BY SITI NURAIN RATANI
JAKARTA: In a word, unique. That is how one would describe ‘Warung Kerek’, a roadside stall separated by a river at Jalan Gatot Subroto, South Jakarta here.
One orders food or drink by shouting to the shopkeeper across the river and in turn, the order is delivered in a bucket connected by a string to the customer. The customer then pays the shop by leaving money in the same bucket.
That was media practitioners from the Malaysia-Indonesia Setiakawan Association (ISWAMI) witnessed during their visit to the unique shop to buy food.
“Sir, (we want to) buy one iced tea water (one cold tea water),” shouted the media practitioner across from the stall on the street.
The seller then rushed to serve the buyer by shouting again to tell the price of the food ordered before it was finally made and placed in the blue bucket.
To pull this bucket to the other side, the seller uses a nylon rope because the distance between the buyer and the seller is separated by a river that is about 100 meters wide.
Even though the way of communicating is a bit far away with the buyer, the shop still has customers every day, especially at lunchtime due to its strategic location.
On pricing, the food or drink sold at the stall is affordable with a menu of rice, side dishes, coffee and cold drinks.
The uniqueness of the business has made the stall a public attraction and can be an inspiration for Malaysians to start their own businesses.
