Blue Toba — Restaurant in Ashland

Maybe it's a bit excessive to say Blue Toba was a life changing experience - but I can say with certainty that all food I eat moving forward in life will be compared to the meal we had here. When I found myself in Ashland and saw the reviews for this place mentioning "Michelin Star" and raving about Chef B I thought "wow...seems a bit much but people seem to enjoy it and I've never tried Indonesian food and it seems like one of THE spots to eat down here so let's give it a go!". It made a great date night and I was surprised to see it all but empty on a Saturday night (maybe the winter storm in Norcal and the surrounding areas made Ashland relatively quiet for a February weekend?). The menu is simple at a glance - a few Indonesian offerings that were to the point in their ingredients but containing layers of complexity in the flavor that I did not anticipate. It is clear Chef B is a truly masterful Chef and has dedicated years of heart and soul into his cooking. Beef Rendang and the Mie Goreng seemed like two great dishes to try, and each was truly delicious - large servings that still left me wanting more because it was SO. GOOD. We tried two of the Indonesian spiced sodas, which were delicious. The atmosphere and seating felt very hip and relaxed, almost casual compared to what I believe is truly 5 star dining in the quality of ingredients and service. As others mentioned, it's a bit pricy but wow - I didn't question it for a minute and am glad I don't live in Ashland as I'd be bankrupt from trying every thing on this menu and revisiting frequently. Now I understand all the rave reviews and calls for a Michelin star that I was first incredulous about. Time to go try it for yourself! **Lean on the conservative side when asked how spicy you want it if you are sensitive to that stuff. I typically hang pretty well with spicy food but those Indonesian spice blends and the type of heat in the "medium spiced" Mie Goreng I got had me sweating through dinner because it was so flavorful I couldn't stop. The Beef Rendang was a perfect blend of heat with some sides to help take the edge off when your mouth needed a break...

My mother is Malaysian, and I was very excited to see an Indonesian restaurant in Ashland. I really wanted to like this restaurant and the reviews seemed promising. Unfortunately, I was disappointed by the overall lack of flavor in what we ordered.

We started with the Bakwan Jagung (corn fritters) for an appetizer. The fritters were fine, but the condiments they came with were watery and lacked flavor.

Our food also came with a homemade sambal (chili sauce) that lacked any flavor other than spiciness. There was no umami flavor that I want in a sambal, which comes from fermented shrimp paste, shallots, and garlic. Maybe this was meant to be a vegetarian-friendly sambal, but I would have liked a chili sauce that had a better balance of spicy, salty, and sour, rather than just straight heat from the chilies.

For the main course we ordered Ayam Bakar (grilled chicken) and Mie Goreng (noodles). The chicken was cooked well, but we could not taste any of the 10 spices it was supposedly marinated in. It was served with yellow rice and green beans cooked with spices. But we could not taste any of the spices in the green beans, either.

The noodles were the biggest disappointment. Mie Goreng is a stir-fried noodle dish that is meant to be both salty and sweet, with a bit of smokiness from the high heat of the stir-fry ("wok hei"). But the noodles we were served were overwhelmingly sweet with very little saltiness or savoriness, and no sign of any wok hei. In fact, the vegetables looked as if they had been steamed rather than stir-fried. We ended up mixing all of our sambal into the noodles to try to counter the sickly sweet taste of the noodles.

Overall, I was very disappointed with my experience at Blue Toba, and I will probably not eat...

We were planning for just a casual night out and a quick dinner. We were thinking Charm for Thai or Blue Toba and decided to walk down to town to give it a try. It had been on our list and we had heard good things from friends. I had always been drawn to the beautiful interior space as well. What was intended as a casual evening out ended up being almost a sacred dining experience. The interior is so stunning, and the decor really adds to the authenticity of what they're doing with the menu and presentation. The owner was so helpful in educating us about Indonesian food, which I had never tried myself… my partner was more familiar. She helped us understand the very intentional way the chef, her husband, takes in preparing the food for this restaurant every day. Just something as simple as the rice she says is more of a ceremonial style of preparation. That, and all of the food is organic and so many options for a vegetarian like myself. There is so much about this experience that resonated with me, and I felt so nourished by the food, the mellow vibe, the delicious, perfectly seasoned, and prepared food (which also interestingly satisfied my craving for Thai food that night) and the wonderful tea that I had. I felt like I had more of a cultural experience than just a simple meal. You can tell that this dining experience has been carefully created and is driven by pure love and passion. This is a rare and yet palpable energy, and I am so grateful that it exists here in little Ashland. We are going to recommend this to our friends and guests and will make it a regular dining spot for ourselves...