Rawon

Rawon or Javanese Black Soup, the black colour of this beef soup is coming from Keluwak or Keluak, hard nut that's look like castanea with black paste inside. This food originally from East Java althought known by some people in Middle Java.

It's made from cutted small beef, with red onion, garlic, keluwak, court case root, chilli, and lemon grass. It normally served with salted duck egg, kerupuk, bean sprout and rice.

Where to find:

Rawon Nguling

It started on 1942 from a small village name Tongas - Probolinggo, but now can be found in some places in Surabaya (Kendangsari and Kutei streets). It's not as black as normal rawon, a little bit clear and red, and they also sell their special menu beef knuckle rawon.

Rawon Setan

Rawon Setan or Ghost Rawon because it's start open at 11 p.m before, now they start the business in the morning, their first place is crossing JW Marriot Surabaya. It serve in big portion with big cutted beef inside, but to oilly.

Rawon Ria

Ria Restaurant have a comfortable place to eat, and their rawon taste like homemade dishes, it's very rich and the serving appearance is very nice. They have many place, the biggest one is at Jalan Kombes M Duryat, then at Sutos Mall, and Tunjungan Plaza Surabaya.

Sate Bebek

Sate bebek means duck satay, this is modification from current satay which normally use chicken or beef, the meat was cook with herbs before grill and topped with peanut sauce with sliced onion, thick sweet soy sauce, and some shrimp crackers on top.

Where to find:

Bebek-bebekku

Bebek-bebekku means my ducks, located in G-Walk in Citraland West Surabaya more precise at "Depot Cinta", this location offer chicken satay as well.

Bakso

Bakso simply means meatball, this is kind of most favorite food in Surabaya and perhaps for other big cities in Indonesia, it’s very easy to find out, from street hawker, mobile seller using bike or motor-cycle up to resto or in mall.

It has lots of modification from size of the meatball, smallest in marble size up to tennis ball size. Bakso serve in clear soup made from beef stock add by vermicelli some garnish like shredded cabbage, or spring onion, or celery.

Some sellers add fried or boiled tofu, fried meatball, sliced beef or anything to make tastier.

Where to find:

Bakso Ketabang Kali
Originally locates at Ketabang Kali street, but now lots of food court selling it, it will serve with vermicelli and lots of small meatball inside.

Bakso Pak Kus
Originally located just in front of Catholic church at Residen Sudirman street, now it easier to find at any food court in Surabaya, what makes different is size of the meatball, very small just like marble, and also has in cubes form.

Bakso Ateng
Located in two places; first in Kepanjen street in front of old church, and near Widya Mandala university at Dinoyo.
It has various content inside, meatball with quail egg inside, fried wonton, and topped with shrimp crackers flour.

Bakso Pak Jo – Petra
It got names from the seller and also because located in front of Petra senior high school at Manyar.

Bakso Jagalan
Open only at night because the stall is locate in front of store, personally the soup not taste like usual bakso for me, it serve on two size normal size (very big size) and half size, the normal size has so many variant inside, event the meatball itself; square, rough, quail egg inside, big size, small size plus fried wonton and tofu.

Bakso Kota – Cak Man
Quite new in Surabaya, this brand is coming from Malang (100 kilometers from Surabaya), and open in many locations now in Surabaya, many things you can order as you wish to be added with your meatball soup.

Pecel

This is another vegetable salad for people who live in East Java up to Central Java, it contains lots of boiled vegetables: bean sprout, sliced cabbage, water spinach or spinach and flooded with peanut sauce on top.

People like to add fried flour with shrimp or crunched peanut, they fried until brown and crunchy.

Where to find:

Pecel Pandegiling

This place ever became a favorit for Surabaya people, it locate at Jalan Pandegiling a small corner in front of old theater, open from evening till midnight. Now this is no longer top Pecel, however some oldiest still like to eat here only to recollect their good memory.

Pecel Tretes

Locate on the way to Tretes, a mountain hill 60 kilos from Surabaya, small restaurant with nice and cold weather which serve traditional food.

Pecel Jatirasa

Located near with SCTV television station at West Surabaya or near with Darmo Permai area, only open in the morning from 6 to 11 a.m. Beside pecel they sell another kind of traditional foods.

Sambal

Sambal or chili sauce although this is not a main dish it commonly find out at Indonesian food. People believe by adding sambal can enrich or strengthen the food flavor.

Many types of sambal that you can find out in Indonesia, and people are so innovative with everything to make this chili sauce, you can have: shrimp paste sambal, onion sambal, soy sauce sambal, young mango sambal, tomato sambal and so many more.

The trick is to match one food to correct kind of sambal, because one food can match beautifully with one sambal or can be taste yucky with other type sambal, yes it just like matching cheese with wine.

Gado-gado

Gado-gado is one of Indonesian salad, it consist of many vegetables inside, cabbage, lettuce, bean sprout, tomato, potato. Other ingredients are fried tofu, fried tempe (soy-bean cake), and egg then it covered with peanut sauce with fried shrimp cracker and fried sliced onion on top.

Some seller add soy-sauce together with the peanut, hence it will make the dressing a little bit darker, and some add coconut milk when the cooked the sauce, of course it becomes more tasty.

Where to find:

Gado-gado Arjuno
It got names because firstly and up today they have their business at Jalan Raya Arjuno. However, people can easily buy gado-gado Arjuno at many food-court on Surabaya.

Soto Daging

Soto daging use beef instead of chicken and some people tend to call this food with Soto Daging Madura since they believe that it was invited in Madura, Small Island in the north-east of East Java.

Beside the meat, the seller will add other part of cow’s organ such as: kidney, liver, lungs, stomach, and intestine. To make it complete they will add boiled egg as well. The soup looks yellow clear color because of tumeric roots.

Where to find:

Soto Daging Gubeng Pojok
For me, this is the best. The taste is so original as long as I know the seller is Maduranesse, the meat is so tender and the soup is very tasty. You can find the location at Jalan Kusuma Bangsa north side of Surabaya, they got the name Gubeng Pojok because originally their business is located at Gubeng Pojok street before the government relocated all the house for street improvement.

Soto Daging Wawan
The nice thing of Soto Daging Wawan is the availability, you cand find it at almost location in Surabaya, the owner Wawan has built this strategy and personally that amazed me.

Soto Daging Pandaan
Its located just near the gas station before entering Pandaan city, at the intersection to Tretes or new bypass. This is not a big place, small but clean and the soto have real Soto taste.