Being a beast at Naughty Nuri's Warung, Batu Belig, Bali

Once in a while we all have to make a beast of ourselves and indulge shamelessly in the boundless joy and satisfaction of ribs. I mean, let's face it, we all know our ancestors were once cavemen and I believe deep within us there is a lurking necessity to return to that basic law of existence - hands, meat, mouth! Why did we let it all become so complicated? Sometimes basics are the best. Admittedly we've managed to create marinades, sauces, dips and chilli to add a little modern day ingenuity to the concept but for me there will always be something so incredibly 'caveman' about ribs. When in Bali, where does just about everyone go for this back to basics experience? Naughty Nuri's, of course! I was quite fortunate in 1998 to be living in Ubud and to make the acquaintance of Nuri herself and teach her daughter at the local school where I was volunteering. Even then when there was just the one warung, still small at that time, it was just a cool place to hang out, especially for expats living in the area and Wednesday as I recall, was Martini Madness and everyone would congregate for a great dinner and catch up. Now Nuri's has grown and has branches in Batu Belig as well as Jakarta.  It's always busy. Especially at night when you will see queues of people waiting outside to get their carnivorous fill of bliss. To be honest, I don't look at the menu. There really is only one thing to order here and I'm never even going to be remotely interested in trying anything else! It's the ribs and then I like my accompaniment of sweet potato fries and porn corn (great name!). It is satisfaction on just about every level. Soft, succulent ribs with a slightly sweet but tangy marinade. Crisp sweet potatoes with a soft centre and corn on the cob already seasoned with a paprika rub. Oh heaven! I don't see the point of cutlery at all. Ribs, sweet potatoes and corn are all meant to be eaten with fingers so you can lick off any escaping goodness. Yes it brings out the beast in me...yes I feel like a stuffed pig after it all...yes I end up with sauce everywhere and a heap of napkins beside me to prove it. Truthfully, I don't care! Anyone casting disapproving glances in my direction as they daintily pick at their ribs with knife and fork are depriving their inner caveman or woman of their divine right to just bring things back to basics and remember where we all came from. Hail to the cavemen, I say and of course to Naughty Nuri's!

These really need no description!