At Warung Indo, Indonesian Cuisine Is the Star of the Show | Eater Houston

When Ida and Robin Edwards opened Warung Indo in 2022 in a Sugar Land strip-mall, I saw it quickly become a hub for Indonesian families seeking traditional, familiar cuisine. Ida centers the flavors of her native Central Java while also preparing soups and stews from Sumatra and seafood from Gorontalo, insisting on ingredients like galangal, makrut lime, and fried shallots to showcase a centuries-old cuisine rather than a hybridized American interpretation. Nasi campur at the restaurant features white rice topped with a generous portion of beef rendang (a Sumatran beef stew), a saucy mix of tempeh and chopped vegetables, and a boiled egg marinated in a sambal of chili, onion, garlic, and spices, served alongside a piquant orange broth with carrots and chopped green beans. The nasi goreng is presented with anchovies and a quintessential fried egg—where the anchovies’ saltiness melts into the egg to produce a sharp, slightly acidic bite in fragrant fried rice. Her soto ayam follows the national style—golden with turmeric and infused with coriander, galangal, lemongrass, and makrut lime—simmered for three hours and finished with bean sprouts, tomato, thin cabbage slices, eggs, and vermicelli. For dessert and refreshment, es cendol features rice- and tapioca-based green jelly strips saturated in palm sugar syrup and pandan (the pandan provides the core vanilla-like sweetness, with green food coloring enhancing the brightness). A visually striking banana-leaf–wrapped dish showcases grilled rice and chicken seasoned with chili, jalapeño, red and green peppers, onion, garlic, galangal, ginger, and lemongrass, briefly microwaved so the banana leaf’s flavor seeps in before baking and serving—a true feast and visual delight. - Kayla Stewart