Ratu Sari, Kingsford

Big Flavours. This is what comes to mind when I think of Ratu Sari. It is one of my favourite Indonesian restaurants in Sydney because you know you will never have a boring meal here. Even the fried rice is exciting. It is a far cry from most of the restaurants along Anzac Parade in this area, most are super cheap places appealing to the uni students. When compared to somewhere like Ayam Goreng 99, Ratu Sari looks swank and pricey. But it's all relative, a meal at Ratu Sari is far cheaper than a lot of places in other areas and you get a great meal and good service.

Kerupuk emping - Belinjo crackers $5.50

We like to order these crackers to munch on while waiting for our food. These thin deep-fried crackers are made from a plant that is ground into flour and have a slight bitter taste to them. They are light and moreish and I enjoy it as it is quite unusual to find many foods where bitterness is embraced so much.

Udang belado - Tiger prawns stir fried with petai in a tangy Indonesian chilli sauce

I adore petai. I remember picking these out of their long pods while sitting in a bamboo chair at my grandmother's house in Ipoh so that they could be added to whatever delicious curry was being cooked up for dinner that night. They are definitely an acquired taste, but with the right combination of flavours they are gold. The only bad thing is they do interesting things to your pee, the same way asparagus does...Anyway, Ratu Sari has quite a few dishes with petai and they do them well. The fresh prawns and firm petai come in a chilli sauce that is so spicy and so concentrated with chilli seeds that even us seasoned chilli professionals are reaching for our water glasses. Fantastic flavours though.

Sayur lodeh - Mixed vegetables in a mild coconut milk soup $11.90

My Mum makes a mean sayur lodeh, a creamy vegetable curry, so I have high expectations to live up to. This one does a very good job of meeting those expectations, the radish, carrot and cabbage are perfectly cooked and not too soggy and the sauce is packed full of spice and flavour with a good balance between curry paste and coconut milk.

Nasi goreng ikan asin - Fried rice with sliced chicken, salty fish, fish cake, petai & mint leaves $13.90

The fried rice with salted fish, petai and mint is one of my all time favourites. You wouldn't think there are too many ways to improve on a plain old fried rice but this is AMAZING. It might not be to everyone's tastes, what with the stinky petai and the small, very salty bits of fish, but I find it extremely well balanced and executed. I particularly love the bits of fresh mint leaves. When you get a bit of everything in your mouth at once it's a bit of a flavour party. Also, if you order this you have to get it with the chilli sauce to pour on top of it, the waiters usually don't bring it out unless you ask for it, but drizzling some of this tangy, sweet sauce on top brings the dish to a whole other level.

Nasi goreng chilli sauce ♥

The rendang is always good here too, meltingly tender beef and again a lot of spices and flavour and a ton of chilli. Not subtle at all!

Rendang - Sumatran beef curry $16.90

Ayam goreng permudi -Fried lemon grass marinated chicken, served with sambal belacan $15.90

The ayam goreng permudi is a little puzzling as we can't really taste any hint of lemon grass in this cripy deep fried chicken. For a moment we wonder if we ordered the wrong dish but it seems to be the only one that fits the description. It tasted like normal ayam goreng to me, but it was still delicious. The chicken was piping hot, super juicy on the inside but with the thin crunchy battered exterior. And the sambal belacan that came with it was soooooooooooooooooooo good. My only complaint would be that there was no where near enough of it!

Es Cendol - Green jelly, red beans, sliced jackfruit & ice shavings, topped with coconut milk and palm sugar $6.50

I usually prefer to get a glass of cendol here to drink with my meal, but today we save it for last and have it for dessert. It can sometimes be a bit difficult to eat here because they can pack the ice together quite tight and you have to hack at it a bit. This time it wasn't too hard, and the thing I love about this version of cendol is the bits of canned jackfruit that is served with it. I don't know why but it goes so well in a cendol! I always seem to forget how much I enjoy Ratu Sari, but this time I have photographic evidence that it was a lovely meal and to remind myself that I must go back more often for their fried rice and another of my favourites, lontong sayur.

Ratu Sari
470 Anzac Parade,
Kingsford NSW 2032
(02) 9662 8788
Tue-Sun: 12pm-2pm, 6pm-10pm