Koempul - authentic Indonesian Restaurant — Restaurant in Berlin

I went here y-day for the 1st time from a friend's rec & I already sensed I'd love it here as I saw the restaurant from the outside with the menu displayed. At first, we were a bit overwhelmed as there a plentiful of delicious meals to choose from the menu card & that's what I like to do - trying new things where I can't predict how it'll taste like. As for starters, Tempe Mendoan was setting the bar high. I didn't have so much expectations actually beforehand, but guys, I'm telling you, the crispiness of the batter surrounding the tempe is pure joy of texture alongside the rather soft inside. Next time I'll ask for only peanut sauce as this might be the best peanut sauce I've ever tried, & I've been to Sahara where I fell in love with their 🥜 sauce as well! Koempul's peanut sauce is not only creamy, but also a little bit spicy that gives you the needed kick. I personally don't like the sweet & sour sauce so much. There's something about the seasoning of the tempe that make me crave for more already, but I'm aware I shouldn't exaggerate too much & keep the event of experiencing the taste special. Followed by the main course, my friend ordered Nasi Padang Vegetarian, which I can highly recommend. I only had a couple bites from that meal, but I'm hooked, I'm sold. Based from her reactions, you know where to spot a happy customer! The rice was wrapped in a piece of banana leaves & was prepared with such a rich & flavorful sauce to make dreams come true. There was also fried tofu, fried boiled egg, fermented in ripe jackfruit, another generous tempe, corn fritter, & a sweet sauce with paprika I presume. All kinds of flavors & textures are harmonizing in one meal & there was enough to pack in the lunchbox for the next day. The corn fritters also had some corn in them that gave it a tang of sweetness & I like how they're seasoned. As a jackfruit lover, I'm thrilled to hear about them & taste them in any meal, & the unripe jackfruits truly fit in that dish. For my own taste, it's maybe a bit too much deep-fried stuff, what I like, but I wished for a bit more balance with fresh vegetables &/or fruits. That's ok, though. One can't have everything. For me, I ordered Bakso Malang, which at first I was surprised by the small bowl for its price, but I was definitely filling. The broth was kept simple, but still eventful. I wished there'd be vegetarian alternatives for the offered noodle soups btw. For this meal there was fried dumplings, tofu, & meat balls. I was intrigued that it's with glass noodles & I guess egg noodles both at once, I've never experienced something like that. Again, the fried dumplings was off balancing a bit with too much fat & oil, but of course it's very delicious. We both approve. I had to add a bit of soy sauce at the end, & the flavors were able to flourish in a different way! Although we were already quite full, there's always some space left for dessert of course. We chose for Es Campur & it skyrocketed our expectations off the roof. Must admit, pretty pricey, but I'd say your money will be well spent for occasions like this. The coconut milk 🥥 match so well with condensed milk, & there was my beloved jackfruit (I guess they're bought frozen, but almost taste fresh), grass jelly that I always like, coconut gel cubes (very nostalgic to me), black rice, pandan jelly strings, & crushed ice. Every bite another gustatory experience. Divine, I'm telling you, devine. Reminded me of the Vietnamese dessert Che. One side had some green & the other side some pink pandan juice. Speaking of that, we also had a Soda Gembira, which we both didn't like too much, possibly because we are not used to the taste. I'm still a bit confused how the pandan, coconut milk, & condensed milk soda could be pink, but it reminded us of the milk soda Calpico. Maybe with more water in the ratio, it'd be tastier for us. Overall, we enjoyed our stay there & the presence of plants make the ambience very cozy. I can see myself visiting you guys more often to try the dishes again & also the other ones I haven't tried...

We went here just because I got curious about specific Indonesian cousine (and not general "asian"). Before going, I've asked my friend from Indonesia about recommentations and decided to go with "default" best seller option (don't remember the name, the one with rice and meat in a banana leaf) and my friend got fried fish. We asked in advance for no-spicy. When I got my drink, I was a bit surprised because it was more like dessert and not a drink (but it was tasty nevertheless). The food itself... Well, I'd say I like it if it wouldn't be so spicy. Meat and rice were hot, but okayish and some green stuff around was way more spicy. I managed to finish it, but was really disappointed so I don't have my milk-ish drink any more. And given that we asked the waitress and she confirmed it's no spicy, that's definitely minus star. For my friend though it was worse, it was whole fried fish (we somehow thought it would be boneless fillet) which was way too much fried and oily. The sauce on the side was also very spicy. Fried tofu was also "overfried".

The last but not the least is that we were not able to wait until waiter actually gives us the dessert, so we had to actively wave for them after a long time. The place was half empty, I don't understand what were the staff doing, just ignoring the guests and sitting somewhere else? So the service was not so good neither.

What we liked though is how empty the place was even for Saturday midday. It was quiet and calm.

So I'd say it could be good 4/5, but due to too spicy food and slow...

Trying Indonesian food has been on my bucket list for a long time, specially since I am a big fan of spicy food. I regret choosing this restaurant for my first experience, and I'm surprised of the amount of good reviews. The interior of the restaurant is very simple, but cozy. After we got seated, it took a while for the waiters to give us the menu which I had to ask for myself at some point. I made my order and waited almost an hour to be served. I found the staff to be very slow and inefficient in attending the customers. I was hoping the food would make up to all the waiting. We ordered their classic dish Nasi Padang, which is stewed meat and rice cooked in a banana leaf, it was tasty and the dish was satisfying. The other plate was their spiciest, which was chicken smothered in a spicy chili sauce. It was very spicy, but mostly tasted like pepper and the rice served with it was bitey and not cooked properly. The portion was also very small, I was even more hungry after I left than when I arrived, I had to grab a pizza after from another place on the corner. The prices were also a bit on the higher end, and don't justify the quality nor the quantity. I can't wait to try indonesian food in another restaurant to wipe off my...