Tuesday, March 3, 2009

Soto Roxy H. Darwasa

My colleagues made a plan for lunch and asked me to join. They were craving for Soto Betawi in Roxy area. I was excited because I've heard about this place but never gotten a chance to go there.

I wasn't aware when we already arrived at the place. The place doesn't look like a restaurant at all which I had in my mind. It's a very old house and only got a banner in front of it. Looking at the banner, I believe this Soto Roxy is owned by Haji Darwasa and located at Jl. Tidore no. 2, Jakarta Pusat. Hey..., so many nice cars were parked there and it's even hard for us to find a space to park.


Oh my... who will expect that this place is so crowded inside? People have to wait and stand to get a sit. Luckily, my colleagues and I got seats as soon as we entered but in a few minutes later, people started to queue and stand beside us; waiting us to finish our meal faster. Hmmm... next time, must make sure to come earlier because it's really crowded after 12 pm.

Yes, the soto absolutely is delicious but you can not really enjoy your time eating there because everything is in a hurry and it's not nice and so uncomfortable being stare by those hungry people who stand beside you; ready to grab your seat as soon as you finished your meal. Believe it or not, starting with the ordering, food coming onto the table, eating the Soto and paying the bill, all took my colleagues and me in less than 20 minutes!!!


Let's see what happened after we made our order:
First the chili sauce came to the table. There's no taste at all in the chili padi/bird's eye chilies sauce... only hot hot hot! But it's so perfect when you mix it into the Soto :)
Then followed by the rice with fried shallots on the top and kaffir lime (jeruk limo/limau) on the side of rice.
Finally the Soto served on the table and we could start to enjoy our Soto :)

I looked what's all inside the Soto, uhmmm.... if this is Soto Betawi then how come there's no tomatoes in it?

The jeruk limau/limo (kaffir lime) is a must to put in the Soto because it really enriched the flavour.
They provide sweet soysauce (kecap manis), white vinegar (cuka) and white pepper (lada).
soto roxy 10

Soto (Betawi) Roxy H. Darwasa:
The main ingredients of this Soto are the beef broth and tick coconut milk (coconut cream) with a lot of seasonings such as clove, bay leaves, nutmeg, cinnamon, spring onions, garlic, shallot, ginger, galangale, coriander, peppercorns, black cumin and candlenuts.
The meat is beef but commonly there are other parts like innard (lung, heart, tripe, liver, intestine), ears, or legs.

And the toppings are Emping (malinjo nut chips), fried shallots, and chopped spring onions.

86 comments:

  1. yum!! that all looks so tantalizingly good! now i'm hungry!

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  2. its always this no-fuss small eateries that serve some of the most amazing food!!

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  3. heather: Even me who blog about it, after looking at the pictures again, I also feel hungry, hahaha...

    superchef: Yes, sometimes, the most important is the taste of food :)

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  4. something I've not seen in Msia before, looks good ya!

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  5. you can see why it tastes so good.. the amount of 'rempah' that goes into that tiny bowl is really amazing ;)

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  6. soto with rice?
    new to me.....
    at here soto serve with rice cube.
    i think it's also same.....

    but here all serve with chicken broth.

    it was first time i heard they use beef broth.
    too bad i can't eat or taste it...
    I'm Buddhist

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  7. I prefer add limo lime rather than cuka.

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  8. heheh..really old-school hor? Thks for the write up on Soto Betawi, i only know Soto bakso! frm the ingrdients u listed, this dish seems rich (coconut milk) yet flavourful frm the all the meat..

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  9. simplegirl: Looks and tasted yummy indeed :)

    cumi&ciki: You are absolutely right! The rempah rocks!!! hehehe..

    pisang goreng: There are so many kind of Soto here in Indonesia, some of them also are using chicken broth but for this particular Soto, they use beef broth.
    Rice cube? Oh.. you meant the steamed Ketupat?

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  10. Looks so delicious, I want to try it all!

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  11. indonesia-eats: Me too! *hi5*

    thenomadgourmand: Really old school? Hahaha.. Yeah, very rich of everything!

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  12. Must be so delicious and flavourful.

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  13. sara: Is there any Indonesian restaurant in your area? If not, then you need to visit Indonesia :)

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  14. precious pea: Yes indeed, it's always very crowded especially during lunch time :)

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  15. Ahh, this looks so delicious! I love the tiny kaffir limes, and I definitely want to try the chili sauce! I love hot-hot-hot!

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  16. mica: the kaffir limes and chili sauce made the Soto so perfect :)

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  17. the name Roxy sounds so English,the best time to eat in this type of place is before 12 pm - the soto is well spice flavored

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  18. What delicious looking dishes! Yummy!

    cheers,

    Rosa

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  19. foodbin: Yes, I'm not sure what's the history of why the area is named in English, should be an interesting story :)

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  20. There are so many ingredients inside the Soto...the combination is very interesting.

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  21. rosa yummy yums : It is yummy indeed :)

    ck lam: I think it as a delicious food but very complicated to make it :)

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  22. So many ingredients! The limes look very green. Looks delicious, and the fried shallot is so crispy looking! Mmm...

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  23. enak, enak, enak! sometimes, it's good to go to those rushy restaurants cos you dont have to stand there forever to get a seat. and more reasons to eat even more later...hehe...

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  24. eattraveleat: Oh.. that's kaffir lime, not the "usual" lime, hehehe... Fried shallot on warm nice is so delicious!

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  25. nic: Hahaha... well, you got good reasons but still sometimes, you want to chat and seat a bit longer to let the food inside your stomach to "settle down" :D

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  26. Looks amazing...I'm hungry just looking at the pictures. Too bad we don't have it here (or do we?).

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  27. Hey Selby,

    I tagged you for a meme on my blog!

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  28. lyrical lemongrass: Are many Indonesian restaurant in KL? If yes, there's a big possibility that one of the restaurants is serving this Soto Betawi :) Ah.. I know, the easiet way... come visit Jakarta ;)

    monica h: Thanks Monica for tagging me :)

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  29. Nice Soto. I like this quaint unpretentious place. This type is so abundant in Bogor where I go once a month for 2 years.

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  30. worldwindows: ah... Bogor, a nice place for food hunting. A lot of people from Jakarta will just drive 60 KM to Bogor to eat.

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  31. That food looks so amazing, and the ingredients you named sound like such a delicious combination of flavors. Unfortunately, there are no Indonesian restaurants where I live...but I DID find a tiny Indonesian grocery, and I have a feeling I'll be visiting it soon and asking the sweet lady there how to make soto at home! Itu membuat saya rindu untuk makanan dari Asia Tenggara! :)

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  32. I dun like to go for a rush lunch/ dinner bcos I dun get to enjoy the food no matter how great it is. It will be no diff than fast food. Hehehe!

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  33. Love all that food - everything looks yummy!

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  34. this kind of old rugged cowboy place we like . If got whisky also we fly there now . Joining us ?
    hehe

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  35. sapuche: Woohoooo... you can speak bahasa Indonesia? Cool! Well, make sure to tell the lady that you are going to make the Soto Betawi, supposedly there's the instant sachet to make one (the indofood brand is quite famous).

    food for tots: Yeah, I also are not really fond of rush restaurants but then if the food is good, once in awhile is OK :)

    jan: Yes, and hopefully you have a chance to try it someday :)

    BSG: Definitely! Just count me in!

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  36. Oh that all looks so delicious. Love the lime in the soto.

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  37. gastroantropologist: The kaffir lime makes the Soto tasted perfect :)

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  38. Evidently this place is amazing or it would not be so crowded. You always go to the most unique and interesting places. I would love to try this too!

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  39. Looks like a great restaurant! Yummy food!

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  40. Love the look! & the banana leaves reminds me of home again! sometimes are joints are crowded simply becoz they serve good food & this sounds like one of those!Soma(www.ecurry.com)

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  41. Selba dear.....

    sorry I didn't add more info in my comment....

    Rice cube that I mention it was
    "Nasi Himpit".......

    I think they cooked the rice first and then they put in rectangle mold and stack a heavy things on top of it like a very heavy rectangle stone.

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  42. WOW such a cool little busy place! Sounds like you guys really enjoyed your lunch.

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  43. BBO: Yes, it is indeed :)

    katherine aucoin: Yup, you are right, if the food isn’t delicious then it wont be crowded at all :)

    5 star foodie: It is a small restaurant with long tables where all the customers sit altogether :)

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  44. soma: Yes, the food is absolutely delicious so despite of the rush and crowded, people still love to eat there :)

    pisang goreng: Oh… thanks for the explanation. I don’t think I’m familiar with Nasi Himpit, but seriously it sounds interesting. Must try it someday :)

    Erica: Enjoyed the food but not the rush, hehehe

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  45. pam: Indeed! :)

    cookingcourtney: Hi CookingCourtney, thanks for dropping by my blog, please come again :)

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  46. That food looks really good. I don't think I've ever had Indonesian food, but now I have to.

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  47. bradley: Hi Bradley, welcome to my blog. Hope you can find Indonesian restaurant in your area :)

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  48. all this while we had Soto here in Msia, but served without rice.
    it has ketupat-like sticky rice in the mix. but no beef though.

    interesting. i like most bout these outlets is that the wait makes everything worthwhile.

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  49. j2kfm: I wonder how the Soto in Malaysia looks like. Here in Indonesia, there are so many varities of Soto, I even think that each region has their own soto :)

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  50. Being such a busy restaurant shows that the food must be delicious. Not very relaxing though with the hungry people hanging over you! haha The mixture of spices sounded tantlizing, and I was thinking it would be very tasty until I got to the ears and legs! Oh gosh! A very interesting post, Selby and great photos to add to your story :)

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  51. Hey! Now that is a very fragrant combination of ingredients, spices, and seasonings! I want to try it.

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  52. glo: Hehehe... glad that you enjoy reading it ;)

    livie: so... when are you coming to visit me here in Jakarta? :D

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  53. Selba, your pictures have made me hungry. How lucky to find an inexpensive eatery that serves such great food. Thanks for visiting my blog this morning. Come again soon.

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  54. mary: Hello Mary, welcome to my blog, nice to see you in here :)

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  55. OMG! That soto looks so awesome .... different from what we had here in KL.

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  56. There are so many new things to learn about your part of the world. The food looks fabulous - no wonder people were anxious to eat.

    I've never seen a kafir lime before, only the leaves. Are those big seeds in them? The lime looked small, maybe the size of our key limes.

    When we lived in the Bahamas, the key limes grown on trees in peoples yard (not for export, but for their own use) always had a lot of little tiny seeds in them in comparison to the key limes you find in the stores in the states with no seeds at all.
    I always enjoy my visit to your world. See you again soon.
    Sam

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  57. The lime is very interesting to me. Never saw one like that :)

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  58. Love your blog. I am so interested in learning more about Asian cooking, region by region. My neighbor is from Thailand and she taught me how to make chicken satay with peanut sauce. Thanks for stopping by my blog.

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  59. Pecans aren't a very crunchy nut to begin with. But in the cookies they retain their usual subtle crunchiness.

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  60. Never had Soto. It looks good. It's amazing that you ate your meal in less than 20 minutes!

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  61. email2me: I’m curious… How many kind of Soto do you have in Malaysia?

    my Carolina kitchen: I’m not familiar with key lime but yes, kaffir lime is small approximately about 1 inch (3 cm) with a lot of big seeds inside it and the skin has a bumpy texture. Yes, a lot of people are also having kaffir lime in their yard. I think my mom has about 5 kaffir lime trees in her roof garden. See you again soon :)

    maryann: Kaffir lime has a nice unique fragrance :)

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  62. judy: Thanks Judy. Satay with peanut sauce is a famous dish here in Southeast Asia :)

    how to eat a cupcake: Oh.. I see. Thanks for the info :)

    mediterranean Turkish cook: Hehehe.. and don’t forget I also had to take the pictures of the food ;)

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  63. Oh, just wonder how SOto taste like?

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  64. little inbox: It's delicious! You gotta try it! :)

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  65. I would so love to try just a bite of some of this. I so enjoy your photos!

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  66. donna-ffw: Thanks Donna! Hope that someday, you get a chance to try it :)

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  67. I loved that rice with Shallots on top..Great food..:)

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  68. I have never had Indonesian food - I always love reading about cuisines that I've never tried.

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  69. varsha vipins: *hi5* Warm rice and fried schallot is always a good start for a meal :)

    maris: Hi Maris, thanks for dropping by my blog, please drop by again :)

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  70. wow, the food looks so delicious, no longer it is so crowded ;)

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  71. noobcook: Hehehe.. yeah, true :D

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  72. now you make me wanna order soto ayam from my hawker centre.

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  73. Na, nice blog. Dan foto-fotonya, yummy banget ;-) bikin gue lapar, hehe

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  74. It would have drove me crazy to have been eating with someone staring me down to hurry me up. Yikes, I don't do well in crowds. The soto (stew?) sounds good, probably has to do with the coconut cream which I love. :-)
    ~ingrid

    Btw, you have a lot if interesting stores and adventures, thanks for sharing!

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  75. mistipurple: yummm... soto ayam... haven't eaten it for a long time :)

    rina: hi Rin, welcome to my food blog! sama donk, gue juga suka lapar kalo liatin foto2 makanan, hehehe...

    ingrid: Thanks Ingrid! Glad to share :)
    Yeah, it also almost drove me crazy especially, I had less than 20 minutes to eat because of busy taking pics, you can imagine what kind of stares that I got from those hungry people, hahaha..
    Yes, Soto is more likely stew.

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  76. I always enjoying learning about new foods. This was all new to me. I like your blog.

    Thanks for coming by Mulligan Stew, and Gumbo YaYa. Come by anytime. I'm definitely going to visit you again!

    Cheers, Cindy

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  77. the mulligan family: Hi Cindy, welcome to my blog! Hope to see you around :)

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  78. I'd love to eat in a place like this!

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  79. clumbsy cookie: it doesn't matter as long as the food is yummy, ya? :)

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  80. I love your type of food is quite exquisite. very different, which makes me very curious...really does. thx 4 sharing

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  81. ricardo: I hope that someday you get a chance to try Indonesian food :)

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  82. Hi, Selba! I love your blog so much!I've been stalked your blog these past few days. After reading this blog, I remember a restaurant that sells Betawi food such as Soto Betawi. It's Rumah Makan H.Nawi in Pondok Bambu, Jakarta Timur (near Casablanca East Apartment. Highly Recommended.

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  83. rizki anissa: Hi... thank you for "stalking" my blog ;) Never heard about Rumah makan H. Nawi in Pondok Bambu, but then, if I have a chance, I would love try it :)

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