We visited the ‘OG’ Nelayan a long time ago back when it was next to Laguna, which sells Indonesian groceries. This time, after shopping for groceries here, my daughter told me Nelayan had relocated a five-minute walk away. We went there as we hadn’t had lunch yet. When we arrived, there were two tables of customers, and another customer was ordering take away from a Bain Marie. The room was clean and modern with four tables downstairs and two more tables on a mezzanine level. There were several Indonesian artworks on the wall. Though the place offers friendly service, there were a few areas it needs to work on. The menu on the wall made us hungry, hoping for a satisfying lunch. My husband ordered a la carte vegetarian, I went for the fried fish, and my daughter ordered Palembang style fish cakes (pempe). There were free bottles of water, but unfortunately (and inexplicably for a restaurant with six tables) they only had four so we had to buy water. I tried my husband’s meal from the Bain Marie, and it seemed like something was missing. The fried fish I ordered with rice arrived shortly after. The fish was quite crispy, but the taste was very bland. My daughter’s order arrived last, and it looked delicious, but half of it was left uneaten because it was rock hard. Hopefully, the Hawthorn branch of this classic Indonesian restaurant can overcome these issues following the example of the CBD branch, which is very popular with students.

Restaurant ini sudah lama aku tahu ketika masih bersebelahan dengan Laguna yang menjual bahan makanan dari Indonesia. Kali ini sehabis belanja keperluanku disini, anakku memberitahu aku ada restaurant indonesia Nelayan yang jaraknya 5 menit berjalan kaki dari situ.  Lalu kami pergi kesana karena kebetulan kami belum makan siang. Sampai disana ada meja pembeli sedang makan dan seorang pembeli sedang memesan makanan dari Bain Marie untuk dibawa pulang. Ruangan yang bersih dengan 4 meja dibawah dengan 4 kursi dan satu step keatas ada 2 meja lagi dengan 4 kursi. Terlihat high chair untuk baby. Terlihat beberapa lukisan didinding. Pelayanan yang ramah untuk satu restaurant atau rumah makan belum cukup menurutku. Didinding terlihat menu yang membuat kita lapar melihatnya dan berharap akan puas makan siang disitu.  Suamiku memesan a la carte, aku memesan ikan goreng sedang anakku memesan pempe Palembang. Tersedia air minum gratis dibotol, sayangnya mereka (yang mejanya 6) cuma punya 4 botol, jadi kami harus membeli botol air dari lemari es. Aku mencoba mencicipi lauk yang dimakan suamiku, sepertinya ada yang kurang dari rasanya. Tak lama datang ikan goreng yang kupesan dengan nasi yang harus kubeli terpisah. Ikannya lumayan garing, tapi tidak terasa apa-apa. Pesanan anakku terakhir datang dan terlihat enak malangnya harus punya gigi yang kuat. Semoga cabang Hawthorn dari restoran Indonesia klasik ini dapat mengatasi masalah-masalahnya dengan mencontoh cabang yang di CBD yang digemari pelajar-pelajar.

Details

Nelayan 787 Glenferrie Road Hawthorn VIC

https://maps.app.goo.gl/gpUk8X9U7nsn5LM76?g_st=ic

All halal menu with certification prominently displayed

Tuesdays closed; Wednesday to Monday 11am-3pm / 5pm-8pm