San Francisco may have only one other Indonesian restaurant left (Rasa Rasa, which moved into the former Pho on Bryant space four months ago) but Joe Sharp and Patty Tan’s food truck opened at Park Club Gardens in Mission Bay at the start of the pandemic and has been a favorite since 2020.
Fortunately, the region weathered the crisis, and its residents began craving the homey, spicy and hearty food that characterizes Indonesian cuisine, a cuisine that is a product of being part of the world’s largest archipelago and is influenced by Middle Eastern, Indian, Polynesian and Chinese cuisine.
The new brick-and-mortar location on Bryant Street is beautifully appointed with lovely basket-weave lamps, swirling gray wallpaper, plants, and street-food vibes, exuding airy, casual elegance. Our super-friendly server, Joe (who also spends time in the kitchen), told us that the food truck’s kitchen is where all of its dishes are made.
On our first visit, five of us started off by ordering three kinds of sambal. Sambal is a chilli sauce that comes in many varieties in Indonesian cuisine. Here, we ordered shrimp paste, tomato and habanero sambal, along with a big bag of their homemade fried crispy tapioca chips. All the sambal were different in spiciness and full of flavour, but the habanero sambal was medium-hot and we finished it in no time. Still, we scooped it all up and asked for a second bowl.
We wanted to order a family-style tumpeng tray but were told it was sold out, but Joe said we could just order whatever we wanted and he would make it into a platter and give it to us.
One might have thought there wouldn’t be enough food in this spectacular feast, but they were sorely mistaken: our trays were piled high with, clockwise, gado gado, padi oat crackers, gulai greens, turmeric fried chicken, fried noodles with tofu, beef rendang, yellow coconut rice and another small bowl of sambal.
The gado-gado here is a salad of lettuce, semi-cooked cabbage, cucumber, bean sprouts, carrots, tofu and tempeh, drizzled in a creamy peanut dressing and topped with peanuts, sliced boiled eggs and garlic chips. At La Sarasa, it is typically served in a tortilla bowl (a tribute to the new mission headquarters). Joe explains that the crackers, unlike the tapioca served earlier, are padi oat crackers, made from the seeds of the melinio plant, a flowering plant native to East Asia, a typical Indonesian snack food with a slightly bitter taste.
The rendang was a slow-cooked “dry” stew that tasted great, although Joe freely admits that they don’t claim their food is authentic – it’s probably just too spicy for most people around here. When ordered alone, the rendang is served in a sourdough bowl, like our boudin bakery. Instead, it was served with a chunk of sourdough to sop up the juices, a nice touch but not really necessary for us. My only complaint with the rendang is that I found the texture of the beef to be a bit tough and woody.
The fried chicken smelled heavenly with the aroma of turmeric and lemongrass, the meat was moist and tender and the two large thighs were more than enough for five people to share. This dish will overwhelm you with its tangy flavour.
The fried egg noodles with tofu were chewy and delicious. The fragrant yellow coconut rice may have been my favorite of the evening, but it was joined by the excellent gulai greens, slow-cooked curry with curried collard greens and toasted cumin and cardamom that smelled almost horseradish-like to me, similar to broccoli rabe. This bowl of rice and greens is now on my desert island meal list (there are literally thousands of desert islands in Indonesia!).
Rasa Rasa doesn’t serve alcohol, but Joe told us we could walk across the street to the liquor store and pick up our favorite drink to go. A six-pack of Racer X IPA was the perfect pairing with this enticing, complex drink. We were all amazed, especially at $126 for dinner for five, and vowed to return.
On my second lunchtime visit, Joe explained that the afternoon menu was a little different – there were no share plates on offer – but I had my eye on the Ricarica Pork, and of course I ordered an extra bowl of coconut rice, intending to take the leftovers home for BF (which I did), and the Chicken Soto Kediri Soup, which came with a side of white rice.
Astaga! RezatBoth dishes had an exceptional depth of flavour. Lika Lika (pronounced “lee-sha-lee-sha”), as I understand it, is typically made with chicken, ground chillies, garlic, ginger and shallots. The Rasa Rasa variation uses pork belly (commonly known as babi lika) and is less spicy, with a pleasant sweet and sour flavour. Again, my only complaint is that the meat was a bit tough (unexpected for pork belly), but overall it was a sumptuous dish and one I would return to.
Soto Kediri is a traditional Indonesian chicken soup. Seasoned with three sacred ingredients – lemongrass, turmeric, ginger and lime leaves – the aromatic broth is topped with shredded raw cabbage, thinly sliced chicken and half a boiled egg floating in it, soaking up all the goodness. This is a soup that cures all ailments, real and imaginary.
The menu includes fried cassava, chicken satay, balado (eggplant and shrimp dish) and the occasional food truck shrimp laksa special. I was keen to try the roti bakar, a dessert of toasted buttered bread with condensed milk and chocolate sprinkles. They also have pineapple and milk cookies to take away.
I don’t have much experience with Indonesian food myself, so I’m very grateful that Rasa Rasa has brought new and vibrant flavours to the area, and I urge you all to join me here right now.
Lasalasa Kitchen
2200 Bryant Street
