Umabo (Wijaya): A Humble Establishment Specializing in Burgers & Rice Bowls

Tucked in the quiet Wijaya road (which I suspect will get busier soon with joints such as this, Beezy Kaffee & Typology paving the way), Umabo is a small & simple establishment boasting serious meals with decent price.

 The wooden decor is humble; nothing extravagant or intimidating.

The waitresses will give you a physical menu, but you order through an iPad, which is then recorded by the cashier. An interesting touch.

Umabo’s main favorite, recommended to me, was…

Steroid Burger. 180gr medium-cooked patty, half-done sunny side up, lettuce, cheese, a little tomato sauce, pickles. IDR 65k.


This is a simple yet serious burger. No side-dishes like french fries or anything, only pickles.

This is Umabo’s definition of medium-cooked patty. Notice there is a degree of pink color retained. As I ate it, the meat character is very apparent; I think that alone speaks volumes about its quality.

The half-done egg splattered instantly as I grabbed the burger gently. I’m not sure how it’s supposed to be; I think it’s meant to be smashed inside the burger. In any case, it adds to an interesting flavor.
The buns are too dry, though. Like they’ve been in storage for too long.

But well enough, it was the patty that kept me wanting for more. I think it’s not common that beef patty is given utmost attention.

Above the kitchen window there are steps elaborating how Umabo procures its meat supply, detailing a serious effort in ensuring meat quality. I find this respectable.

Aside from the food, Umabo houses an award winning barista. There is a placate & a trophy placed inside the restaurant, priding the award. So I tried the coffee.

Ice Caffe Latte. IDR 20k.

I won’t pretend to know anything about coffee. In fact the only coffee I drink anywhere is ice caffe latte, though I drink quite a lot of it. This is one of the nicer ones I’ve tried. It’s very good. The coffee flavor is discernible, despite the amount of milk. I was considering to order another one.

Dessert. Home-made Custard Salted-Caramel Ice Cream. IDR 15k.

Unexpectedly, this caramel ice cream tasted nice. A good, simple way to end a meal. I couldn’t taste any saltiness though; this is just caramel ice cream.

I didn’t really get the pop corns. Are they supposed to add a little crunchiness to the ice cream? Because these ones aren’t crunchy at all. Maybe this is where the saltiness is supposed to come from.

A three course lunch cost me IDR 112,200 in total. A reasonable price. I know many upscale burger joints would charge almost twice the price for the same order.

I really liked the burger patty. The buns are a bit of a let-down, but essentially the patty is the core of every burger. You can spice up a burger with various side-dishes, strange sauces, ‘unique’ condiments, but at the end of the day it’s the meat that matters most.

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Location: Jalan Wijaya, across Beezy Kaffee, close to the intersection with Wolter Monginsidi.