Must-Visit Empal Gentong Eateries in Cirebon

EN - need to have a recreation to unwind themselves from daily routine. Although a restriction is still imposed on overseas trip due to the pandemic, other alternatives are available to choose. For example, you can travel within the country.

You can try visiting places within your reach by various types of vehicles. For those who reside in Jakarta, you can travel to the nearest tourist regions, such as Cirebon. It’s located on the north coast and offers various charming spots and culinary dishes you must relish.

For art and culture enthusiasts, you can visit many palaces in Cirebon. The palaces here are the only existing ones in West Java. Palaces, which were used as the center of government in the past, is now the heart of local art and culture to preserve its national heritage. Three palaces you must visit in the weekends, including Keraton Kasepuhan, Keraton Kanoman, and Keraton Kacirebonan.

After exploring the cultural center, you should try the popular Cirebon culinary famously, empal gentong. This traditional dish with coconut soup rich in spices and filled with beef is best served warm. In Cirebon, there are a few recommended places you can visit to try this, which is said to be served only for nobles.

1. Empal Gentong H. Apud

The first legendary Empal Gentong you can visit is on Jalan Juanda. Empal Gentong H. Apud is one of the popular eateries among visitors from outside of Cirebon due to its strategic location and a large parking lot. Not to mention the air here is cool even though Cirebon is located in an area with a pretty hot weather.

There are two recommended dishes on the menu, empal gentong with richly spiced yellow coconut soup and empal asem with clear soup. Established since 1995, a serving of empal gentong costs Rp23,000. Besides its mouth-watering taste, Empal Gentong H. Apud has two other branches on Jalan Otista and Jalan Tuparev Cirebon.

2. Empal Gentong Krucuk

Although serving the same food, Empal Gentong Krucuk is special because it’s sprinkled with slices of chives and chili powder on top of the empal gentong. In addition, the empal gentong here is cooked on a clay pot with hot coals from dry tamarind wood. So many people visit this place due to its distinctive and unique taste.

A serving of empal gentong with beef costs Rp22,000. You can find the location of Empal Gentong Krucuk beside the Krucuk BTN bank, on Jalan Slamet Riyadi, Kesenden, Kejaksan Cirebon.

3. Empal Gentong Mang Darma

Also located in Krucuk, this restaurant is more popular due to its old age. Established since 1948, Empal Gentong Mang Darma is believed to be the first eatery that sells empal gentong in Cirebon. Initially Mang Darma was peddled around, but after a few years, it settled on a location on Jalan Slamet Riyadi, Krucuk, Cirebon, which is still used up to present. 

By maintaining its unique taste and traditional processing methods, this eatery has noticeably survived until today. Now Empal Gentong Mang Darma has been inherited to the fourth generation. One serving of empal gentong with slices of lontong costs Rp20,000.

For those of you who crave to taste this beef dish, you are better advised to use your private vehicle to have more mobility in visiting those locations. Alternatively, you can use car rental services in Cirebon from TRAC, which ensures the cleanliness and hygiene of its vehicles with SMART PROTOCOL.

The strict health protocol includes spraying vehicles regularly with disinfectant before and after usage, ensuring that all drivers on duty have gone through health checks, and requiring them to use masks and gloves, providing hand sanitizers for passengers, to implementing physical distancing by limiting the total of passengers.

In addition, TRAC enables you to rent various types of vehicles according to your needs, such as motorcycles for solo traveling, cars with self-drive or defensive driving certified drivers, cars for up to four people for family trips, and buses with various sizes for group trips.

To ease your booking process, you can download the TRAC To Go application on the Google Play Store or Apple Apps Store. Various features in TRAC To Go help you to plan and book your transportation easily, safely, and comfortably, anytime and anywhere.

Download TRAC To Go now for your convenience. For more information, contact TRAC Customer Assistance Center at 1500 009.