Street Food Guide in Yogyakarta
Part of the Yogyakarta travel guide — see every topic in All Yogyakarta Guides.
Yogyakarta is a university city of several hundred thousand students, and its street food economy is built around what a student can afford. That makes it one of the cheapest places to eat well in Indonesia: a full meal from an angkringan cart costs 10,000–20,000 rupiah, and the food is not a lesser version of restaurant food, it is the main event. The scene runs from early-morning soto stalls to carts that only open at ten at night and serve until dawn.
Angkringan
The angkringan is a wooden handcart with a tarpaulin, a charcoal brazier and a kettle, parked on a pavement, with mats or low benches around it. On the cart are banana-leaf parcels of nasi kucing and trays of skewers — quail eggs, chicken skin, intestine, tempeh, tofu — that you pick up, grill yourself over the coals and pay for by counting the sticks at the end. Everything is 2,000–5,000 rupiah an item. The cluster along Jalan Wongsodirjan behind the station is the classic, and Angkringan Lik Man there is the birthplace of kopi joss.
The night markets and food streets
The lesehan stalls that appear along Malioboro after the shops close — mats laid on the pavement, low tables, gudeg and fried chicken — are the tourist-facing version and are pleasant, but agree the price before you order, because unlisted pricing on Malioboro is a long-standing complaint. Better: the food streets around Jalan Kaliurang and the campus areas of UGM, where the students eat and the prices are fixed. Pasar Beringharjo's upper floor has a food section that runs during the day and is excellent for snacks.
What to eat and when
Morning: soto ayam, bubur ayam and lontong sayur from carts, six to nine. Midday: a warung plate or a Padang restaurant. Late afternoon: gorengan — fritters of tempeh, banana and tofu — from a cart with green chillies to bite between mouthfuls. Evening: sate klathak, gudeg, or a full angkringan session. After midnight: Gudeg Pawon, which opens when everywhere else closes. The rhythm matters, because a great deal of Yogyakarta street food is available for only two or three hours a day.
Eating safely and cheaply
The usual tropical rules apply and are easy here because turnover is high: eat where there is a queue, prefer food cooked in front of you, and be careful with anything that has been sitting warm. Tap water is not drinkable; bottled and refill stations are everywhere. Carry small notes — nothing on a cart takes cards, and a 100,000 note at an angkringan is awkward. Total budget for eating well all day from street food and warungs: 60,000–100,000 rupiah, which is under six euros.
Street Food Guide at a glance
| Angkringan item | IDR 2,000–5,000 per skewer or rice parcel |
|---|---|
| Full street meal | IDR 10,000–20,000 |
| Whole day of eating | IDR 60,000–100,000 |
| Classic cluster | Jalan Wongsodirjan, behind Tugu station |
| Late night | Gudeg Pawon, from ~11pm until it sells out |
| Warning | Agree prices before ordering at Malioboro lesehan stalls |