Java Indonesian Restaurant

Highly recommended! It is definitely the best Indonesian restaurant in NYC. My fiancé and I had the regular package of 14 delicious dishes. Great food, reasonable prices, friendly atmosphere.
I absolutely loved it.

Cozy place with great food! The owner is so sweet, she makes you feel right at home. She also always accommodates for my food allergies without hesitation. I had a pretty large size dinner party once and everyone loved their dishes. Both meat and non — meat eaters were satisfied. One of my favorite dishes is the sayur lodeh, vegetables in coconut milk soup. This soup is so tasty and filling. It comes with rice on the side. I’ve tried other rice and noodle veggie dishes and I’m always happy and satisfied. My husband really enjoys the fish dishes. My brother has eaten both the chicken and beef dishes and said they were very tasty. Overall, my family and I highly recommend this place.

This is an excellent place with great dishes and great service! The jakarta drink is a mix of flavored that you won’t find in any other restaurants def try it! All the dishes we ordered were delicious!

Nice small place with poor service — four of us and two got their dishes 20 min later.
Food is good and I do enjoy their spicy dishes.

Last year came here with friends, really good foods & we also ordered some foods to go. Came back here last week & ordered same foods just like last time. While waiting for our foods, we saw sticker on the window that the restaurant ‘under new management’. Finger cross we’ll have good experience like last time. All of us really dissappointed with the foods, ‘soto ayam’ had no taste, bland soup. The sauce for ‘ikan bumbu bali’ & ‘ayam kalio’ like prepackaging sauce from the store & the taste was pretty far away from the real one. Surprising ‘Satay udang’ came — boiled shrimp on the stick with plain ground peanut sauce & sweet soy kecap. Last time we were here we ordered 3 ‘satay udang’, which was grilled with spicy garlic tomato paste. ‘Asinan’ was pretty weird, cabbage and tofu with vinegar sauce & top with sweet soy kecap. We’re staring to each other, if the owner confused between ‘gado gado’ and ‘asinan’?. All of us has been to Indonesia several times & eating out at so many Indonesian restaurants, felt terrible to call these foods as Indonesia cuisine. When my friend asked if the restaurant operated by same owner, the owner said yes. When we mentioned about the ‘new management sticker’, she said her nephew couldn’t manage the restaurant & she took over. Cost of the foods (2 soups, 2 salads, 3 main course) were $ 87 and the next day we went to Sky Café Restaurant in Queens, ordered 5 foods to eat there plus 7 other foods for to go (all main course) cost us $ 85.

This place is a true gem. If you want amazing Indonesian food at a fair price, go here!
I’ve been here a number of times and each time the food is very good and consistently good. The service is great too.
The Kambing Goreng (lamb) dish is very tender with just the right amount of spice. We also had the Empal Goreng (beef), which was really amazing. I never knew beef could be that delicious. We’ve had a number of other dishes too and we have no complaints (and no leftovers).
Do yourself a favor and give this place a try. You won’t regret it!

Loved the rice table we did the vegetarian and everything was great. We first went in Amsterdam to a rice table and loved it. Would definitely come back to this Park Slope gem!

Freaking amazing… This is one of the best restaurants in park slope. Everyone should try real good authentic Indonesian food like this at sometime!

Saw this restaurant accidentally as we were driving past, in route to find dinner elsewhere on 7^th Ave. A quick Google search revealed great reviews and a splendid menu so we turned around and decided to give it a go! So glad we did! The restaurant was small and cozy, excellent service and the food was delicious! I ordered the chicken and potato in coconut milk and had the sweetened Jasmine Tea (served in a carton). It was honestly, phenomenal and reminded me of my time in Bali. I can’t wait to go back when im super hungry so I can try the 15 dish sampler!

We ordered the 15 dishes for 50 bucks. First off, if you have a good idea of what you want then I wouldn’t suggest it. For us we were overwhelmed with the menu so I thought it wouldn’t hurt to give everything a shot. There was a lot of food for two people and with the dishes being made with coconut oil it fills you up fast. Keep that in mind.
Everything tasted good to great.

Oh my gods! Worst take out meal of the last 12 months, hands down! Super mushy, super bland, super generic and super expensive. Are you all insane? This place was just awful! Bad Chinese would have been better. Listen to me — I eat at Asian restaurants at least twice a month around NYC. This place is BAD.

3.5 stars. I met up with a couple of friends for dinner here. The restaurant is smaller than I thought it would be, but still cozy and nice! We ordered the 15 dishes to share between the three of us. The dishes were small, but the entire meal was quite filling. We started with the soup, which was pretty good! The waiter was very nice, he told us the name of each plate, but I won’t be able to write them here.
My favorites: cucumber (?), shrimp (w/​coconut sauce), curry chicken, fish (2 dishes) and vegetables (w/​tofu). The other dishes were just alright. The order also came with dessert, which was corn pudding. The consistency was a bit soft, so that was a bit odd for me; I imagined it to be more like flan. We ended the meal with some jasmine tea, which was perfect. Overall a nice dining experience and would love to come back!

Got the 15-​dish meal. Fantastic sampling of authentic Indonesian food. Among the 15 (?) dishes, I particularly liked the gado gado salad, the sayur santan, the soto madura soup, the sate, and the bakwan.
Got the fried banana for dessert… Nothing special, prefer thai-​style; would have loved to try the coconut or corn pudding instead.

I enjoyed the flavors of the food here.
I felt the portions were a bit small for the price. One Chicken breast flattened out with no sides cost me $ 14. It was called Ayam Panggang and had great flavor. They did include plain white rice, but there was no sauce from the chicken to flavor the rice, so I didn’t eat the rice. My wife ordered the Sate Madura which is really the size of an appetizer and costs $ 13. That was basically chicken sate on little sticks but the meat was fatty and even gristly. Even though the portion was small, she did not finish more than half because of the quality of the meat. The sauce was nice. We had the Lumpia appetizer which was delish but again it’s half the size of an egg roll and costs $ 5. Just in case one of us did not like our meal, I got a noodle back up. Mie Goreng with chicken. Cost $ 10. That was wonderful and enough to call a meal.
Total for dinner delivery — $ 55
So here’s the game plan.
Next time I order, I get the noodle dish. And that’s it.
$ 10 and pow! Done.

This place is not your typical NYC’s Indonesian restaurant. They put much more effort in the décor, located in Brooklyn and has a higher price tag on the menu.
As its name, it only serves food from the Java region, but no worries, Javanese food has plenty to offer.
We ordered rendang (beef chunks in coconut curry sauce) and mie goreng (fried noodle), even though we can’t say it’s 100% authentic Indonesian, they were pretty close. The rendang was a bit more like the spicy version of the Thai red curry beef and the fried noodle reminded us of the spicy Chinese fried noodle. one of us were particular with the white rice, and this restaurant did it right. It has the perfect warmth, softness and fragrant.
If you could bear some spiciness, ask for a spicy version of the food, It will bring out the flavor, after all Indonesian people prefer to eat their food spicy.
In general, do come by here and explore Indonesian cuisine and hospitality at its best, well at least in NYC.
Rendang (comes with white rice) + mie goreng = around $ 32 without tips.

Absolutely fantastic. Get the 15 course tasting menu. Each course is so different and so yummy, we had a hard time choosing a favorite. Top spot in park slope. Slightly slow service, but such a pleasant place to sit and relax. Has beer and wine.

We had three of their appetizers here which were the Lumpia, Bakwan and Pastel which are all delicious! It came out crispy and hot out of the kitchen! I guess because it wasn’t crowded then which was great for us! It came out in separate plates and side of peanut and sweet sauces.
For entrees, my favorite is their Empal Goreng which is marinated beef in indonesian spices and soy sauce. And it’s a pretty big plate of beef with a side of white rice which is great for sharing after a filling appetizer.
Hubby ordered a chicken dish called Ayam Panggang, and it was ok. Chicken was marinated well but it lacks the nice spices that we like from the Empal Goreng.
We haven’t tried any of their other dishes but the curry ones sounds amazing too so I might try that next time.
Drinks: the Bali paradise is carbonated sweet milk with red syrup which was yummy! This has no alcohol just bubblies. And to end the night we ordered their Indonesian Iced Coffee which was great by itself. We didn’t have room for desserts so we just had coffee.
This is definitely gonna be one of our regular spots for a nice dinner out.

After traveling for a year and half through SouthEast Asia and spending 3 of those months in Indonesia, (working our way through the different places with our stomachs leading the way) I must say that I have a new favorite restaurant.
This is an intimate review of our meal at Java from start to finish. Please read what you can ;)
Eating at Java last night brought us right back to our favorite country. A place where the food is fresh and full of flavor and the people are abundant in smiles and kindness. It took every bit of my Western sense for me to not eat with my hands (at least most of it!). I enjoyed my meal with my husband and two amazing friends.
Every dish we had was delicious and spiced to perfection. If there is one thing you are sure to get with Indonesian food it’s fresh ground spices.
Keep in mind this food is very authentic and is one of the few places I have been where it is not changed drastically to suit a western palette. (I have yet to eat at a Thai restaurant that actually compares to the food in Thailand. But I digress)
We started with the lumpia and the corn fritters. Both were crispy on the outside with a warm and juicy center served with peanut sauce and a chili sauce on the side for dipping (which we of course asked for extra of and were promptly given).
In between our apps and entrees we talked with the waiter for quite a bit. We told him about our travels in Asia and specifically in Indonesia, even remembering a bit of the language (Bahasa Indonesia). We could tell by the large grin on his face that he was thrilled to hear that we had been to his country.
I had mentioned to him that I was surprised that there was not any Fried Chicken on the menu, since that was one of the main things we saw at every single night food market in SouthEast Asia. (They certainly give the South a run for their money!) He smiled and laughed and said that he liked fried chicken very much. OK!
Just then the chef comes out with a sushi roll and brings it to our table! We are impressed by the presentation of the roll on the plate, as well as the kind gesture.
We start talking to him and apparently this is something he is thinking of adding to the menu. Indonesian with some Japanese on the side!
The chef told us that he has made sushi for 12 years at restaurants all over the New York area. He wants us to try it and let him know what we think.
Everyone at our table dives right in of course and munches away on the large but delicately flavored soft shell crab roll.
Honestly, it was decedent.
Whew!
Then the mains came out:
Gulai Kambing («Curry Lamb») — Tender pieces of lamb cooked with lemongrass served with a dark gravy
Rendang– Slow cooked beef in a creamy chili sauce (Spicy, yum!)
Ikan Kuning– («Fish Yellow») — Flakey and moist cod fish served in a yellow (lemongrass) sauce with bell peppers.
To absorb all of these wonderful sauces we were served a big bowl of Coconut rice (rice made with coconut milk) and a big bowl of brown rice (not as moist as when it’s cooked with coconut milk but probably a bit healthier ;)
Our waiter returns to ask how everything is. Of course we all have our mouths stuffed and are smiling and mmm-​hmming. He then sets down a plate with 4 pieces of fried chicken! (These guys must have a sense now of how much we like to eat at this point)
Now… the batter this chicken was fried in… i couldn’t tell you. But, it was so moist and juicy on the inside and seriously crunchy on the outside. Awesome. Try to special request it if you can!
We ate everything in sight and washed it all down with some mild hot sake (there’s the japanese again!)
All in all, the meal was perfect from start to finish. The guys that work there are the friendliest and I hope that their restaurant is a success. I am happy to see the grade pending sign in the window because it shows they are straightening things up a bit. I peeked my head in the kitchen to say thank you and goodbye to the chef and was impressed with the cleanliness that I saw.
Thank you Java and thanks for reading my review :)

Had a dinner date here and it was okay. The place, not the date. The date was very nice, thanks for asking.
Anyway, here’s what we ate:
Appetizer:
Pastel– Indonesian patties with thin rice noodles and mixed vegetables. Pretty good, a little greasy. Hot sauce was very spicy!
Entrees:
Him: Sayur Santen– broccoli and cauliflower fried in a batter served with bean curd and seasoned with indonesian herbs, lemon grass, bay leaves, nutmeg and cooked in coconut milk. I liked this a lot.
Me: Sate Bali– charcoal broiled pieces of beef on bamboo skewers marinated with tamarind juice, turmeric and topped with peanut sauce. It was just okay. Meat was fairly tender, peanut sauce was a little sweet and over the top.
Service was friendly but leisurely. They kept my water glass full, though!
They have a grade pending from the DOH, so I hope that gets rectified soon. If it hadn’t been a date I probably wouldn’t have eaten here.
Probably good for takeout or delivery. The restaurant has a heavy incense smell to it and that gives me a headache so I’d likely not eat in again.

I’m always looking for something different, so I was intrigued when I came across Java Rijsttafel as a «Restaurant of the Day» on Brownstoner. Having never eaten Indonesian cuisine before, I figured it would be worth a shot, and the «rijsttafel» concept was pretty intriguing to start.
Rijsttafel is basically a small buffet of food which allows you to sample a variety of Indonesian soup, salads and entrees, and it’s exceptionally well-​priced here for around $ 20 per person. We were served a delicious soup to start which had fried tofu and vegetables in it among other things. Next came a couple of salads (vegetables in peanut sauce and a pickled vegetable assortment). After that, we were served the main courses which included a variety of satays, vegetables and seafood in some interesting sauces (very heavy on peanuts). The main courses are served on a raised steel tray with candles underneath to keep the food hot. We were also served a couple of small desserts including an interesting neon green «coconut pudding.»

The restaurant itself is small, but charming with an attentive and friendly staff. For the price, this is an excellent way to try a few different things. The portions are generous (especially considering how many dishes you get) and the whole experience is fun. Definitely worth trying if you’re in the area and looking for something different.

Java is one of my favorite restaurants in Park Slope. The food is absolutely amazing! Tired of boring Thai and Chinese food, Indonesian is savory and delicious! The staff is friendly and the space has a nice charm to it. This place is a gem!