Despite the limited space available in downtown Saratoga, several hole-in-the-wall restaurants are surprisingly impressive. Indo Cafe is one of these places.

The Indonesian restaurant is hidden behind the UPS store in downtown. It faces a back parking lot, hiding it from passersby;  customers must walk down the alley between the Rose Market and Mio Vicino to find it. Since the restaurant is so hidden, we came to know about it only after looking through Yelp for restaurants to eat at for lunch.

The restaurant has one a few tables, but its menu is extensive. They have small plates, sides, curries, rice combos and an original list of drinks and pastries.

It felt more like eating in someone’s kitchen, as the kitchen was exposed and the tables were not formally set. Customers looked relaxed in the informal environment.

We ordered both the vegetable curry and the padang rice combo. The curry, which was $11, was very tasty and can be ordered spicy or mild. Included in this dish was bamboo shoot, an unusual ingredient that added a great flavor. The rice combo, also $11, included steamed rice, beef rendang, chili egg, chicken saté and young jackfruit curry. A variety of other spices and flavors completed the dish, making it a customer favorite.

For dessert, we ordered the cafe’s only offering, bubur campur. For $8 we were afraid it might be a bust, but we were pleasantly surprised by the combination of rice pudding, mochi and black glutinous rice pudding. The dessert was an explosion of sweet flavors and we both came to the same conclusion that it was the best part of our meal.

Although the restaurant is hard to find, the food makes the experience worth it. The food is priced reasonably as a majority of it contains meat and rare ingredients. So next time you find yourself wondering where to eat next, just make a quick stop to Indo Cafe for an amazing meal.