We came to Bogor with one mission: eat everything our Indonesian subscribers told us to try. By the end of the day, we’d discovered some of our favourite local dishes, met the kindest locals and completely understood why Bogor is famous for its food.

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Why We Came To Bogor

Beth and Denz enjoying a Bogor street food tour

After posting our Jakarta adventures, one recommendation appeared again and again in the comments.

“You have to visit Bogor.”

Not because of a famous landmark.

Not because of a theme park.

Because of the food.

Almost every subscriber pointed us towards Jalan Suryakencana, one of Bogor’s best-known food streets, saying that if we wanted to experience authentic local cuisine, this was where we needed to go.

Getting there turned out to be much easier than we expected. We took Jakarta’s KRL commuter train (which we’ve written a separate guide about) before arriving in Bogor ready for what we hoped would be one very delicious day.

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The City Of Rain… Apparently

Before arriving, everyone warned us about one thing.

Rain.

Bogor is famously known as the “City of Rain”, thanks to its cooler climate and frequent afternoon downpours caused by the nearby mountains.

So when we stepped out of the station into glorious sunshine…

Enjoying the Bogor street food on Suryakencana Street

We thought everyone had been exaggerating.

A couple of hours later, we were caught in absolutely torrential rain.

Safe to say… they weren’t exaggerating after all.

If you’re planning a visit, we’d definitely recommend arriving early in the morning. The weather is often much kinder before the afternoon showers roll in.

Walking To Suryakencana Street

Bogor Street Food Tour - Suryakencana Street

One thing we really enjoyed was that getting to Suryakencana Street became part of the experience.

We wandered past the beautiful Bogor Botanical Gardens before eventually reaching Bogor’s famous food street.

Immediately, the smells were incredible.

Street food stalls stretched the road in every direction, each specialising in something different.

Thankfully… Our subscribers had already prepared us with a huge list of foods we absolutely had to try.

Our Biggest Tip If You’re Exploring Alone

We didn’t book a food tour.

Instead, we explored independently.

If you’re doing the same, our biggest tip is simple:

Follow the locals.

If you see a stall with a long queue, that’s usually a brilliant sign.

Busy stalls generally mean fresher ingredients thanks to the high turnover, and if local people are happy to wait, it’s normally because the food is worth it.

That approach served us very well throughout the day.

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Soto Mie Bogor

Our first stop was one of Bogor’s most famous dishes.

Soto Mie Bogor.

This hearty noodle soup is made with yellow noodles, beef, vegetables, tomato, crispy crackers and a fragrant broth that’s completely different from other sotos we’d tried across Indonesia.

After already falling in love with Soto Betawi and Soto Bandung…

Denz reckons this might actually be one of his favourites.

Beth couldn’t try this one because it contains meat, but watching Denz happily demolish an enormous bowl before most people had even finished breakfast told us everything we needed to know.

The Best Surprise Of The Day

Meeting locals on a Bogor street food tour

Not long afterwards, something happened that completely changed the rest of our experience.

Some local people recognised what we were trying to do.

Rather than simply recommending somewhere to eat… They decided to show us themselves.

For the rest of the day, they became our unofficial food guides, taking us from stall to stall, introducing us to local favourites and helping us tick off everything on our ever-growing food list.

It turned what was already shaping up to be a great day into one of the most wholesome experiences we’ve had in Indonesia.

They kept trying to buy us food as an oleh-oleh (gift), while we kept trying to stop them paying.

It became a very friendly battle.

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Asinan Bogor

One of the dishes we were most curious about was Asinan Bogor.

This colourful fruit salad combines fresh tropical fruit with a sweet and spicy dressing traditionally made using vinegar, chilli, peanuts and shrimp paste.

It sounds unusual.

It tastes even more unusual but in the best possible way.

The balance of sweet, savoury, spicy and sour was different from anything we’d eaten before.

Tauge Goreng

Thankfully there was also something Beth could fully enjoy.

Tauge Goreng is one of Bogor’s signature vegetarian-friendly dishes.

It’s made with bean sprouts, tofu, yellow noodles and a rich savoury sauce that’s poured over the top rather than everything being deep-fried.

It looked incredibly simple. It tasted fantastic.

Bir Kotjok

This might have been our favourite discovery of the entire day.

Despite the name, Bir Kotjok isn’t actually beer.

It’s a traditional Bogor drink made from ingredients such as ginger, cinnamon, cloves and sugar, creating a wonderfully warming, slightly spicy drink.

As huge ginger beer fans back home…

This instantly became one of our favourite things we tasted.

If you’re visiting Bogor, don’t skip it.

Lapis Bogor

Next came dessert.

We headed to the famous purple-themed Lapis Bogor shop to try one of the city’s best-known cakes.

Made using local taro, the sponge has a beautiful purple colour and is often layered with cheese or cream.

If you’ve travelled around Indonesia before, you’ll know that combining sweet cakes with cheese is surprisingly common.

And somehow… It just works.

Brem

While we were there, we also tried Brem.

This was one of the hardest things we’ve ever had to describe.

It looks like a little block of candy.

You snap a piece off.

Put it in your mouth.

And within seconds it completely melts away.

Sweet, slightly herbal and incredibly unique.

Definitely worth trying if you spot it.

Roti Unyil At Venus Bakery

We couldn’t finish the day without one final stop.

Venus Bakery is famous for its Roti Unyil, tiny soft bread rolls filled with all kinds of sweet and savoury flavours.

Walking inside was dangerous… Everything looked delicious.

We ended up picking a selection to try while sitting outside enjoying one final coffee with beautiful views towards the surrounding volcanoes.

Honestly… It was the perfect ending to the perfect food day.

Useful Tips For Visiting Suryakencana Street

Visit in the morning if possible, before Bogor’s famous afternoon rain arrives.
Come hungry. There are dozens of dishes worth trying.
Bring cash, as many smaller vendors don’t accept cards.
Pick the busy food stalls, it’s the best kind of quality assurance!
Don’t be afraid to chat with local people. The friends we made completely transformed the day.

Combine The KRL Jakarta With A Bogor Day Trip

If you’re comfortable using public transport, we’d highly recommend taking the KRL to Bogor and then exploring from there.

Not only is it incredibly affordable, but you’ll also avoid Jakarta’s notorious traffic.

Once you’ve arrived, you can easily join a local Bogor city tour or explore independently, depending on your travel style. If you’d rather not organise transport yourself, there are also organised day tours from Jakarta that include transfers.