Warung Rahayu - Surinaams Javaans restaurant — Restaurant in Amsterdam

A cute little place just a few steps off of Overtoom. There’s not that many tables, though I’ve never had difficulty finding a seat for my family of 3 everytime I came here. We stayed in Wilhelminastraat about 100m away, so I came here often for their soto.

Where I come from we have a large Jawa population, so I’m pretty familiar with soto. This Surinamese variant does not stray far. At €8 for a big bowl, it’s a steal. Like a warm hug from the inside that spreads through to the whole body, it’s a great in-between meal. I hate taugeh, so I always ask them to keep it out from my bowl.

I tried the rames and a roti rendang one of the other days, and it was okay, on par with the other restaurants that serve it. I’m just guessing here, but probably due to how labor is compensated, you will find it hard to get made-to-order food in any Indonesian/Surinamese restaurant, where instead it’s scooped out from chafing dishes and heated in a microwave. It lacks that fresh feeling. Considering all that though, still a good meal.

I highly recommend this place, it’s worth the tram ride if...

Irma makes the best SAOTO soup in this city hands down.

I've tried them all in the corners of this city and this one just hits the #1 spot on every visit. It's a small and still old school Surinamese place (hard to find in the city center these days).

Most old restaurants have been modernised to keep up with the changing environment and hipster-fast-pace-city life, this place has remained slow and authentic in the purest sense of the word.

Expect no facy chairs, cutlery or tables, because the real taste is not in the appearance of the place...

...it's in the SOUL of the food.

PS. Consider getting some good Saoto, search no longer. This is where...

Unfortunate that I wasn’t able to snap a picture, as the smell and my hunger for the best of me. But I will allow my words to do justice to the lamb roti that I ordered here yesterday. I had hope that the food would be good, particularly because it was a lamb roti, and they did not disappoint. The lamb was so tender and soft that chewing was effortless. The overall flavour of the food was pretty consistent and the roti wrap tasted fresh and soft. Overall, the price for quality was a good spend. This place gets my recommendation for...