Has anyone tried the new Balinese restaurant: Selamat Pagi

[villager21]

in Greenpoint.

http://greenpointers.com/2012/11/14/s...

[gort]

Our meal was underwhelming. Pan roasted chicken was undercooked and very under seasoned, and nasi goreng was fine but no different from what I can make at home. Great coffee, of course, but that's not what we were there for.

[chompchomp]

we went to brunch there about a month or two after it opened and it was fairly awful. I can't recall what we got, but it was poorly spiced (bland) and generally uninteresting. plus the mango we ordered looked like sad, limp cantaloupe.

[botrytis9]

Yes it's very good.
Food is overall very spicy so maybe let them know if thats a problem.
It's simply presented, but complex flavors that are not easy to find in food in nyc, especially greenpoint.
The atmosphere is also pleasant and friendly service.
They were not serving alcohol all the times I visited.
I have been here 5 times and never had anything I did not enjoy, except the side of bread.
Awesome addition to the neighborhood.

[didactic katydid]

Hm, I seem to remember being disappointed because the food WASN'T spicy, but I've never found Indonesian food to be particularly spicy, so I figured it was supposed to be that way.

[swannee]

Sumatran food is some of the world's spiciest.

[didactic katydid]

I don't really know the regional differences within Indonesia, which I'm sure are profound--most of my experience has come from eating at Masjid Al-Hikmah.

[Peter Cuce]

Manadonese as well. Indonesian food overall is one of the spiciest cuisines I've come across. You can definitely get good, spicy Indonesian at Masjid Al-Hikmah, and in fact, you can get more regional variations there than are available in NYC restaurants.

[didactic katydid]

Oh I don't mean to hate, the Al-Hikmah stuff is awesome, I just never came across something blistering in all my tastings there.

[Peter Cuce]

I wasn't trying to defend MAH per se but instead was pointing out that Indonesian cuisine overall is one of the spiciest in the world.

[didactic katydid]

Yes, some things were quite good and some things were just OK. We're definitely going to eat there again to try some different stuff.

Specifically the nasi goreng was pretty good but I wasn't thrilled by the pan-roasted chicken.

[Peter Cuce]

It's not really Balinese. It's run by Australians and they are calling standard Indonesian dishes Balinese.

[AubWah]

Gringo alert?

[debinqueens]

it's not bad, but, on the basis of one visit and four or five dishes, not nearly as good as indonesian restaurants in queens that are run by indonesians. the flavors in the gado gado were all a bit toned down, as was the roasted chicken. not in terms of "spice," because that's not really a characteristic of this cuisine, but in terms of overall flavor. just a bit too tame, too.... anglo, i guess.

[Peter Cuce]

not in terms of "spice," because that's not really a characteristic of this cuisine
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!!!

[Peter Cuce]

If you have Indonesian friends, most of them will actually carry around their own hot sauce when they first come to NYC, because they want everything to be spicy. I took an Indonesian visitor to Little Pepper and they asked for extra chile sauce.

[debinqueens]

you're right, of course, Peter:

i guess what i should've said was "...for me," meaning that my ordering isn't usually spice-based. yes, the cuisine itself does have many a supremely spicy dish (though i think the spiciest dish i've had in my life is a tibetan one, best served in nyc by Phayul, of hot peppers and potato).

[klyeoh]

It's not really Balinese. It's run by Australians and they are calling standard Indonesian dishes Balinese.
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You're absolutely right. Besides, the name of the restaurant itself is a giveaway: "Selamat Pagi" is Indonesian for 'good morning', different from the Balinese language. The Balinese would have said "Rahajeng semeng".

Do they do breakfast as well then?