In Perth a few months ago, we stopped by an Indonesian restaurant. We found a huge crowd of customers, and some had to wait their turn, including our group of four. Judging by the large number of customers, we were sure this restaurant was authentic and served up decent food. Indeed, everything on the menu was delicious, especially the bakso or beef ball soup.

Back in Melbourne, my daughter and I learned there was a restaurant in Melbourne with the same name. We then looked up their address in Melbourne which turned out to be just a few minutes from DFO South Wharf close to where she lived. There weren’t many customers there when we arrived, but after we sat down and ordered, many more arrived. This restaurant is slightly smaller than the one in Perth. On the wall is a display that’s the same as the West Australian one: “Since ’98.” We ordered their bakso, some rawon for my husband, grilled ribs with sambal matah, cendol, lychee tea and my favorite white prawn crackers. Their portions are generous and their sambal is spicy even though we chose mild. Their bakso is indeed different from bakso in other places. Maybe we will come back to try their other menu items. So for those of you who haven’t tried Ayam Penyet Ria, please come to the southern CBD fringe of Melbourne, maybe after shopping at DFO South Wharf.

Ketika kami ke Perth beberapa bulan lalu, kami mampir kesatu restauran Indonesia disana. Kami mendapati banyak sekali pembeli dan sebagian harus menunggu giliran termasuk kami berempat saat itu.  Menilai dari banyaknya pembeli kami yakin pasti restaurant ini authentic dan menyediakan makanan yang enak dan disukai pembeli. Memang benar menu mereka enak terutama baksonya. Kembali ke Melbourne aku dan anakku mendapatkan keterangan bahwa di Melbourne pun ada restauran dengan nama yang sama, mungkin ini salah satu cabang mereka. Kami lalu mencari alamat mereka di Melbourne. Ternyata tempatnya hanya beberapa menit dari DFO South Wharf di South Melbourne. Sampai disana belum banyak pembeli tetapi setelah kami duduk dan memesan makanan banyak pembeli berdatangan. Resto ini lebih kecil sedikit dari yang ada di Perth. Didinding terdapat pajangan yg bertulisan sama dengan yang di Perth, “Since ’98”.  Kami (aku dan anakku) cepat memesan bakso, karena kami suka bakso mereka, rawon untuk suamiku, iga bakar dengan sambal matah yg empuk dan enak, cendol, teh lychee, dan kerupuk putih kesukaanku. Porsi mereka cukup besar, membutuhkan usaha untuk menghabiskannya. Sambal mereka cukup pedas walau kami memilih yang mild atau sedang. Bakso mereka memang beda dengan bakso ditempat lain. Mungkin kami akan kembali mencoba menu mereka yang lain. Jadi untuk anda yang belum mencobanya, silahkan datang kedaerah selatan Melbourne, mungkin habis berbelanja di DFO South Wharf.

Details

Ayam Penyet Ria 248 Clarendon St, South Melbourne VIC 3205

Monday to Sunday 11am to 9pm

All halal menu and unlicensed

Details of other branches at ria98.com.au