Sate your craving for Indonesian sate at Pak Pong

Sate or satay is a national dish of Indonesia, and is also popular around Southeast Asia. It is essentially seasoned diced meat dish that is skewered, grilled, and served with peanut sauce. The satay of Yogyakarta is called Sate Klatak. It refers to goat meat skewered using bicycle spokes. No, it is not taken from bicycles, but that is how Indonesians describe the long piece of metal used to skewer the meat. 

The pioneer of Sate Klatak is Pak Pong Restaurant. Pak Pong, the owner, has continued the legacy of his great grandfather who had been selling satay since 1965. Later, his grandfather changed the skewer material from bamboo to bicycle spokes so that the heat would be transmitted evenly around the meat. He explained that the word ‘klatak’ comes from the sound when coarse salt is poured over the meat on the charcoal: “Klatak! Klatak!” 

 

Pak Pong’s open kitchen is by the roadside and you can see the smoke from the distance. When you pass it, the smell of grilled meat lures you to come inside to eat. One portion of Sate Klatak consist of two big chunks of meat skewers. They only use salt, shallots and candlenuts to season the meat. It comes with a bowl of light curry soup and steamed rice. Compared to other Sate Klatak restaurants, the meat here is more tender, juicier, and not spicy. It is very tasty, so I always order more! Their other best-selling menu that I always order is Gulai or beef curry soup, which tastes a bit spicy and tasty. The common drink is hot tea from loose leaves.

 

Pak Pong is not a fancy restaurant, but it can accommodate around 100 people in the huts, with seating on the carpet and open-air area with chairs. It can get quite crowded, so be prepared to queue, especially on weekends around 7pm.