Jakarta! A culturally rich city that is full of splendor and pomp, which will leave anyone in awe at the hospitality and goodwill of its citizens. If you need a reason to visit here, then food would be a great one!! The streets here are laden with loads of fingerlickin' and lip-smacking good food, making any tourist or visitor return for more! The staple food of Indonesians being rice, you will get a variety of dishes with the Rice being the soul of it. In a typical Indonesian family, the platter showcases a large dish with rice at the centre surrounded by a spicy vegetable mix and variations of meat and seafood cooked with authentic Indonesian spices. Indonesia being home to a large Muslim community, and many places serve the ‘Halal’ form of meat and restrict pork dishes as it is banned to eat as per the Muslim religious rules. However, some areas of Indonesia do serve non-Halal meat and pork as well.
Here's a list of the must-try dishes of the food of Jakarta.
1. Nasi Goreng (Indonesian Fried Rice)
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The national dish of Indonesia is bound to be sold on every “Warung” – the street stalls or the “Rumah Makan” – the restaurants of Jakarta. It has everything in it. This wholesome dish serves fried rice in combination with chicken meat, boiled eggs slices, shrimp, lamb, and crabs, diced vegetables like carrots, bell peppers, stink beans, tomatoes, shallots, ginger, and garlic, and flavored with rich spices and sauces like soy sauce, chilly red sauce or the traditional “kecap”. It is garnished with egg or tomato slices, a dash of lemon juice, and crispy Indonesian snacks called Krupuk crackers.
Where to find: Republic nasi goreng, Kec. Mampang Prpt. (opens 10:00 AM to 12: 00AM) Approximate cost: IDR 15,000 - IDR 37,000
2. Satay
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Chicken is one of the most versatile meats on the planet, and satay is an almost emblematic food of Jakarta and Indonesia. Satay is a dish where chicken marinated with sweet soy sauce is put on skewers and barbequed until it is grilled to perfection. It is served with peanut sauce topped with garlic flakes and serves as a good appetizer. The satays are made normally from meat, but beef, chicken, lamb, turtle meat, fish, and pork are also used for their different variations. Try these saucy-dipped skewers garnished with fried crispy onions, and you will never forget Indonesia for such a delightful treat. The secret of this flavorful taste is the typical Indonesian style of grilling Satay over the burning charcoals.
Where to find: Sate Padang Ajo Ramon, Kota Jakarta Selatan (opens 11:00 AM to 12:00 AM) Approximate cost: IDR 20,000
3. Bubur Ayam (Chicken Congee)
This is the epitome of all porridges on the face of this earth! It is a porridge loaded with fried crackers, fried soybeans, tofu, and finely shredded chicken. Adding chicken broth takes it to a new level in terms of flavor. Talk about an insatiable appetite!
Where to find: Bubur ayam barito, Kota Jakarta Selatan (opens 4:30 PM to 11:30 PM) Approximate cost: IDR 10,000
4. Martabak (Stuffed Pancake)
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Martabak is the Indonesian version of a pancake stuffed with tons of toppings like Toblerone, peanuts, Nutella, chocolate sprinkles, butter, cheese, and condensed milk. The pancake is folded in half and cut through evenly such that the toppings remain in the middle, causing the flavors to explode and leaving you in a state of contentment, making you savor every bite of this dessert. This food in Jakarta was originally brought around by the immigrant Muslim population from the Indian subcontinent and has taken over the food scene in Indonesia by storm.
Where to find: Martabak boss, Wahid hasyim street (opens 11:00 AM to 10:30 PM) Approximate cost: IDR 130,000
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This is the ultimate food of Jakarta which one has to try when they go to Jakarta and is a culinary experience not-to-be-missed! Different vegetables, like Peppers, Onions, etc., are cooked in sweet coconut milk to prepare varieties of curries. Different Indonesian herbs and spices are also added to give each curry a unique and yummylicious taste. It is a good combination of rice and flavorful curries to be eaten together. An assortment of around 14 to 16 dishes is kept, and you only pay for what you eat!
Where to find: Rumah Makan Sederhana, Melawai (opens 9:00 AM to 10:00 PM) Approximate cost: IDR 400,000 - IDR 600,000
6. Ikan Bakar (Barbecued Fish)
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This loosely translates to grilled fish in English. You select a fish of your choice, then it is marinated with turmeric, chili, and garlic sauces, among other seasonings. It is then smoked with charcoal to make the fish gain a charred taste. The meat is tender and succulent, causing it to melt in your mouth. It is usually served with sambal.
Where to find: Ikan babar cianjur, Cipete (opens 11:00 AM to 10:00 PM) Approximate cost: IDR 220,000
7. Ketoprak (Vermicelli Tofu Salad)
Food in Indonesia is decadent, rich, and always filling, and Ketoprak is a great example of this. This dish comprises rice balls, tofu, vegetables, and rice noodles to which an omelet or boiled egg is added. It is topped with fried crackers, peanut,s and soy sauce.
Where to find: Ketoprak Ciragil, Kebayoran Baru (opens 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM); Glodok-go to the intersection of Jalan Pancoran and Jalan Kemenangan, a food market is there where you can find amazing Ketoprak(opens 9:00 AM to 10:00 PM) Approximate cost: IDR 20,000
8. Beef Ribs
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This scrumptious food of Jakarta works wonders as an appetizer. Massive chunks of beef holding onto the ribs are grilled to perfection and served with a rich, creamy peanut sauce and beef broth. The meat is tender and falls right off the bone. Rice can also be had with it as a supplement.
Where to find: Sop Konro Karebosi Kelapa Gading, Kota Jkt Utara (opens 10:00 AM to 10:00 PM) Approximate cost: IDR 60,000
9. Mud Crabs
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Several variations of mud crabs, such as smoked mud crabs, salted egg crabs, and chili crabs, are available in Jakarta. The smoked mud crab is first fried in onion, ginger, egg, different sauces, and coconut milk. It's wrapped in banana leaves and smoked to infuse the charred taste into the crab. Truly, a mouthwatering dish!
Where to find: Wiro Sableng, Kelapa Gading (opens 10:30 AM to 9:00 PM) Approximate cost: IDR 3,00,000
10. Mie Ayam (Indonesian Ramen)
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In need of a different breakfast option? This is chicken noodles tossed in with loads of other vegetables, garlic, chili, and peanut sauces. This is a specialty of the locals and something that you should definitely look out for.
Where to find: Jalan Pluit Karang Timur Blok, Penjaringan (opens 6:30 AM to 9:00 PM) Approximate cost: IDR 40,000
11. Bakso (Indonesian Meatball Soup)
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Bakso translates to meatballs. It can be served with egg noodles, flat noodles, or vermicelli. Vegetables are tossed in to make it better. Then a broth is added, making it a fragrant mix of both noodles and soup. It is sometimes served inside a coconut and topped with other sauces for visual appeal.
Where to find: Bakso Kelapa Muda, Banten (opens 9:00 AM to 9:00 PM) Approximate cost: IDR 13,000
12. Bihun Bebek
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This dish comprises noodles with various spices, greens, chunks of tender duck meat, and duck broth. The broth can be added as per your wish to noodles. It’s available in three different portions: small, medium, and large. Feel free to top it with fried crackers.
Where to find: Dua Nyonya, Kota Jakarta pusat (opens 7:00 AM to 2 :00 AM) Approximate cost: IDR 90,000
13. Telor (Indonesian Egg Sambal)
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This is a signature food of Indonesians. This can be made from 2 or more eggs. Minced meat and various spices are tossed in and mixed thoroughly with the eggs. The mixture is poured out as a filling into a crepe. This is then folded, closed, and deep-fried. It is topped with crushed peanuts and then served.
Where to find: Kota Jakarta pusat (opens 10:00 AM to 11:00 PM) Approximate cost: IDR 50,000
14. Nasi Lemak (Rice with Coconut Milk)
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One dish that is bound to catch your eye is this! It's found throughout Indonesia and is a staple food of Jakarta's locals. The rice is cooked in coconut milk and served with various curries, and topped off with fried crackers. Oh and yes! It's traditionally served on a banana leaf.
Where to find: Penang Bistro, Kota Jakarta Pusat (opens 11:00 AM to 10:00 PM) Approximate cost: IDR 16,000
15. Kuay Teow (Noodle Stir Fry)
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Are you someone that likes to eat large portions of food and stuff yourself to a point where you tap out? Then Kuay Teow sounds like your dish! It's got rice noodles, rice cake, shrimp, duck egg and sausage. Speak of a hunger savior!
Where to find: Flow Jakarta, Kota Jakarta Selatan (opens 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM) Approximate cost: IDR 25,000
16. Pisang Goreng (Fried Banana)
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These are fried banana fritters. They serve as a great snack and something to munch on when you want something light. They are quite sweet and are worth the price. Slices of bananas are dipped into a batter made from flour, eggs, salt, and sugar. These are then fried until they gain a golden brown color and are usually accompanied by Nutella, chocolate, and other sweet toppings.
Where to find: Pisang goreng madu bu nanik, Tanjung duren raya (opens 9:00 AM to 9:00 PM) Approximate cost: IDR 5,000
17. Sop Buah (Iced Fruit Cocktail Dessert)
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Mmmm, another dessert on the list! This one's loaded with a bunch of fruits, jelly, coconut milk, and cherries. Fruits added are red dragon fruit, apples, muskmelon, avocado, and berries. Grated coconut is added too. The base syrup used is a mixture of coconut syrup and condensed milk. It's usually had on a special occasion.
Where to find: Es Buah Segar Pak Daud, Kota Jakarta Barat (opens 8:00 AM to 9:30 PM) Approximate cost: IDR 15,000
18. Fried Breadfruit
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Breadfruit is an offshoot of a jackfruit. Fried breadfruit is considered a delicacy amongst the food of Jakarta. It is cut into sizable amounts and fried to a golden brown color without batter coating it. Usually, it’s fried to a point between crispy and soft enough to dig in. It's starchy and quite filling. Best for a quick, light snack.
Where to find: Can be found in any marketplace Approximate cost: IDR 2,000
19. Cincua
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Considered as a light snack, Cincua is a jelly that tastes leafy and is added with crushed ice and brown sugar syrup. The ice gradually melts, making the drink somewhat slurry and can be downed in one gulp. A great option to beat the heat!
Where to find: Cincua hijau serat, Penjaringan (opens 9:00 AM to 9:00PM) Approximate cost: IDR 8,000
20. Jus Alpukat (Indonesian Avocado Coffee Shake)
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Also known as avocado juice, this drink in Jakarta is a healthier option if you ever need a nice cool drink. Avocados have got several health benefits and are a great source of fats. They are quite popular in Jakarta and are consumed regularly. Avocado pulp is extracted from the fruit and is diluted with milk. It's usually served with chocolate syrup and coffee powder. It definitely makes you long for more!
Where to find: Can be found in any marketplace Approximate cost: IDR 6,000
21. Sekoteng (Indonesian Ginger Drink)
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Everyone loves a nice hot bowl of soup. This soothing food of Jakarta is made from barley, beans, bread, corn, and pomegranate. The base used here is ginger water, along with cloves, cinnamon, and fennel. It’s boiled, post which green beans, bread, corn, and pomegranate are added.
Where to find: Saung Bandung Wedang, Kota Jakarta Barat (opens 5:00 PM to 10:00 PM) Approximate cost: IDR 10,000
22. Spaghetti Ice Cream
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When it's time to cool down your taste buds, what better than ice cream? How about homemade ice cream?! A scoop of your choice is fed through a spaghetti look-alike machine which makes the ice cream looks like spaghetti. This is topped with chocolate, peanuts, jelly beans and crushed candies.
Where to find: Ragusa Italian ice cream, Kota Jakarta Pusat (opens 10:00 AM to 10:00 PM) Approximate cost: IDR 35,000
23. Chicken Feet Soup
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Chicken feet are boiled in a broth till it becomes tender and imparts flavor to the broth. This also serves as soup. Whatever meat is on the bone can be yanked off with a hard tug and savored along with the broth.
Where to find: Can be found in any marketplace Approximate cost: IDR 9,000 - IDR 12,000
24. Popiah (Fresh Spring Rolls)
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Craving for a roll? We’ve got you covered! Popiah is a roll made from rice flour and stuffed with a filling of greens, carrots, sauces, pork and crab meat. It’s something that you can turn to for a light snack.
Where to find: Namaaz dining, Kota Jakarta Selatan (opens 7:00 AM to 11:00 PM) Approximate cost: IDR 16,000
These are the creative green edible packets filled with nutrition and flavorful taste. It includes assorted fish, meat, and tofu, all marinated and cooked with natural herbs and authentic homeland spices and tightly packed in banana leaves to make a packet. It is also accompanied by fried vegetables like Shallots, Garlic, Lemon basil, Ginger, and Chilies. These are then grilled over charcoal or steam cooked to serve them in their natural form, retaining the essence and flavor of the banana leaf into the meat and vegetables inside. This dish belongs to Sundanese cuisine.
Indonesia being home to flavorful non-vegetarian and seafood dishes from various provincial segments, Jakarta is a one-stop place that will offer you the opportunity to taste all these in one single town. One such Bali origin dish is the Bebek Goreng, or the fried duck. The small baby ducks are stuffed and marinated with garlic puree and then fried to give you the perfect combination of crispy layer and chewy juicy flesh. This can be served with rice cooked in coconut milk along with the Sambal dip. One such dish can cost you around 28,000 IDR in Jakarta.
Whatever you eat, Sambal will accompany you. It is the typical Indonesian sauce made of chilies and some special herbs and spices. There are many varieties of sambal sauces that will add a great taste and flavor to any dish you eat. Some unique traditional recipes from some royal ancestral families in Indonesia possess a rich, authentic taste of Sambal preserved from old times.
A pure Jakartan dish is a soup made with beef. The dish has boiled beef flavored with spices like Indonesian bay leaf, lemon grass, candlenut, garlic, and shallots. Once cooked, it is served with either cow’s milk or coconut milk to give it a rich, creamy texture. This will make your stomach full when eaten with rice. Being a healthy and balanced dish on the level of spiciness, Soto Betawi must be tried by those who can not afford to eat hot spicy food. Among the dishes that arrived from the surrounding provinces of Jakarta, Soto Betawi is the one that was born and brought up in Jakartan streets.
29. Gado Gado (Indonesian Salad with Peanut Sauce)
A delicious snack widely sold at every corner of Jakarta, Gado Gado is a pleasure to eat at mobile stalls. This dish combines the creamy peanut sauce smeared all over the soft-cooked rice cakes and healthy green salad vegetables topped with crispy rice wafers. This dish is honored with the label of National dish of Indonesia.
The simple yet healthy and sober flavored rice cooked in coconut milk with a dash of a few herbs will enhance the natural taste of rice. This dish will definitely be a lifesaver when your taste buds will be burning with the hot and spicy dishes of Jakarta. So you can always order Nasi Udak to accompany other curries and seafood dishes to balance the sweet and spicy diet. Of course, you can top it up with the Sambal sauce.
The original Indonesian spicy meat dish from the lands of Minangkabau people in Western Sumatra was voted the number 1 dish in the list of “World’s 50 most delicious food”. The official national dish of the country can be found in any Padang restaurant in Jakarta, and you must try it while you are here. Rendang is served during festivals like Ramzan Eid (Hari Raya in Indonesia) or social celebrations like weddings. A rich taste of the coconut can be felt at every chew as the meat is slow-cooked in coconut milk and tasty spices like ginger, garlic, galangal, lemongrass, turmeric leaves, shallots, and chilies. The slow cooking gives it the perfect texture and the deep sweet flavor of the coconut and hot spices. Enjoy this royal dish with a variety of rice. Other variations include replacing the meat with lamb, beef, or goat meat.
32. Kue Pancong (Coconut Cake)
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Mobile vendors sell a traditional Betawi cake that can be found in Jakarta on every street and road for a few Indonesian Rupiahs. There is a coconut cake made of rice flour and prepared in half-circle shaped. It is decorated with desiccated coconut and served to satisfy your sweet tooth on Jakartan streets.
Apart from all these foods, you can always have Chinese platters like Noodles and steamed Momos, European-inspired sweet delicacies like Cotton Candies and flavor dipped Marshmallows or the Indian-inspired Biryani’s variety of versions. So while in Jakarta, you will always fall short of time while exploring the ‘Food World’. But if there is one word to describe the Food in Jakarta, it would be “Spicy”.
