize the spiciness. Although the barbecued chicken is served with a certain type of sambal, you can always try other types of Taliwang sambals; again it all depends on preferences. So, why not give it a taste? Nothing can beat the spicy taste of the Lombok chili. I guarantee satisfaction, go ahead and try it!. (Translater by Wilson)