Bringing the "farm kitchen" to the city.

Central Highlands cuisine can be divided into two categories: festival dishes and everyday dishes.

While traditional festival dishes have become familiar to tourists in restaurants, now it is the simple meals from the fields that are being brought to the banquet table.

These "traditional ethnic meal platters," encapsulating the flavors of everyday life, not only captivate diners but also open up a new trend of enjoying local cuisine in the urban landscape of Pleiku.

Diners enjoy a Jrai meal at Dam San restaurant (Dien Hong ward). **Photo: Minh Chau**

Embark on a journey to "find the scent of the forest in the city" at Dam San restaurant (193 Tran Quy Cap, Dien Hong ward), where diners can experience an authentic Jrai meal. In the warm atmosphere of the fireplace and wooden staircase, the melodies of Central Highlands love songs fill the air, and the aromas of grilled dried fish, stir-fried bamboo shoots, and wild vegetable soup infused with the fragrance of basil leaves evoke memories of the village.

Dr. Rah Lan Hue, a Jrai woman born in a village more than 90 km from Pleiku, said emotionally, "Looking at this meal makes me miss home and my village." Particularly noteworthy is the bowl of mixed vegetable soup made from bitter eggplant, dried fish, pumpkin flowers, basil leaves, chili peppers, mushrooms, etc. In the middle of the mountain town, these rustic dishes suddenly become a "bridge" that takes diners back to the pristine Central Highlands.

The owner of Dam San restaurant is Ms. Ro Mah H'Nin, a Jrai woman born in the Ayun Pa region ( Gia Lai province). Initially, Jrai-style meals were not on the menu; she only cooked them to satisfy her love for the food and to ease her longing for traditional flavors. Unexpectedly, these simple, rustic meals became the most popular dishes at the restaurant.

Ms. H'Nin shared: "The villagers cook whatever they find in the forest or fields for their daily meals. When we bring it to the table at the restaurant, we still maintain that spirit; from the appearance to the taste, everything must carry the soul of traditional cuisine."

At Lem's Kitchen (169 Ton Duc Thang Street, Bien Ho Commune), dishes with the flavors of the countryside are included in the menu to serve both locals and tourists. Here you can find smoked pork, grilled meat in bamboo tubes, bitter gourd salad with dried fish, and a cam – a H're dish with rock snails, stream frogs, stream gobies, bitter gourd, wild vegetables, fragrant lemongrass… wrapped in banana leaves and grilled over charcoal.

In particular, sticky rice on skewers is a popular dish here in the Ede ethnic group. The sticky rice is steamed until cooked, placed on banana leaves, sandwiched with grilled pork skewers, then wrapped and placed over hot coals. According to the chef, the grilling must be done skillfully so that the meat juices soak into the rice and the banana leaves char, bringing out a distinctive aroma, quite different from the usual steaming method.

Ms. Hoang Thi Thu Thuy (a tourist from Hanoi) recounted: “Late in the afternoon, after strolling around Bien Ho Lake, we happened to visit Lem's Kitchen. The weather was cool, and sitting by the glowing charcoal stove under the green pine trees, enjoying the rustic dishes, and listening to the local chefs tell stories about their childhood associated with each dish, that meal was naturally the most delicious and memorable part of the trip.”

"Traditional Vietnamese cuisine" is creating a trend in enjoying local food in urban areas.
**Photo: Minh Chau**

If you want to experience a simple meal just like in a local's kitchen, Com Dong Bao restaurant (03 Phung Hung Street, Pleiku Ward) is the place to evoke that feeling for diners. The owner, a young Jrai woman named Nguyen Thu Hong, has brought the memories of her homeland to the dining table.

The menu is diverse and simple, featuring dishes whose names evoke spicy flavors and hints of the forest: fish pounded with basil leaves, squirrel meat, squirrel meat with chili and salt, bamboo shoot salad with chili, squirrel eggplant, grilled banana blossoms, cassava soup with shrimp… Even salt becomes an “item” on the menu: yellow ant salt, teng leng leaf salt, fragrant grass salt.

“The Jrai people only need to cook upland rice, eat it with various kinds of salt, and they find it delicious, finishing the whole pot of rice. Many diners who come here also really enjoy the dipping salts with the flavors of the Central Highlands mountains and forests,” shared Ms. Kpă Nguyễn Thu Hồng.

The mountainous city of Pleiku boasts many renowned restaurants specializing in traditional cuisine. However, it's only recently that everyday dishes have been heavily promoted in the culinary business under the rustic name "Ethnic Minority Meals." Currently, many restaurants and eateries offer diners a simple, home-style meal, but with a fresh and exciting experience.

This shows that Central Highlands cuisine is a treasure trove; what we know is only a small part of it unless the chefs themselves bring it from the kitchen to the table to introduce it. These rustic dishes not only allow diners to enjoy the taste but also to learn more about the story behind its flavor.

Source: https://baogialai.com.vn/dua-bep-ray-ve-pho-thi-post567907.html