JOGJA'S TRADITIONAL & MODERN FOODS

Sweet & chilli cuisine

It's not a big secret to Indonesian people that Yogyakarta people adore sweet foods. The local dish known as gudeg, for example, is distinctively sweet in flavor. Local snacks, such as bakpia dan yangko, are extremely sweet. However, not every local dish is sweet. Krecek—the orengeish fried beef often served with gudeg—is poignantly hot for untrained tongue. Lodeh made by the locals, even though often referred as 'too sweet' by non Jogja, still has a hint of the fiery chilli taste. Its a good idea to ask the food vendor whether the dish is hot or not. For those who are just curious, simply ask them to omit the chilli from the dish and serve it separately. This way you can still taste the original flavour of the dish, but if you can't handle the chilli flavor you can simply not adding the chilli into your meal!

Originally, Yogyakarta dishes are known for its sweetness. However, as more and more people move to Yogya, this small city starts seeing more diversity in flavor. Now you can find many kind of interesting dishes, ranging from sweet, spicy, to fiery, sometimes a fusion from other cuisine such as Chinese or Western.

Local delicacies

The following dishes should be on every traveller's agenda:

Gudeg, a curry of jackfruit, chicken and egg served with rice, and is the most famous local dish. Goopy slop in various shades of brown, the stuff does not look particularly appetizing, but it can be tasty if done right. There many gudeg restaurants, but the most popular are: Gudeg Wijilan, Gudeg Juminten, Gudeg Bu Tjitro, Gudeg Tugu, Gudeg Bu Amat. If you can wake up early in the morning, you may find small stalls serving Gudeg just at the corner of the street, or close to traditional markets.

Ayam Goreng Mbok Berek (Mbok Berek's Fried Chicken). Fried free range chicken with mild garlic and coriander flavor served with crunchy crackers.

Nasi Langgi (Langgi Rice). Warm rice served with various side dishes. Can be found in small stall in Gandekan street.

Kipo, bite size snacks made of green colored tapioca dough filled with sweetened grated coconut. Can be found in Kotagede.

Bakpia, another bite size snack made from sweetened greenbean paste wrapped with thin dough pastry. The most popular bakpia is known as Bakpia Patuk, which not surprisingly, are sold in Patuk street.

Jadah Tempe, sandwich of rice cake and sweet beancake. Can be found in Kaliurang.

Budget

Yogyakarta is heaven of inexpensive foods, and some tasty and filling dishes can be as low as 25 US cents. However, since there are hundreds, if not thousands hawker stalls offering inexpensive foods, some of them are not delicious. For a start, head to well known food stalls such as:

Angkringan Tugu, hawker stall located close to the Tugu Station serving small rice packs (known as sego kucing) and various other foods, 6PM-4AM. The most popular beverages is kopi joss, Javanese espresso dipped with burning coal. Very inexpensive. Rp 1000-Rp 6000.
Empek-Empek Kamto, Jl. Beskalan 3 Yogyakarta, Phone: +62 274 514294, opposite to Ramai Shopping Mall's south entrance. Originated from Palembang, deep-fried fish cake and served with sour soy sauce. There are many variety of empek-empek: kapal selam (means submarine) comes with boiled eggs inside, adaaan/bulat has a garlic taste, while lenggang is an empek-empek omelet.
Gudeg Tugu, Jl. Diponegoro, close to Kranggan marketplace, 7PM-1AM. Popular Gudeg stall. A complete dish consists of: warm rice, shredded chicken, brown hard-boiled egg, gudeg, areh sauce, and the hot & spicy sambal goreng krecek. Rp 7000-Rp 10.000.
Bakmi Kadin, Jl. Bintaran Kulon 3, Yogyakarta. Javanese style soft-fried noodles. Don't miss the popular wedang bajigur, a local beverages made from warm coconut milk with subtle ginger flavor and garnished with diced coconut and kolang-kaling. Local kroncong street quartet often performs in the area. Rp 9000-Rp 15.000.
Sate Karang, Lapangan Karang, Kotagede, Yogyakarta. 5PM-10.30PM. Grilled beef satay served with lontongs (rice cake), peanut sauce and thin curry soup. Rp 15.000.
Soto Pak Soleh. Tegalrejo, near Diponegoro Museum. This well-known restaurant is Pak Soleh's family business and is now ran by his son. They only serve Yogyakarta-style beef soup as their main menu, which has a spicy taste from the added ginger. Rp 5000.
Spesial Sambal. A local chain for those who like spicy, hot food. Their speciality, as the name suggests, is their various kind of sambal (sambal is a kind of hot relish). Rp 5000-Rp 12,000.
Waroeng Steak. A local restaurant chain. Their speciality is batter-fried beef steak served with thick gravy. Rp 6000-Rp15,000.

Mid-range

Ayam Goreng Suharti, Jl. Laksda Adisucipto 208, Yogyakarta. Phone: +62 274 515522. A very popular mbok berek fried chicken restaurant, the recipe still remains a secret.
Dixie Easy Dining or simply Dixie, Jl. Gejayan 40b (south Selokan Mataram), Phone: +62 274 560745. Offers various kind western and asian dishes served with distinct modern-asian style. Nice modern-ethnical interior. Rp 8000-Rp 50,000.
Gudeg Wijilan Yu Djum, Jl Wijilan 31, Kraton and Jl. Kaliurang km 4.5, Karangasem CT III/22, Yogyakarta 55281, Telp (0274) 515968. A more lavish variety of Gudeg, served with thicker sauce, and more expensive as well.
Seafood Bu Tutik, Monumen Jogja Kembali, Northern Ring Road. Offers various kind of seafood dishes.

Splurge

Yogya is filled with many 'high-end' restaurants serving many kind of dishes, from western to asian to asian-fusion cuisines.

Gabah Resto, Jl. Dewi Sartika 11A Sagan, Phone: +62 274 515626. Western dishes. Modern classy decoration.

Gajah Wong, Jalan Gejayan, Phone +62 274 588294, [10]. Serves many kind of dishes including French, Italian, Indian, Chinese as well as Indonesian. Divided into 3 zones: Country, Javanese and Colonial, each is lavishly decorated and themed with live music. In the Javanese zone, you can hear the Javanese gamelan music performed throughout the night, while the Colonial zone has a live jazz band.

Omah Dhuwur, Kotagede. Western dishes.

Sobo Pakulaman, Jl. Sultan Agung 46, Yogyakarta 55111, Phone: +62 274 388855.

Rempah, Jl. Palagan Tentara Pelajar km 8, Yogyakarta (300m north of Hyatt Regency Hotel), Phone/Fax: +62 274 884777

Drink

Clubs

Embassy, Sheraton Mustika Resort and Spa complex, Jl. Laksda. Adisucipto km 8.7 Yogyakarta, Indonesia 55282 (behind Hugo's). Phone: +62 0274 487241. 10PM-3AM. Nightclub franchise from Jakarta.

Hugo's, Sheraton Mustika Resort and Spa complex, Jl. Laksda. Adisucipto km8.7 Yogyakarta, Indonesia 55282. Phone: +62 0274 487241. 10PM-3AM. Stylish yet funky club with wild and friendly servers. Popular among the youths and expatriates. Be sure to watch the 12AM ritual performed by the bartenders and servers. Offers live music and DJ's.

The Jetset's (TJ's), Graha Royal, Jl. Urip Sumoharjo 139A, Phone +62 0274 544229. 10PM-3AM. Funky and popular among the youths. Offers DJ's and live Music.