Fairy Mahdzan: Bakso Bola Tenis! (Tennis Ball Meatballs!)

Strolling along near Djakarta Theatre in Sabang area, Jakarta.

Bakso Bola Tenis!

by Farah 'Fairy' Mahdzan

(21-Jan-2004) | Readers Say

Two people who read my tukang lewat article last year recommended that I try Blok S's bakso bola tenis, knowing very well that I would eventually make my way over to Indonesia and sample these famous balls of meat. Eight months later, in a quenchless thirst to share my unique Indonesian pop culture experience with you, I did just that.

It was an early sunny afternoon, a few days prior to Christmas. I hadn't had bakso in literally months, what more tennis ball-sized ones, so my anak Selatan friend Riga took me to the busy warung area where supposedly some of Jakarta's finest roadside siomay and bakso are served to flocking hungry lunch hunters.

The warung that serves these relatively colossal meatballs so loved by many Jakartans was a humble ensemble located on a corner that faced a hospital. "I was born in that hospital, Fai," said Riga nostalgically as she pointed to the Rumah Sakit (RS) Kebayoran building while expertly parallel-parking alongside a sidewalk. There was also a lapangan bola (football field) where rowdy boys were playing soccer bare-footed.

I was getting hungry, the sensation in the pit of my stomach magnifying as Riga and I walked casually towards the warung where it was slowly but steadily accumulating patrons by the dozens. No doubt about it, lunchtime was fast approaching!

And there they were, the famous hot meatballs cooking openly in a steamer, and lord, folks were right: they certainly were as big as tennis balls! I didn't have an actual tennis ball with me for comparison (wish I did!) but having attended enough tennis classes in secondary school (though not necessarily excelling in them), I estimated them to be about the size of an average woman's fist.

Riga placed her order with the mas-mas manning the food serving operation who in turn asked me what I wanted. I stood there gaping for a minute, not quite sure what to say. He had just served Riga a bakso bola tenis generously covered with siomay sauce, which really isn't the conventional way to eat the meatball. Typically bakso is eaten like a soup with egg or rice noodles. In a whirl of confusion and utter lack of creativity, I just decided to have exactly what Riga was having.

Juggling between her hot bowl and wallet, Riga counted some rupiah notes and handed them over to the bakso man, about eight thousand rupiahs I believe. By this time the place was bursting at its seams and there was nowhere for Riga and I to sit to enjoy our lunch. People were swarming the eatery like ants drawn to a cube of sugar! Then again, there weren't very many seats to sit on to begin with. "Makan di mobil ajak yuk, Fai," suggested Riga while motioning for me to walk to her car. We both finally resorted to eat in Riga's Volvo.

It was only once we settled in the car seats that I had a good look at our bakso bola tenis. "Duh, pantes baksonya gede-gede ya Sis, ada telor di dalamnya ternyata!" I said, snickering as Riga modeled with her bakso for me. Apparently, the bakso owed its size to the boiled egg that made its inner core, which reminded me very much of another Indonesian favorite food of mine, the pempek kapal selam.
A few weeks later when Riga and I were online looking through my digital photos in preparation for this article, we both got a kick out of that Mama Suka red print on her bowl. I asked Riga if it meant anything, then Riga said: "Alah, paling the abang-abang bakso got the bowl free from buying laundry detergent or powdered milk or something!" :D

We eyed frantically for a stable flat surface in the car to place our drinks; in the end we decided that the glove compartment door would have to do. No big surprises on what we had to drink for lunch that day. :)

Potty for Pempek Palembang!

WHAT READERS SAY ABOUT Bakso Bola Tenis!:

#50. DIMAS: Haha, I am so telling Riga!

Btw, I have met up with Galuh, very friendly and chatty girl! You're from Everyone Loves Irene? I've not actually heard your music but I know of the band.
Posted by Fairy on 20-Dec-2007, 07:44 MYT

#49. semua orang komentar bakso, saya komentar temannya fai (riga) lucu.. hihihi
Posted by dimas - Website on 18-Dec-2007, 11:49 MYT

#48. masih ada yang lebih gede lho! di daerah margahayu bandung pernah ada yang namanya bakso rudal. ukurannya super sampai satu mangkok cuma cukup buat bakso-nya aja plus sedikit kuah! dinamai bakso rudal karena kemunculannya berbarengan dengan perang teluk 2 waktu sengit-sengitnya patriot-scud bertarung di angkasa.
Posted by Kiko on 20-Oct-2007, 00:25 MYT

#47. saya sering di bellin bakso malang ama mas made di sesetan Bali tapi klo dia lagi seneng aja atinya. tapi anehnya dia hanya suka ama tahu ama gorengannya aja? orang yang aneh!! bakso malang emang yahudddd
Posted by sasmito - Website on 21-Jul-2007, 22:55 MYT

#46. When i eat bakso in my favorite restaurant there is also with meat balls and other kind of fried balls but not from meat. the are very hard before to serve they cut them in 4 . do u know the resep of those ball ( dari tepung mungkin)
Posted by opal on 28-Jun-2007, 22:29 MYT

#45. Wadduuuhhh...baksooo ..pengeeeeenn pulaang ..apalagi bakso isi teloor...uuueeennnaa aakkkk.....kat sini tak de...kalo ada di jamin luuariizz......yg beli aku doank....hehhehheheh e....
Posted by hardanni - Website on 5-Jun-2007, 17:03 MYT

#44. gue hobi makan bakso
Posted by defry on 31-Mar-2007, 22:14 MYT

#43. aku kangen maem bakso malang di kota malang (nama daerahnya lupa) waktu itu di ajak temenku pas lg maen ke malang. pokoknya seberang jalan, deket apotik, mau ke arah terminal. baksonya gedee.... trus dipotong2nya pake gunting gede sama mas2 yg jual. kuahnya dikit krn kebanyakan yg makan senengnya gak pake kuah, pake piring kecil unt taruh saos dan sambel. trus baksonya di colek2 ke saos itu.... kayak makan somay...
pokoknya enak....!!!

Posted by sheentaa on 8-Nov-2005, 10:50 MYT

#42. aku ga suka banget ma bakso'tp kalo yg namanya bakso tennis pasti akan ku makan,karna aku jauh dr tanah air'aku pernah 2 x mencoba membuat bakso pd saat musim dingin.walaupun ga enak2 banget tp perasaan bakso buatanku ga ada duanya ha ha ha ....
Posted by sabrina - Website on 9-Aug-2005, 07:07 MYT

#41. aku jualan baso daging sapi murni, tanpa pemutih, pengawet, pengenyal dan vettsin.
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Posted by lahmul on 28-May-2005, 22:57 MYT

#40. Eh .... gue gak suka banget tuh ama bakso gara2 dulu pernah heboh di pasar minggu dagingnya pake daging tikus hihi tapi suer deh gue liat sendiri tikus2nya abis dipotong sereeeeeeem end jijaj deh tapi yah ... terserah elo orang deh yang doyan makan bakso! tapi saran gue kalo mo mkn sesuatu/bakso gak usahlah liat2 ke belakang/dapurnya abis suka jorok jadi gak napsu tuh !!!! met nikmati bakso yah ..... jangan bakso abangnya elo makan dijilatin aja hehe abis enak sih bakso abangnya alias bijinya ....
Posted by dewi gayatri on 14-Feb-2005, 12:51 MYT

#39. aduhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh hh,, gw jd laper nehhhhhhh,, udah gitu jauh dr tanah airrrrrrrr lg, terus tuh biji yg geuude di pampang sampe ngilerrrrrrr negh,,,,,,,,, awass deh tuh abang bakso, klo gw balik ke indo ,gw langsung tancap nomor satu di warung abang,,,,, ,,,,,,,,, ,,,,,,,,,

tungguin ya bang, jgn kabur lho,,,

Posted by linda on 21-Jan-2005, 22:30 MYT

#38. Aduh....kapan ya saya bisa makan bakso lagi, di Hawaii enggak ada yang jual Bakso,I jadi sedih nih,(
Posted by girlie on 3-Jan-2005, 12:42 MYT

#37.
gw pecinta berat bakso
gw pernah nyoba baso tenis yang gak kalah enak sama baso pak kumis
bener2 uenaaaak bgt
tp ada ga yng mau bawa sample free buat gw hehehe tengkyuh be4
Posted by qist on 28-Nov-2004, 18:44 MYT

#36. Bakso bola tennis ya?? Klo mnrt g sih enak nya ya lmyn lah ga enak2 bgt tp gedhenya itu loh!! G lebih suka mkn bakso malang yg di bali di....mana ya lupa.... Klo di blok S enakan sate ayamnya!!! Waaaa....
Posted by oopps on 5-Oct-2004, 14:16 MYT

#35. Tolong kasih tau cara bikin bakso tenis dong...makasih ya...
Posted by wida on 2-Oct-2004, 12:30 MYT

#34.
OHH TIDAAKKK!!
Bakso lagi, bakso lagi...Sorry ya Fai, hari ini gue lagi bosen ama bakso soalnya...hari ini gue baru ngelahap dua mangkok penuh sih

biasalah, ada 2 tukang bakso baru. Jadi kudu nyobain bakso yang dijualnya...gue kasih nilai 5 dan 5.8 ... Maap ya Bang!
Posted by roedi on 24-Feb-2004, 23:58 MYT

#33. for those looking for bakso -selling stalls... there are tonnes here in JB...alongside jalan skudai heading south before Angsana... at Plaza Angsana itself i believe there are quite a few bakso& pecel selling stalls in the food court..great ya? altho tak sesedap original bakso...will do!!
Posted by Izyan Iryani on 21-Feb-2004, 02:49 MYT

#32. sori for the long draft....
when i wanna reply the hotmail got problem sending it to ur address. i dun y?? im so curious on ur question after the all i written... Wat r u thinking in ur mind actually?????

Kalau about the Baso in this review, i would to say "kangen banget deh' u dah lama nggak makan... eeemmm..
Posted by man on 17-Feb-2004, 22:19 MYT

#31. Hi Fai,
Dah lama tak visit website u. Being bz lately. How's new office? Anyway, your story about food makin lama makin mengancam, especially yg pasal Bakso ni. What can i Say, Bakso is one of the most delicious food on earth i've ever tried. First time try kat rumah my friend kat Sg. Buluh....peh! Sedap banget! AMong the best in the world. Britney Spears lalu depan mata pun boleh tak perasaan. Hehehee
Posted by anen on 17-Feb-2004, 21:30 MYT

#30. TASIA: No, bakso is really just meatballs. Usually eaten as a soup. You can also eat it by itself or with siomay or pecal sauce, but usually bakso is eaten with noodles.

MAN: I just responded to your post. Hope you get my email.

FIEZA: Ok dokie.
Posted by Fairy on 15-Feb-2004, 01:10 MYT

#29. Erm...I have never eaten this before...Look delicious ..Hey Fairy, come and see my blog if u got a free time..But mind you..it is not nice and interesting as yours..
Posted by F|eZa - Website on 13-Feb-2004, 15:08 MYT

#28. forgotten hope u can answer in my hotmail since u got so many articles which i might confused to which articles that i had written to
Posted by man on 13-Feb-2004, 00:48 MYT

#27. at last can b posted here...
by the way Fairy, elo tinggal dmana si???
Gue d ss1, U???? i got a few indonesians friends probably u can meet..chatting, going somewhere wit them.. sometimes dun have idea to bring them around as u now not much place to go in our country compare to indonesia... Gue kangen banget deh pengen ke indonesia. soal nya udah lama sih nggak ke sana
Posted by Man on 13-Feb-2004, 00:45 MYT

#26. wuuuuu..sedap gile bakso nih..i try this before when i was in indonesia last year...this is the best...tapi takpe,bulan 5 aku kesana lagi..so must eat the bakso banyak-banyak..hihih iiiiii
Posted by tajeyda on 10-Feb-2004, 08:56 MYT

#25. I never eaten Bakso before, I wanna try even it doesn't look delicious!can somebody bring me to any bakso Stalls!pls call me up/..012-2566653
Posted by siti falindah on 9-Feb-2004, 16:35 MYT

#24. fairy, bakso ni macam cucur ke? and then put some soup on it?
Posted by tasia on 5-Feb-2004, 14:30 MYT

#23. Far,
I finally can make my own 'Pempek Palembang' - see the pictures in my blog
Posted by SyL - Website on 2-Feb-2004, 09:39 MYT

#22. first time look at it?shd we it?huh? sedap ke?macam rojak di malaysia ye
Posted by mawar - Website on 31-Jan-2004, 11:18 MYT

#21. had it for breakfast at a friends house before i went back to malaysia.

pelik at first. but nyummy.

tapi bakhwan jalan cikutra menjadi pujaan hati ku!
Posted by zack on 30-Jan-2004, 02:17 MYT

#20. Lutfi: No lah, but if you have one do share.
Posted by Fairy on 29-Jan-2004, 17:37 MYT

#19. fairy.. tak de resepi bakso ke kali ni?
Posted by lutfi on 29-Jan-2004, 07:47 MYT

#18. andre agassi would be the perfect spokesperson for bakso bola tennis..

"Get your bakso tennis balls quick lunch, it'll make a champion out of you"

HAHAHAH
Posted by ikram - Website on 29-Jan-2004, 01:49 MYT

#17. why am i reading this during lunch time? lapar.. *tummy is growling*.. never had that humungous bakso.. pasti enakkk banget with lots calories and fatt.. yummy.. yummy.. i wish the bakso will fall from the sky.. lapar.. lapar.. i hope one day if i ever play tennis, i won't imagine the green tennis balls turning into a bakso..
Posted by dinna - Website on 28-Jan-2004, 02:04 MYT

#16. Arry: Iya sudah saya sudah cuba gado-gado and soto ayam betawi. Tidak terlalu seneng tempoyak, unfortunately.

Comel in Bhs Msia means cute, kalau equivalentnya di Bhs Indonesia itu lucu, dalam arti anak kecil yang lucu, kucing lucu, etc.
Posted by Fairy on 28-Jan-2004, 00:36 MYT

#15. hmmm...bakso tenis...enak sihkamu udah coba gado gado atau soto ayam betawi, tempoyak or etc?
btw...numpang nanya cik fairy....ape artinye kate "comel" dalam bahasa indonesia?saya sering menemukan kata kata "comel" dalam website milik orang malaysia atau dalam acara acara drama di TV2/TV3.......does "comel" mean handsome or cute?

Posted by arry on 27-Jan-2004, 23:53 MYT

#14. Hiddenhate: Saya pernah dengar juga orang ngomong kalau bakso itu makanan cewe, gara2 porsinya sedikit dan tidak bakal buat para cowok kenyang. Saya juga suka mie ayam lho, jangan salah. Yang mie-nya kuning and kriting duh enak, ada tuh tukang lewat paforit saya di Bukit Duri.
Posted by Fairy on 27-Jan-2004, 12:56 MYT

#13. walau bukan penikmat bakso
saya tertarik dengan artikel bakso bola tenis anda
however, saya lebih suka mie ayam/mie pangsit

menurut hemat saya, ada perbedan antara bakso dan mie ayam
bakso itu makanan kesukaan cewe
dan
mie ayam itu makanan kesukaan cowo

ah itu hanya rumus ngaco saya saja
Posted by hiddenhate on 27-Jan-2004, 12:25 MYT

#12. Duh, Fairy... pengennnnnn... ni review is so well-written as if the bakso were in front of me!
Posted by Lina - Website on 27-Jan-2004, 08:09 MYT

#11. Indah: Iya harus ngantri emang. Untungnya waktu saya di sana kemarin sama Riga, masih ga terlalu parah. Pas kita udah beli baksonya, waoahhh. Ramai!

Suria: Ha? Batu and kayu? Ada2 saja!

Kurtney: Amboi, banyaknya permintaan.
Posted by Fairy on 26-Jan-2004, 13:09 MYT

#10. bakso yg di blok S itu emang enak mbak Fairy. tpi belinya musti antriiiiiii...
Posted by indah on 26-Jan-2004, 10:00 MYT

#9. Hmm... Bakso..
Bakso yang di rumah saya ialah Bakso Banyuwangi. Yeah, you guess it, the seller is from Banyuwangi..
Tapi tak ada telur di dalam meat ball nya. Nanti saya cadangkan pada dia. I think for me to minat bakso is to eat bakso with Fairy. She describes food like no other. Batu dan kayu pun boleh nampak sedap kalau Fairy yang ceritakan! Ha Ha Ha!

Yang tension assignment tak siap lagi,
Suria.
Posted by suria on 25-Jan-2004, 23:27 MYT

#8. Yup, been there, makan there.. Yng bestnya tntg mkn di Blok S, bukan saja boleh makan di tempat yng disediakan, bahkan boleh bawak makan dalam mobil. Ada yng naik BMW tapi still choose to makan there. Alamak Fai, one more suggestion, terbitkan another book on Savour Fair, the best makan place in Indonesia.
Posted by kurtney on 25-Jan-2004, 13:56 MYT

#7. bakso mmg umph!!
Posted by lutfi on 25-Jan-2004, 07:57 MYT

#6. bakso memang leker berat deh....wuih, bikin ngeces aja lo....
Posted by Zuleha on 24-Jan-2004, 13:40 MYT

#5. Far,
MMMMhhh....... Mandalay lagi dingin sekali sekarang - makan bakso tennis nikmat banget kali ya, Far.

Posted by SyL - Website on 24-Jan-2004, 12:23 MYT

#4. makan bakso akh...
Posted by anu on 23-Jan-2004, 20:11 MYT

#3. Wah sorry lah Bagas, abisnya...
Posted by Fairy on 23-Jan-2004, 18:31 MYT

#2. wadoohhh...gila, fai..fai...tega banget sih nulis bakso! air liur tak henti menetes membayangkan hangatnya bakso pedas di winter yang dingin ini..hikss..
Posted by bagas on 23-Jan-2004, 18:23 MYT

#1. bakso tennis nikmat sangat deh..
Posted by jundi on 23-Jan-2004, 18:14 MYT

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