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| - To be honest I found Little Sister to be somewhat disappointing. I'm not particularly a fan of Tapas, mostly because a tapas bar ends up having portions which are far too small and far too much for a normal meal and this is no different at Little Sister. Small portions and expensive prices don't do justice, I feel, to authentic Indonesian food which is traditionally served in far larger portions (and with rice). Expect to spend around $25 dollars for a meal, an amount which I find too uncomfortable for my limited budget under normal circumstances.
Little Sister is styled as a small tapas bar more than a sit down restaurant and small parties are seated at a shared table. The menu itself was lacking many of my more liked Indonesian dishes I'm fond of at home like bakmi, rawon, or soto ayam but the dishes it did have I think are fairly good. The food itself tends towards Balinese cooking more than the East Java cooking I'm familiar with from home so I did find the satay lilit, a Balinese satay, (a minced meat skewer) a bit odd for my liking. I did find that the meat itself was well spiced. The satay does, however show off the small portions present at Little Sister with only 3 skewers for 6 dollars, and I don't quite think the skewers were worth $2 each.
I also tried Urab, a traditional Balinese salad made of steamed vegetables and coconuts. I thoroughly enjoyed the salad though it was a bit more western than would have been obtained in Indonesia with it's very small proportion of coconuts. However, this variation is far less the fusion on the menu that was rendang taco. The taste itself reminded my greatly of Indonesian food I've had before with it's use of bawang orgeng (fried red onion) and chili.
I was disappointed with the main dish I ordered, the pictured ayam pangang (grilled chicken). Like everything else in this restaurant, the food was plated beautifully, in this case on a bed of pickled vegetables which had pleasant pungency lent to it by chilli peppers. The darkness of the restaurant at night takes away a bit from the beauty of the food, however. I suppose it's not a fair criticism but I feel as if my mother's version of ayam pangang is more tasty (and cheaper) than the dish presented here. The chicken itself seemed to be fairly simple and a similar taste can probably be obtained by grilling chicken marinated in chilli peppers and kecap manis (sweet, thickened Indonesian soy sauce, an essential condiment in Indonesian cooking) but it did taste good.
Little Sister, as Toronto's only Indonesian food, I think is somewhat of a letdown. With a small menu, small portions, and expensive pricing, I had hoped for a more accessible introduction for friends to Indonesian cooking. To this end, the restaurant itself appeals less to Indonesians looking for a taste of home than to Toronto's foodies and tourists. The food was good and the quality of it is seen in the consistently busy and loud atmosphere of the establishment. Little Sister is, perhaps, a place you should try at least once to sample some of the cuisine of one of the most populated countries of the world, but it's certainly not a place to go to every day.
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