Eating out in Surabaya should be a great opportunity to tickle the taste buds with cuisine unique to this area. You will find staple East Java dishes and also restaurants serving Chinese, Western and speciality fare. All Surabaya hotels catering to tourists also serve European cuisine.
The Rujak Cingur is a must-have spicy salad in Surabaya. The eclectic flavours comprise a heady mix of sweet, briny and fresh.
As there is great variety in the food and cuisine across Indonesia you might like to check out what other delicacies the country has to offer by visiting our Indonesia restaurants guide. You may also be interested in the motley mix of sales and wares in the shops in Surabaya.
Food & Cuisine in Surabaya
Surabaya restaurants
Variety is the spice of East Java cuisine. How food is prepared and presented differs from island to island and region to region. Staple dishes served across East Java and Madura - like the nasi goreng (fried rice), pecel (vegetable salad with peanut sauce), sate (pronounced satay), soto, gule (pronounced gulay) etc - are served with side dishes of meat, eggs, fish and vegetables.
But a little more about the local Surabaya food and cuisine. You have semanggi (clover leaves) and rujak (spicy salad), both of which use petis (prawn sauce) for flavour. These taste best when served with crispy crackers. The flavour is unique and typical of this region.
Surabaya restaurants also serve up Indonesian and Chinese cuisine, exotic seafood, and a variety of soups such as the diced beef soup. The colour of this particular soup is an interesting dark tone, courtesy the special seasoning called 'keluwak'. It's served with steamed rice, chilli sauce and fried tofu or tempe, salty-boiled egg and shrimp crackers.
Local Surabaya food and cuisine
Semanggi
Two vegetables, the clover leaf and the stewed sprout, presented with its flavour mixture petis make up the dish. Other ingredients include peanuts, brown sugar, sweet potatoes and crisp puli crackers.
Rujak Cingur
This spicy salad is a must-have in Surabaya. The eclectic flavour comes from mixing diverse ingredients such as raw banana slices, roasted peanut, onion fry, demerara, and typical petis (prawn sauce). The flavours comprise a heady mix of sweet, briny and fresh. Typical vegetables and fruit used include young mangos, cucumbers, pineapples, bengkoang and kedondong. Add to this lontong, bendoyo, tofu, tempe, or krai. Sometimes, vegetables such as kangkung, sprout, and string bean and the unique cingur (beef) are thrown in. Some places serve rujak on a banana leaf (pincuk).
The Delicious Pecel Jawara
Though pecel (traditional Javanese rice served with a topping of vegetables and peanut sauce) goes by the same name in many paces, in reality it is very diverse. The madiun, nganjuk, pecelblitar, kediriand ponorogoare variations of the same dish. The difference lies in the choice and flavour of the vegetables, and how they are presented. A mix of steamed vegetables and fresh lalapan (veggies you can directly eat) are used.
Sate Kelopo
This version of satay is served with a twist - a dash of coconut rasp is scattered on the steak. So you have a fresh aroma and a crispy texture as compared to goat or chicken satay.
Lontong Balap Surabaya
Some deem this the city's original food i.e. besides rujakcingur and semanggisuroboyo. It comprises slices of longtong (steamed rice topped with banana leaves), served up with lentho, soya sauce, fried onion, chilli sauce, bean sprouts soup and fried tahu (soya block).
Lentho is made of rice peanut (called tholo), which is added to flour, koempheria galanga, orange purut, leaf onion and salt. Some folks consider the dish incomplete sans the cockle satay. You could choose to have it alongside the special Surabaya eel. You can also opt for fresh fish, crab or other seafood at the local Surabaya restaurants.
Restaurants List
369 SHANGHAI DUMPLING & NOODLE
A restaurant with Shanghai cuisine always uses noodles as the main raw material and pork as a complement. 369 provides a variety of delicious menu choices to eat together with family. Menu favourites are the fried rice and soup Shanghai (health soup). The restaurant is located next to the Horse statue pharmacy and Puri Matahari.
Swekiau & Mie
Jl. HR. Muhammad Ruko Permata Mayjend Sungkono II
Surabaya Barat/Sawahan
031 7343136
10:00
to to 23:00
AFTER 5 CAFE
Chef salad is a special appetizer in After 5. It consists of lettuce, tomato, cucumber, egg and fried shrimp. It costs about Rp13.000 for 1 serving of salad. After 5 has a unique interior concept with a gazebo. The location has a relaxing outdoor concept.
Open Monday - Friday at 18:00 to 00:00, Saturday - Sunday at 18.00-02.00.
Gwalk location is known as a culinary tour, especially at night, as many food vendors offer a wide choice of foods for many young people who often come to this area, especially on weekends.
Western Food
Jl. GWalk Sebelah Agojas Citraraya
Surabaya Barat/Lakarsantri
031 7408647
08:00
AMORE
Amore is a special place that sells gelato. Here there are various kinds of gelato such as fruit, biscuits and chocolate cake. One of the most popular flavours is the Ferrero Rocher made from authentic Italian chocolate.
Open Sunday - Friday at 12:00 to 00:00, Saturday 12:00 - 01.00.
Visitors are allowed free tastes of the ice cream before making their choice.
Bu Cokro first opened in 2006. Ayam Goreng Bu Cokro was the only shop that used the family name of Bu Cokro as its brand. They only have one branch which is located after the laboratory Eterna Medica Dharmahusada Surabaya.
This restaurant is popularly known as Ayam Goreng Cianjur Dharma, and its Sunda Restaurant is known for grilled fish menu. The fried chicken menu is also good to try. Parking here can get tight so it would be best to come early. The location is 500 meters east of the commercial complex of Ruko 21 Surabaya.
Ayam Goreng Jakarta or Jakarta Fried Chicken is known for tasty and crispy chicken. This restaurant also serves rice boxed orders and has a free delivery service. Valet parking is available but limited.
Fried Chicken
Jl. HR. Muhammad No. 39
Surabaya Barat/Sambikerep
031 7314086, 7319406
Baik Su
This Korean restaurant is located in the shopping complex Mayjend Sungkono Darmo Park. Korean influence is apparent in its cuisine starting from the dining, the seats, all the way to the ambience and especially the menus. Spices and ingredients are directly imported from Korea with a choice of meat from the USA.
Popular items on the menu include: jek Seok Wangkalbi Sut, Bul Gui, Sang Jang Oe Sut Bul Gui, Bi Bim Chapter, Soon Du Bu and Chu Ko Jab Chae. It is important to note that visitors should not arrive at 15:00 as they take a rest.
Korean Food
Jl. Mayjend Sungkono Pert. Darmo Park I Blok IVC N
Surabaya Barat/Sawahan
031 7313365
11:00
to to 22:00
Banana King
It is located just opposite Papaya Supermarket and provides a variety of Western Food menus. The location is also adjacent to the Bon Ami and close to the Master Cooking.
Cafe & Western Food
Jl. Raya Darmo Permai Ruko Sentra Darmo Villa A1
Surabaya Barat/Sambikerep
031 7325428
Banana Leaf
Due to popularity, this restaurant is always crowded with visitors, and even parking is hard. Their mainstay on their menu is Gembos Crab and grilled fish. The price discounts offered by various banks are always present. Supported by a modern and comfortable atmosphere and a heightened taste of their cooking, this restaurant also serves a variety of orders for events, birthdays, meetings, and others.
Black Canyon is one of the leading coffee houses that came from Thailand. It was built in early 2002 in Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia. Exclusive restaurant that serves Thai cuisine is very classy and visited by many middle- upper- classes. Typical Thai greeting "Sawadee Khrap!" will greet you when you first enter the restaurant.
There are various Thai and Western menus to choose such as Pad Thai Kung, American Fried Rice, and Deep-fried Chicken. Feel the freshness of drinks such as Black Canyon Iced Coffee, Iced Tea Lemon Frost, Black Coffee Crunch, and others!
Western Food
Jl. Telaga Utama D1 No. 31-32 Citraraya
Surabaya Barat/Lakarsantri
031 7419375
031 7419249
Boncafe Steak & Ice Cream
Steak & Ice Cream is the oldest and most famous restaurant in Surabaya. The restaurant's menu offers Sirloin Steak, Galantin which is chicken wrapped with egg, Spring Chicken and Steak Gamen made of pork and delicious ice cream for dessert.
Although for the moment there are quite a lot of restaurants that offer a similar menu, the steak from the restaurant Steak & Ice Cream is still uncomparable. The location is exactly 100 meters north (the right path) from Bonet Supermarkets Manyar Kertoarjo Surabaya. If you like this restaurant, you might want to try Calvados.
Steak
Jl. Manyar Kertoarjo V No. 15
Surabaya Timur/Sukolilo
031 5941611, 5946921
Bumbu Jawa
This restaurant provides a variety of special Indonesian menus, and the unique visitors can opt to design their own food menus buffet-style. The most popular dish of this place is their tasty spicy onion. Land parking is not hard, except for those busy lunch hours. Other alternatives are Bumbu Desa, Bumbu Sunda, and Dapur Desa.
Indonesian Food
Jl. Sulawesi No. 34
Surabaya Timur/Gubeng
031 5048858
Bumbu Sunda
Bumbu Sunda restaurant serves various Sundanese cuisines such as nila fish and dorang fish cooked with spices sauce. Inadequate parking space often causes traffic. The restaurant is located at the corner junction in the road toward the front of the Sriwijaya St. churches and St. Louis schools. Other alternatives are Bumbu Jawa, Dapur Desa, and Bumbu Desa.
Calvados restaurant has been around for a long time in Surabaya. The menu of this restaurant includes Chicken Teriyaki, Chicken Cordon Blue, Aneka Steak and Barbeque menu. The restaurant is located close to Galaxy Mall. Another alternative is Boncafe.
Western Food, Indonesian Food
Jl. Kertajaya Indah No. 102
Surabaya Timur/Gubeng
031 5946200
Charcoal Steak Grill Angus House
Located in the same building as the Mobile Shopping Center (WTC) in Surabaya, Angus House Steak is a restaurant with steak as its specialty. The price can be a little expensive but taste can't be compared with any other restaurants in Surabaya. The location is 100 meters north (left side of the road) of the car park and next to Surabaya Plaza (DELTA).
Steak
Jl. Pemuda No. 26-31
Surabaya Timur/Genteng
031 5319318
Chong Ho
Chong Ho restaurant is located right next to Boncafe and near Hotel Somerset. It provides a variety of Chinese dishes and Japanese with the Red Porridge favorite menus from Japan and Kuan Ramen noodles from China.
Chinese & Japanese Food
Jl. Raya Kupang Indah No. 1
Surabaya Barat/Sawahan
031 7314526
08:00
Cocari
The restaurant offers unlimited food and drink packages (All-You-can-Eat) with a relatively cheap price. Food processing is done by the visitors themselves either fried or boiled.
Raw foods include meat previously been treated with a special way and has been cut thin, but there are also beef tongue, roulade, sausage, shrimp, and others. As for the drinks available is either soft drinks or fruit juice. Dessert is salad, pudding, and ice cream.
Buffet
Jl. Indragiri No. 20
Surabaya Barat/Sawahan
031 5677379
D'cost
This is a 5-star restaurant with affordable prices with a range of cuisine from Indonesian to Chinese, including a special seafood menu. It is located near campus PTC and UNESA. Opening hours starts from 11:00 to 15:00 and nighttime at 18:00-22:00. It is worth a try and always crowded with visitors.
Sea Food
Jl. Middele Ring Road Graha Family, Surabaya ( Dep
Surabaya Barat/Sambikerep
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