Lake Toba Food and Drink

Lake Toba food and drink is spectacular. Restaurants and cafes are easy to find on Lake Toba. Check out our Destinations pages for their names and addresses on the map. Most of them serve Batak culinary such as Arsik, Gomak noodle, fried carp, etc. Other favorite food includes Nasi Goreng (fried rice), satay, corn, and soup. The most popular drinks are coffee and the local wines called tuak. See Batak Culinary.

Western Food

Western restaurants such as KFC, McDonald’s, and PizzaHut do not exist on Lake Toba, Samosir, or Bukit Lawang. But western food such as fried chicken, mashed potatoes, fish fillets, and french fries are served by restaurants in most hotels.

Chinese Food

Other than spicy and fried noodle, there is hardly Chinese food on Lake Toba, Samosir, or Bukit Lawang. Chinese and Singaporeans traveling to Lake Toba should try to adapt to local food. But most menus offered in local restaurants would include noodle in some forms.

Indian and Middle Eastern Food

Indian and Middle Eastern food is famous for its curry spices. Restaurants in the area of Lake Toba are short of this food. If you are a vegetarian, choices for you are limited to salads, corn, and white rice.

Halal Food

The residents are predominantly Christians. Most local restaurants serve pork or other ingredients not allowed for Muslims. But many restaurants also post “halal” signs on the storefronts to show that they have halal menus. If you look for restaurants that serve only halal menus, check for the sign issued by the Indonesian Ulema Council (Majelis Ulama Indonesia or MUI). It looks like this:

See also Language & Culture on Lake Toba.