Palembang culinary travel certainly doesn’t stop at pempek. This city, where I was born and raised, holds many other dishes that always manage to call back memories: burgo for breakfast, fresh pindang, spice-rich nasi minyak, and durian scattered everywhere when the season arrives.
This writing comes from my travel notes in December 2013. So, consider this list a trail of flavors and my personal experience at that time, not a list of current addresses and opening hours. Before heading out, it’s a good idea to double-check the locations and business status. But as for the flavors stuck in my memory? Well, those are still hard to beat.
Here are the 14 Palembang culinary spots that left the biggest impression on me. Let’s start touring this beloved city—and it’s best not to do it while you’re too hungry.
H. Madina Kuto Coffee Shop
To find a typical Palembang breakfast, my choice fell on H. Madina Coffee Shop on Dr. M. Isa Street, in the Pasar Kuto area. During that 2013 trip, this shop provided burgo, lakso, laksan, celimpungan, pempek, tekwan, lupis, sticky rice, srikaya, and various cakes. The shop was popular; back then, I suggested arriving before six o’clock so you wouldn’t miss out.
Burgo and lakso are both made from rice flour and sago. Burgo is shaped like flat rolls, while lakso resembles noodles. Both feel soft in a coconut milk and fish broth; a bit of chili sauce and fried shallots make them a perfect match for morning coffee.
Even though there were many choices, the best one for me was actually the nasi uduk. For some reason, nasi uduk wrapped in banana leaves just tastes better. The savory coconut milk is just right, meeting anchovies, sliced omelet, emping crackers, and chili sauce. The taste takes my tongue on a nostalgia trip to my childhood in this city.
Martabak HAR
For me, a trip to Palembang isn’t complete without Martabak HAR. The name HAR stands for Haji Abdul Rozak. On this trip, I chose the outlet on Jenderal Sudirman Street, Sekip Intersection, which is located near the late founder’s residence.
The martabak is filled with chicken or duck eggs, then drizzled with potato curry and accompanied by vinegar sauce and sliced bird’s eye chilies. One portion is enough to hit the spot and calm a growling stomach.
Mie Celor 26 Ilir H. M. Syafei Z.
Who wouldn’t be tempted by thick noodles resembling spaghetti, thick coconut milk and shrimp broth, topped with shrimp, fried shallots, boiled eggs, and bean sprouts? In my notes, the shrimp flavor was strong and the broth was a savory reddish color. If that wasn’t enough, extra shrimp served separately was available at the time.
The location is on K.H. Ahmad Dahlan Street, near Pasar 26 Ilir. In my opinion, this mie celor is best enjoyed as breakfast after walking or exercising at Kambang Iwak, which isn’t too far away. During the Eid homecoming season, I’ve seen visitors overflowing into tents in the parking area.
Sri Melayu Restaurant
When talking about Palembang pindang, one of the places I like is Sri Melayu Restaurant on Demang Lebar Daun Street, near Griya Agung. The place is spacious, comfortable, and at that time served pindang patin, baung, smoked fish, shrimp, bone marrow, brengkes patin, fried saluang fish, chili sauce, and fresh vegetables.
The pindang is served piping hot with slices of pineapple, tomato, chili, and basil leaves. Besides patin, I recommend the smoked fish pindang. The savory smoky flavor meets the sweet-and-sour broth, warm rice, and mango or embem chili sauce. It’s hard to resist asking for seconds—haha.
Pindang Sophia Kertapati
Now we cross the Musi River to Pindang Sophia in Kertapati. In my travel notes, this restaurant is on K.H.M. Asyik Street and is known for its large giant river prawns. Pindang patin, pindang baung, brengkes, fried patin fish, chili sauce, and fresh vegetables are also available.
The pindang broth looks more reddish with basil and green onions. Eating here feels even better accompanied by savory grilled kemplang—the fish taste is really prominent.
Pindang Musi Rawas
The Pindang Musi Rawas I visited is on Angkatan 45 Street. The restaurant isn’t very big and parking is limited. Because of that, at the time, I preferred to come before eleven in the morning.
The pindang choices are diverse and served with chili sauce and fresh vegetables.
Linggau Restaurant
Another pindang place worth trying, in my opinion, is Linggau Restaurant, at the Radial Street intersection. Besides pindang, two dishes that stood out in my notes were the brengkes patin and pepes ikan peda.
Pindang Tulang Bu Darmin
When it comes to pindang tulang (bone marrow soup), my choice back then was Bu Darmin Restaurant on A. Yani Street, Plaju. My old notes also mention a branch on Pangeran Ayin Street, Kenten; of course, the location needs to be checked again before visiting.
What’s cooked in pindang style this time isn’t fish, but beef bones with meat still attached. The broth feels thicker and sweeter than fish pindang, equipped with basil, tomato, green onions, and bird’s eye chilies. The spicy freshness balances the sweetness of the broth.
Nasi Minyak H. Abuk
Bored with pindang? Let’s switch to nasi minyak at H. Abuk Restaurant, which during my trip was on Dr. M. Isa Street, 8 Ilir, near Pasar Kuto. This rice seasoned with ghee is even more complete with beef malbi, goat curry, sate pentol, fried punai bird, pineapple chili sauce, and cucumber pickles.
The rice is fluffy with savory coconut milk and strong spices. The goat curry brings aromas of cloves, cardamom, coriander, and pepper in a perfect blend. The parking at that time was quite narrow, so I chose to come outside of peak lunch hours.
Pempek Saga Sudi Mampir
After a heavy lunch menu, it’s time for an afternoon snack. I chose Pempek Saga Sudi Mampir, which I know for its grilled pempek and soft-textured lenggang with a strong fish taste. Grilled pempek—or pempek tunu in the Palembang language—is grilled, while lenggang mixes the dough with eggs and then grills it in a banana leaf container.
On that trip, I went to the outlet on Merdeka Street, across from the mayor’s office. The fish flavor was really there: the fish taste is really prominent. The texture is soft, delicious with spicy cuko, then finished with red bean ice to put out the small “fire” on the tongue.
Tekwan Wak Aba Bukit Besar
Tekwan is a fish dish with shrimp broth, usually accompanied by wood ear mushrooms and sliced jicama. One of the best, in my opinion, is Tekwan Wak Aba on Srijaya Negara Street, Bukit Besar.
The tekwan balls are chewy, then blend with a broth containing sliced shrimp, wood ear mushrooms, jicama, green onions, and fried shallots. During my visit, it was very rare to find tekwan broth with as many shrimp slices as in this shop.
Mamat Red Bean Ice Lapangan Hatta
In the hot Palembang afternoon, I headed to Es Mamat, not far from Lapangan Hatta. The place is simple, a street vendor cart, but the taste of the red bean ice makes people willing to seek it out.
Soft and sweet red beans meet shaved ice, milk, avocado, and grass jelly. Back then, grilled pempek, lenggang, tekwan, and model were also available. The place might be street food, but the taste is five-star, my friend.
Suwandi Crackers and Kemplang
Processed fish in Palembang isn’t just pempek. Crackers and kemplang are great for snacks, rice companions, and souvenirs. My choice is Suwandi Crackers and Kemplang. The taste is great; with just kemplang and chili sauce, a plate of rice can be finished.
My 2013 notes placed the shop on Letkol Iskandar Street and mentioned a branch on Pengadilan Lama Street, 15 Ilir. The choices included those made from belida fish, putak fish, shrimp, and squid.
Palembang Durian Feast
As a closing, if you come during durian season, don’t miss the chance to feast. Here, durians are scattered everywhere because there are so many. On my trip, vendors were easily found around Pasar Kuto, Pasar 26 Ilir, Rajawali Street, and Demang Lebar Daun Street.
Many Palembang dishes also use durian, such as tempoyak, brengkes, and lempok. So, one fruit can be the end of a trip, while its processed products open the next eating chapter. Yes, culinary travel sometimes knows no end.
Notes Before Going on a Culinary Trip
Since this list originates from a December 2013 trip, double-check the address, opening hours, menu, and business status before leaving. I intentionally kept the order of places, flavor impressions, and the atmosphere I experienced, but I don’t want old notes to be read as operational information that is definitely still valid.
Some typical terms that appear in this writing can also be found in the Palembang Language Dictionary. It’s not bad, so that when we hear teraso nian iwaknyo, we don’t just nod while pretending to understand.
Closing
Those are the 14 Palembang culinary spots that left the biggest impression on my trip. This list is certainly very personal: there are flavors that bring me back to my childhood, there are simple places that surprised me, and there are also dishes that made diet plans suddenly lose their way.
If you have other eating places in Palembang that are interesting to try, please write them in the comments section. That’s all for now—let’s go on a culinary trip to Palembang!
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