Meet lively Indonesian food blogger, Umi Fadilah. Umi’s job and foodie passion has brought her to the far corners of the world just for food, she shares with us some of her countless enviable dining experiences this month.
Umi Fadilah lives a career many only dream of. She works for Microsoft and designs Windows-based applications for many prominent companies in Indonesia. Her job comes with many perks and these enliven the storytelling she shares in her blog, www.umifadilah.com.
“I started blogging when I was a student of IT back in Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB ) but I was pretty much like the rest when it came to blogging back then. It was all about my daily blabbering,” Umi shyly confessed.
However over the years, her blog has seen multiple platform changes until she started to discover herself and realized that her real calling and love had always been food, until she arrived at her present blog format.
“I was lucky to be given great opportunities to see the world but I think, what makes one’s journey worthwhile is actually the street food experience,” she explained. She’s proud of being a traveler who can avoid mainstream restaurants and opts to go for the hawkers wherever she goes.
“I particularly enjoyed visiting the hawkers in South Korea and I think they have a stronger traditional feel than when I was in Japan with its typical permanent stalls on the streets,” added Umi alongside her other interesting stories about her visit to the first ever Starbucks in Seattle, Pike Place Market, or even her last trip to Pontianak and Singkawang in West Kalimantan.
When asked about the most memorable foodie experience, Umi instantly answered, “The World Street Food Congress last year in Singapore!” The event was a first of its kind, and was organized by Makansutra, it was ambitious and brought together world famous food experts like Anthony Bourdain and William Wongso as the speakers of the conference. It also indulged visitors with street foods from many countries including Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand, India, the USA and Mexico.
Last but not the least, Umi also shared her own personal indulgence when it comes to food. “The rest of the world may be a dessert lover but me, I’m a carb lover!” expressed Umi honestly and we laughed in an instant hearing that. There’s this soft spot inside of her fancying anything made from carbs and wok-fried stuff like nasi goreng, mie goreng, kwetiau goreng, and not to mention, any kind of stir-fried Italian pasta.
After all, for many food lovers, if it’s hearty then let’s just put it in our belly!
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Featured in THE FOODIE MAGAZINE March 2014 edition
Download it for free here via SCOOP!
Photos by: Dennie Benedict
