Babat Gongso Pak Karmin

Pak Karmin started to open the stall since 1954. The specialty dishes in here are Nasi Goreng Babat (tripe fried rice) & Babat Gongso (tripe sautéed with sweet soy sauce, garlic & chili). It’s a second generation who run the business right now. They already have another branch at Jl. Gajah Mada & Telaga Mas area.

It’s better if you come here not at the lunch time. Long queue….I came here at 2 p.m. and the stall still crowded. Some of them queue for take away service.

This is my first visit. Because my tummy is half full, so I decided to try their Babat Gongso. A huge portion of beef tripe, intestines, lung and fried egg sautéed with sweet soy sauce came, and accompany with a plate of hot steamed rice. It’s taste sweet. You can ask them to add chili. If you are a spicy lover, you better ask the ‘very spicy’ level. Price 25 K. A glass of fresh orange juice can make your dish became extraordinary :)

Babat Gongso Pak Karmin

 

Jl. Pemuda

(near Mberok Bridge)

Semarang

Phone: (024) 3563334

 

Es Campur Gang Lombok

The hot weather really can kill me in this noon. I need something fresh. I feel like I wanna jump to a cold water pool and drink it….hufffttt….Suddenly I remember, that there’s a small stall at Gang Lombok that sell shaved ice. It became a legend at Semarang.

Can you enjoy your dish if you eat on the place like this? Haha….

As you can see, it’s so messy. Many items stacked on a table and benches. But I came here not to enjoy the view, but to try their famous shaved ice!

Their specialty is Es Campur. It’s contain of shredded of young coconut, pineapple, papaya, kolang kaling/buah atep (sugar palm) and manisan mangga (mango marinated in the sugar water). They added a special syrup on it, it taste so sweet, sour and fragrant. Very good! The price is quite expensive, 17 K, but it’s worth for a plate of enjoyment.

Es Campur Gang Lombok

 

Jl. Gang Lombok

Semarang

 

 

Mie Kopyok Pak Dhuwur

Another streetfood from Semarang is Mie Kopyok. The most famous in Semarang is Pak Dhuwur’s stall. It’s a simple place that occupied for 30-40 person.

A plate of noodle with fried tofu, beansprout, garlic soup and sprinkled it with celery and karak (rice crackers). It’s taste sweet. Well, maybe it’s too sweet for me. I didn’t really enjoy it. It will be nice if you added lime squeeze or vinegar. Price 8 K.

 

Mie Kopyok Pak Dhuwur

 

Jl. Tanjung

(across PLN office Jl Pemuda)

Semarang

Phone: 0856-41372758

 

 

Nasi Ayam Bu Surip

Nasi Ayam (chicken rice) is the icon dish at Semarang. Many vendors who sell Nasi Ayam. But the famous one is Bu Surip at Simpang Lima. They usually eat Nasi Ayam for breakfast. You have to come in the morning or it will run out.

This chicken rice is very different from Singapore or Chinese version. They use coconut milk spicy soup with shredded of squash (labu siam), slices of chicken meat, tofu & boiled egg.

It’s taste spicy, sweet & savory. Extremely delicious! If you like you can choose their skewer too, such as chicken intestines, liver, gizzard & young egg. It will be perfect if you combine it with the crunchiness of white crackers (krupuk putih/krupuk kampung). Two thumbs up!!!! Price 8 K.

 

Nasi Ayam Bu Surip

 

Simpang Lima (under the overpass)

Semarang

 

Nasi Gandul Pak Memed

After I took a long vacation of writing, now I’m back. I’m off for a while because my health condition not allows me to write objectively. Yeah, something wrong with my digestive system. Thanks God, I recover slowly and hopefully you can enjoy my ‘comeback’ writing as usually ;)

I will continue to share about Semarang culinary. This time I will recount about Nasi Gandul. Well, actually Nasi Gandul is originally from Pati (small town at Central Java). But it became famous at Semarang too, especially Pak Memed’s stall. Located on the edge of the road, this stall always crowded with queue of people.

I have to wait for about 10 minutes before I got my seat. I came here at 8 p.m.

Nasi Gandul is rice with beef meat, intestines, lung, spleen & tripe soup. Sometimes they add the boiled egg that marinated first with shallots, guava leave, bay leave & galangal. We call it as ‘Telur Pindang’. The soup is made from coconut milk, bay leave, galangal, lemongrass, shallots, garlic, kencur, kluwek, cumin & coriander. Very complicated isnt’t it? Most of Javanese food need many kind of spices, but it taste so good and you can’t find it at another place.

The soup taste sweet and savory. It blended well with slices of tender beef meat. And if you dare you can try to eat the intestines and friends, haha….Some people assume it as a ‘gross thing’, but trust me, it’s heavenly good :p

The word “Gandul” itself means floating, because that dish is placed on banana leaves; so it looks like it’s floating at your plate. That banana leaves produces a fragrant aroma when you pour the coconut milk soup on it. They also provide crispy tempeh to accompany the dish. I like it very much! You have to try it! The price is very cheap, for about 10 – 15 K per portion.

Nasi Gandul Pak Memed

 

Jl. Dr. Cipto 12 A

Semarang

Phone: (024) 3559928 / 0813-325743117