Ayam Penyet Ria — Restaurant in Melbourne

Had dinner with some friends. Immediately felt it was very quiet with some Indo music in the background. I was expecting a waiter to sit us at a table. But no, we just walk in and sit down at any table. It was clean all around.

There's a QR code you scan and it'll take you to their website where you can order. Pay by card obviously. The waiter will occasionally come out and you can order directly with cash.

I had chicken rissole, bakso, satay and soda gembira. Food came out in less than 30min and was delivered by a robot. That's cool! The chicken rissole was delicious! Crunchy outside and filled with soft delicious chicken and veggies. The sauce that came with it just made it even better! Next was the bakso. Presentation reminded me of Indo, but I was surprised when it was served lukewarm which was disappointing. There were a couple of meatballs, some tofu and crackers. The broth wasn't bad, but I've had way better. The broth tasted almost like they put MSG in it like the cheap Indomie noodles.. anyways the bakso is not the best. Next up was the satay. It was super yummy! The meat was cooked well and the peanut sauce was on point. I highly recommend this. The soda gembira is my childhood favourite. It was great too!

Overall, the food is great (except the bakso). I'd come back again and try their other dishes. Price is definitely high, but I think they deliver good quality food and portion size is OK (but not generous). The soda drinks are expensive though. I reckon I could make a few glasses at...

I love Indonesian food and know it well. My apologies but this was incredibly lazy pre-cooked and partially cold!

I had Gado-gado and it was incredibly disappointing. It was actually just long strips of iceberg lettuce, big chunks of bad raw quality tomoto all cold! Mixed with luke warm cabbage and terrible peanut sauce.. this is not Indonesian food..

Sate was pre-cooked and just heated up. They forgot to check and served cold sate..imagine getting served cold pre-cooked sate at an Indonesian restaurant. Incredibly lazy and careless.

The ribs were pre-booked which is usually not a problem but this was warm, not hot and just old and bad quality. You can tell a restaurant is lazy when the cucumber is precut at lunch time and served dry and old as happened to me. I just couldn't believe I paid for this.

I'm sorry to give a bad review but please cook food to order where appropriate. I can't imagine coming back. And this has happened more than once. Even at South Melbourne Ria they are a bit better but it's actually embarrassing as myself trying to promote Indonesian food in Melbourne and I keep getting presented with lazy and frankly disrespectful experiences like this. No chef on site, just staff reheating food. I'm done. There are much better Indonesian places that respect their customers and their food.

Apologies but I had to share this with you guys. Please lift your game and respect the food of...

ORDERED: The Penyat Pack ($20.50) This included: 🍚 Nasi (Jasmine rice), 🥣 Bakso (side of soup), 🌶 Sambal Terasi (Balacan chilli - spicy), 🍗 Ayam Penyet (Chicken) & 🧃 Teh Kotak (Sweet Jasmine tea)

I paid $20.85 which included a card surcharge.

REVIEW: Ayam Penyet Ria is a chain restaurant that spans across Melbourne, Sydney and Perth. Branded as Indonesian street food, it delivery quantity at very reasonable prices.

♥ The best thing of the Penyat pack was the Ayam Penyet which is in their name. It hits everything you would want in fried chicken. Crispy, golden and incredibly moist. I would order this again! 🔁🍗 The sambal had the perfect amount of spice, making my mouth tingly. You may want to go for mild if you still want to enjoy the flavours of your food.

😢 There were a couple of flops though. Rice and salad were dry, with the latter feeling like it's been pre-cut and was sitting out for a while. Although you get to pick your side of soup and the pictures on the menu allude to a fully stocked soup (meatballs, wonton crisp), you end up with just the broth itself. Probably for the best because you've got a lot of food to finish, but unsure if the oiliness is...