| Bhima's Warung | |
|---|---|
 The storefront of Bhima's Warung | |
 | |
| Restaurant information | |
| Established | 1994 |
| Owner(s) | Paul Boehmer |
| Food type | Southeast Asian fusion, Indonesian |
| Street address | 262 King St N. |
| City | Waterloo |
| State | Ontario |
| Country | Canada |
| Coordinates | 43°28′39″N80°31′30″W / 43.47744°N 80.52496°W |
| Reservations | Yes |
| Website | www |
Bhima's Warung is a southeast Asian fusion restaurant in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, located at 262 King St N.
According to a 2011 Guelph Mercury article, "Bhima’s menu is all about elaborate, wacky, creative fusion". [1] Bhima's uses elements of French cuisine as a foundation for its fusion of Asian cuisines. [2] [3] Bhima's offers a large selection of fish and seafood, [4] and the food is generally spicy. [5] For drinks, beers, Singha, cocktails, and wines are served. [1] [6] Examples of appetizers served include Goi Tai and Nam Prik Gung Mamauang. [1] For mains, past options have included Cornish hen, Kee Mao, Bistik Tandoori, and the Pad Ped Surf & Turf. [6] [1] [7]
Bhima's Warung opened in 1994. [1] The restaurant is owned by Paul Boehmer, [1] [8] and is named after Bhima, a Hindu legend that is a chef to the gods. [6] The warung in the name means a small Indonesian food stall. [6] The restaurant's location has been described as "blink-and-you'll-miss-it". [7]
Boehmer is classically trained in French cuisine (with over 15 years of experience) [5] and discovered southeast Asian cuisines during his travels. [3] While in Indonesia, Boehmer learned some Indonesian, allowing him to learn recipes from elders for traditional dishes. [5] On the mix of cuisines, Boehmer stated "The two came together and it was not necessarily planned." [3] At this time, Asian food was less popular in Waterloo, but this changed as the increase of international students caused the city to become more multicultural. [3]
In 2004, Bhima's added a patio in reaction to a regional no-smoking bylaw. [9] The same year, Boehmer opened Loloan, a restaurant in Bali, Indonesia. [1] [10] In March 2018, Bhima's opened a sister restaurant, Loloan Lobby Bar, which imitates the atmosphere of a hotel lobby bar. [8] [11] Bhima's closed for indoor dining during COVID-19 lockdowns in 2021, but remained open for takeout. [12] Due to the lockdowns, Boehmer considered closing the restaurant, but decided against it. [13]
Bhima's has received reviews from The Record in 1995, [5] 1998, [6] 2002, 2014, [7] 2017, [14] and 2021, [13] and reviews from the Guelph Mercury in 2000, [15] 2008, [16] and 2011. [1] The 1995 Record review described the food as "sensational" and menu as "exceptional ". [5] The 1998 Record review praised the atmosphere, food, and service. [6] In 2005, Bhima's was listed in the restaurant guide Where to Eat in Canada. [17] The 2011 Mercury review was positive, describing the restaurant as "one of a kind" and summarizing it as having "intoxicating flavours, laid-back atmosphere, great service". [1] According to a 2014 Waterloo Chronicle article by Bob Vrbanac, Bhima's "has been rated as one of the top places to dine in Canada" and is among the highest rated restaurants in the region on Trip Advisor. [3]
According to Andrew Coppolino of CBC News, Bhima's has a reputation for developing cooks who "stay in the region to add their skill to the food scene's diversity". [18] Vrbanac wrote that Bhima's was creating Asian fusion dishes before that trend existed, and "some might suggest that [Boehmer] anticipated the trend". [3]
Fusion cuisine is a cuisine that combines elements of different culinary traditions that originate from different countries, regions, or cultures. Cuisines of this type are not categorized according to any one particular cuisine style and have played a part in many contemporary restaurant cuisines since the 1970s.
Japanese cuisine encompasses the regional and traditional foods of Japan, which have developed through centuries of political, economic, and social changes. The traditional cuisine of Japan is based on rice with miso soup and other dishes with an emphasis on seasonal ingredients. Side dishes often consist of fish, pickled vegetables, and vegetables cooked in broth. Common seafood is often grilled, but it is also sometimes served raw as sashimi or as sushi. Seafood and vegetables are also deep-fried in a light batter, as tempura. Apart from rice, a staple includes noodles, such as soba and udon. Japan also has many simmered dishes, such as fish products in broth called oden, or beef in sukiyaki and nikujaga.
Indonesian cuisine is a collection of various regional culinary traditions that formed in the archipelagic nation of Indonesia. There are a wide variety of recipes and cuisines in part because Indonesia is composed of approximately 6,000 populated islands of the total 17,508 in the world's largest archipelago, with more than 1,300 ethnic groups.
California cuisine is a food movement that originated in Northern California. The cuisine focuses on dishes that are driven by local and sustainable ingredients with an attention to seasonality and an emphasis on the bounty of the region.
Canadian Chinese cuisine is a cuisine derived from Chinese cuisine that was developed by Chinese Canadians. It was the first form of commercially available Chinese food in Canada. This cooking style was invented by early Cantonese immigrants who adapted traditional Chinese recipes to Western tastes and the available ingredients, and developed in a similar process to American Chinese cuisine.
A warung is a type of small family-owned business — small retail, eatery, or café — in Indonesia. A warung is an essential part of daily life in Indonesia. Over time, the term warung has shifted somewhat — especially among foreign visitors, expatriates, and people abroad — to refer more specifically to a modest Indonesian eatery or a place that sells Indonesian retail items. But for the majority of Indonesians, it still refers to a small, neighborhood convenience shop, often a front room or booth in a family's home.
Indian Chinese cuisine, Chinese Indian cuisine, Sino-Indian cuisine, Chindian cuisine, Hakka Chinese or Desi-Chinese cuisine is a distinct style of Chinese cuisine adapted to Indian tastes, combining Chinese foods with Indian flavours and spices. Though Asian cuisines have mixed throughout history throughout Asia, the most popular origin story of the fusion food resides with Chinese labourers of Calcutta, who immigrated to British India looking for work. Opening restaurant businesses in the area, these early Chinese food sellers adapted their culinary styles to suit Indian tastes.
Mie goreng, also known as bakmi goreng, is an Indonesian stir-fried noodle dish. It is made with thin yellow noodles stir-fried in cooking oil with garlic, onion or shallots, fried prawn, chicken, beef, or sliced bakso (meatballs), chili, Chinese cabbage, cabbages, tomatoes, egg, and other vegetables. Ubiquitous in Indonesia, it is sold by food vendors from street hawkers (warungs) to high-end restaurants.
Padang dish or Minangkabau dish is the cuisine of the Minangkabau people of West Sumatra, Indonesia. It is among the most popular cuisines in Maritime Southeast Asia. It is known across Indonesia as Masakan Padang after Padang, the capital city of Western Sumatra province. It is served in restaurants mostly owned by perantauan (migrating) Minangkabau people in Indonesian cities. Padang food is ubiquitous in Indonesian cities and is popular in neighboring Malaysia and Singapore.
Bubur ayam is an Indonesian chicken congee. It is rice congee with shredded chicken meat served with some condiments, such as chopped scallion, crispy fried shallot, celery, tongcay or chai poh, fried soybean, crullers, both salty and sweet soy sauce, and sometimes topped with yellow chicken broth and kerupuk. Unlike many other Indonesian dishes, the dish is not spicy as the sambal or chili paste is often served separately. It is a favourite breakfast food, served by humble travelling vendors, warung, fast food establishments, and five-star hotel restaurants. Travelling bubur ayam vendors frequently pass through residential streets in the morning selling the dish.
Balinese cuisine is a cuisine tradition of Balinese people from the volcanic island of Bali. Using a variety of spices, blended with the fresh vegetables, meat and fish. Part of Indonesian cuisine, it demonstrates indigenous traditions, as well as influences from other Indonesian regional cuisine, Chinese and Indian. The island's inhabitants are predominantly Hindu and culinary traditions are somewhat distinct with the rest of Indonesia, with festivals and religious celebrations including many special foods prepared as the offerings for the deities, as well as other dishes consumed communally during the celebrations.
Mamak stalls are indoor and open-air food establishments particularly found in Southeast Asia, especially in Malaysia and Singapore, where the cuisines served are typically those derived from Indian Muslim and Pakistani cuisines, unique to the region.
Kissa Tanto is an Italian-Japanese fusion restaurant in the Chinatown neighborhood of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The 80-seat restaurant, which opened in June 2016, is on the second floor of 263 E Pender St. Its name comes from the Japanese word kissa, referring to the "jazz kissa" or jazz cafes of 1960s Tokyo, and the Italian word tanto, meaning "a lot" or "so much". Kissa Tanto is co-owned by restaurateur Tannis Ling, executive chef Joël Watanabe, and sous chef Alain Chow, who collectively envisioned it as an escapist, anachronistic concept.
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