Kuta

I came here with my roommate for dinner on a Sunday night.
It was pretty tiny, but it didn’t feel to claustrophobic.
we got the pot stickers as an appetizer, and they were delicious.
Both of our entrees were great and very flavorful.
My roommate had two cocktails and she liked both very much.
The thai iced tea was fine.
The cocktails could be a little cheaper mostly because they don’t actually have hard liquor in them. they are all made with soju or sake, and they aren’t very strong at all.
I would come back for sure. I think it would be a good date place.

I came on Thursday night for a hangout with a friend, I really liked the atmosphere, it doesn’t seat too many but this was perfect! Good low lighting, great service, the staff opened the door for us when we arrived and left and was very attentive to us without being overbearing. We shared 2 peanut satays which were amazing, and had the duck which was a little fatty but still delicious.
The Indonesian beer was great and I really liked all the recommendations the waiter suggested, he seemed to be really interested in us having a good experience, I would say that that’s not just him, but the vibe of the place.
The dessert was unique, fried banana with sesame seeds and chocolate, it wasn’t amazing, but unique and that’s why he recommended we should try because you can get fried ice-​cream anywhere (good thoughts sir!)
A must try!
I did not have a chance to see the bathrooms, I will have to go back (this is key in all places I review).

Came here with a group of girlfriends on a Tuesday night so we had the whole place to ourselves until a couple came in halfway through our meal. The service was great and the ambiance was very warm and cozy – perfect for a chilly January evening.
I ordered the 3-​course prix-​fix menu: curry puffs, pad see ew with beef, and fried ice cream. The curry puffs and pad see ew were just okay; I preferred my friend’s salmon. I definitely recommend the fried ice cream.

Food was so-​so and without a groupon coupon I don’t think I would come back again. My friend and I ordered the lamb tandoori and chicken satay. The chicken had great flavor but the lamb tandoori was cold when it was served to us. The Thai iced tea was great and the ginger tea I ordered was nice and hot and served in a tea pot but tasted like candied ginger. Not exactly something I want to drink.
My friend ordered the kuta burger which came with fries and I ordered the duck udon in curry. Both came with a salad. The burger was great-​it came with grilled pineapple and the beef perfectly cooked. The salad dressing was way too strong, it tasted like a sugary raspberry which was way too sweet for my palette and my friend’s. The duck udon curry was so so. The noodles were still stuck together like they were frozen and not stirred and the vegetables tasted icy. It was pretty disappointing but the duck came out crispy and fatty, the way duck is supposed to be. I took half of the duck curry home and honestly, it tasted so much better as leftovers when I jazzed it up a bit.
For dessert we had the fried coconut vanilla ice cream which was amazing. So, I’m glad I came because I was always curious about this place but I wouldn’t come back again unless I had a coupon.

Good
Portions
And service
With entrees from
Ten to twenty bucks. Intimate, tasty.

Cute place, intimate setting. I’ve been here about 3 times now (thanks to KGBdeals).
My take: You’re better off ordering from the regular menu (instead of pri-​fixe). They allot bigger portions for their regular entrees and you can just share a satay appetizer… trust me, you’ll be full by the end of the meal and you’ll be saving yourself a few $ too.

Loved Kuta’s Indonesian/​fusion thing. My trip to this LES outpost was spurred (as many of my meals these days) by a Scoutmob coupon for 50% off. The staff honored it and even offered to honor it in combination with the $ 25 prix fixe, which my friend and I declined. Instead, we opted to start with a bottle of unfiltered Negiri sake (interesting cloudy white body and a sweetish finish).
For food, we kicked things off with spicy chicken and lamb satays (they are all good, you can’t go wrong). My entrée was the Sumatra Beef Rendang (braised spicy beef, coconut Milk, tricolor potatoes, jasmine rice). It was tender and served in a spicy red broth, just right. For dessert, I had the sweet coconut sticky rice wrapped in [I believe} lotus leaf.
The room is small but tasteful with brick wall and dark, semi-​romantic tones: not too original, but fits right in on the LES. I hope they get a lot of business; the kitchen definitely knows what it’s doing.

Earlier in the summer I visited Kuta — a «fancy» Indonesian restaurant on the Lower East Side. While Indonesian food is distinct in its own right, there is some overlap with Singaporean/​Malaysian cuisine. I had a Singaporean with me that night, and he was prepared for the real deal. How did Kuta live up?
We first started with the the Curry Puff, stuffed with chicken, onions, carrots, potato and peanut sauce in a flaky pastry. Curry puffs sell on the street in Singapore for about $ 1 — here we had two curry puffs for $ 7. Would Kuta’s spin on this humble snack warrant the 3.5x price difference? (Granted, we don’t have to hop on a plane to Singapore to get this puff.)
Alright, I’ll be honest — $ 7 for this dish is not outrageous by NYC standards (though it is outrageous for most places outside NYC). However, just knowing that these puffs were priced at such a premium was a little disheartening. Eventually, this fact didn’t stop me from eating them. Yeah, I got over it.
We also had the Indonesian Madura Satay. Kuta had quite an extensive satay menu, so I had high hopes for this appy. Satay, or «meat on sticks» as I so maturely call it, is usually not my fave — the meat is sometimes over-​cooked and tough. However, Kuta knew their stuff for this one — the chicken was juicy, tender and flavorful. I’d recommend.
Our final starter was the «Jimbaran» Crab Cake, with lump crabmeat, red & green bell pepper, onion and spicy aioli. The cake was nicely seasoned without being overly salty, with large chunks of crab meat. The aioli provided a creamy tang to the seafood.
The first entrée was the «Indonesian» Nasi Goreng of chicken fried rice, fried egg, sweet soy sauce, and beef madura satay (first picture). The quotes around «Indonesian» confused me — after all, this is a traditional Indonesian dish. Anyway. Nasi Goreng is a type of fried rice — this one was not bad, although it relied a little more on the soy sauce than the Nasi Goreng I’ve sampled previously.
The second entrée was the Seafood Laksa, with shrimp, squid, mixed vegetables and pineapple in a spicy coconut curry. I LOVE laksa. Whenever it’s on the menu, I order it — there’s something about the sweet creamy coconut and the warm spice of the curry that is so satisfying. Kuta’s version was pretty good, but the portion was a little small — I’m used to my giant hulking bowls of laksa.
For dessert, we ordered the Coconut Crusted Fried Ice Cream, with raspberry sauce and pineapple. Decidedly not authentic, it was nonetheless excellent. I mean come on, ice cream + fried? Count me in.
Kuta was fine. The food was not bad; the restaurant is trendy in that «Lower East Side trendy restaurant» way — the consequence of which is smaller portions for higher prices. I’d recommend Kuta for the scene, knowing that you will not get the most authentic Indonesian fare. If you do decide to stop by, make reservations — the restaurant is small.
Not the most authentic, but not bad.

I was looking for unique eateries on the Lower East Side for a dinner with one of my friends. Though I had a mixed experience at an Indonesian restaurant in the past, I thought I would give it another try. I came across Kutra, which infused that cuisine with influences from Thailand and Malaysia. I also saw that they served alcohol and offered a $ 25 prix-​fixe dinner, so how could I go wrong with that!
My friend and I arrived at the tiny restaurant and scored one of the two high-​top tables near the window. We each ordered a fruity cocktail and reviewed our options for the multiple courses ahead of us. We were first asked to choose two satay skewers, which would be served with a cucumber relish. My friend’s Korean Kalbi short ribs were a bit chewy, but their glaze of Asian pear, soy sauce, and sesame oil was full of sharp flavor. The Chicken Tandoori sticks were much more tender. Each chunk of meat had been seasoned with nutmeg and paprika, and an accompanying yogurt dipping sauce acted as a the perfect cooling agent.
We were then tasked with deciding on an additional starter. While my dining companion munched on the surprisingly flavorful Crab Cake, I gnawed on a mediocre salad of tofu, jicama, apple, peanut, and sesame mixed with a chili lime vinaigrette. However, I then moved on to some fabulous Pad See Ew with Chicken. The tender meat and moist noodles were texturally contrasted by Chinese broccoli. The sweet soy sauce marinade was a delight. My friend’s Spicy Seafood Laksa was a spicy, sweet blend of shrimp, squid, and mixed vegetables, tossed with pineapple and an aromatic coconut curry.
Our meal culminated with something sweet. My Chocolate Explosion
cake was as decadent as it sounded. Three layers of rich chocolate mousse were drizzled with a tart raspberry sauce. A giant dome of fried ice cream had a crisp crust that easily broke apart to release oozing, creamy vanilla ice cream.
On a whole, Kutra offered a fabulous dining deal in an intimate space. The relaxed atmosphere and affordable prices elevated the star-​rating of what might otherwise be considered a mediocre restaurant.

My friend and I took advantage of a Dealist offer: $ 20 for an app, salad, entrée, dessert and drink. We ordered two satays to start. Both the chicken and beef were perfectly cooked. Our entrée dishes were great as well (I got the Saigon Beef and my friend got the Pad Thai). The portions were small, but thank God. I know I have a lot of stomach real estate, but not enough to house 4 courses. Kinda weak that the only dessert offered on the pre fix was a scoop of ice cream. For $ 2-​$ 3 more my friend upgraded to the Chocolate mousse and I got the coconut fried ice cream. Because really, after 3 courses I really needed the fried ice cream.
Cute find on the LES. I would definitely come back.

Came here with our groupon. If groupon prices were standard, this place would be a 4 star… but for $ 50 it’s not quite worth it. so i’m giving it a 3 star. fiancé and i got
— the chicken wing appetizers (average. seems like they just pour a sweet thai chili sauce all over the wings)
— heavenly kuta satay (very good! but small)
— SPICY DRUNKEN NOODLE (best item of the night! delicious)
— sumatra beef rendang (WAY overhyped. this was just average)
— deep fried ice cream (ooh, a MUST! just $ 2 more to up the ice cream that comes with the pre fixe to the deep fried, coconut variety. yumm)
probably wouldn’t come again, but it was worth 1 trip out. also, there was NO wait on a saturday night, which was surprising. i was under the impression that the wait was horrible here.

KUTA = Kinda Underestimated This Area
Honestly, I didn’t know there was such a neighborhood that had Chinese, hipsters, slight gangsters in training, and Latinos all within a three block radius of this place living in perfect harmony. It’s amazing what happens on the other side of Chinatown huh?
My Groupon led me and a good guy friend here and we couldn’t have been more pleased with the place, but there was something that my guy pal did point out that did bother me — they had arranged tables so closely packed in the place that one table was right up against the door of an emergency exit.
If the roof, the roof was on fire, I sure as hell hoped there’d be water because that mother fcuker would BURN us and the whole place into ash. Really alarming; hope they fix it.
We had the lycheetini and the bali lemonade for the $ 5 special during Happy Hour from 5 – 7 PM and didn’t care for the bali lemonade as much as I did the –tini; eat the lychee hiding at the bottom of the glass! Had the chicken tandoori satay and the Malaysian Chicken satay with my drunken man noodle and his kung-​pow like chicken.
WHERE’S THE SPICE?! UGHHHH!!! I’ve been having this problem and should have suspected that since white people served us that this should have been expected. :sigh: Only Sea can apparently do this correctly.
Take the Groupon next time though to make this worth it, because I can’t see coming here when you can go get something much more flavorful.

They have got to promise to fix the AC before I get back here.
The food was a hit or miss. It is easy to say that they called their food Indonesian Fusion since they can’t really cook real Indonesian food. It seem home cooking food prepared with packet spices easily tasted better.
I use two dishes to check on Indonesian restaurant. Their Rendang and the basic Satay. Sorry to say Kuta blew it on both.
The service was a bit disorganized and they refused a single diner when half of the resto was empty (table for two is preferable).

I had the pleasure of experiencing Kuta last night through Groupon and my boyfriend who took me there on a date. When we walked in, the space was empty and I was surprised by the size. Kuta is a very tiny L shaped restaurant whose kitchen takes up a large block of the space. There are also some seats outside and the doors that form the front wall of the restaurant open so you feel like you’re outdoors even when you’re inside.
When we arrived to Kuta at 6:30pm the restaurant was empty. By the time we left, around 7:30pm, it was bustling with customers but not packed. We had our choice of seats and took our time examining the menu after the hostess brought us a carafe of water. That was one of my favorite things by the way. The carafe.

After some deliberation over pre-​fixe or al a carte, we settled on al a carte and chose our dishes. Pot Stickers (naturally, I can never pass up an Asian dumpling), Saigon Beef for me and Nasi Goreng (Indonesian Fried Rice) for Danny. His favorite dish. After about 5 – 10 minutes, the pot stickers came out to our table. I read in another review that there were only three. I think that may have been a part of the pre-​fixe special because ours had 5 as you can see from the picture I posted. They were delicious. The meat was tender and deliciously flavored and the wrapper had just the right amount of thickness and seared to a perfect golden crisp. The sauce had a light sweet flavor and made for a good start to our meal. Shortly after we finished, our main dishes came out.
The Saigon Beef was delectable and highly recommended. Served with vermicelli noodles and a medley of julienne veggies the beef was tender, the sauce was light and added just the right amount of flavor and the julienne vegetables added a hint of cool flavor to the dish that brought all the flavors together. I was in heaven and cleaned my plate. The Nasi Goreng (Indonesian Fried Rice) was also very good. Garnished with pork grinds (awesome!) that were drizzled with a dark semi sweet sauce gave the start to the dish an interesting kick. The fried egg was interesting too. Perfectly fried to a golden crisp the yolk inside was still runny and upon popping ran all over the rice as it should. Our dishes looked so good our table neighbors asked us what we ordered to help them make a decision.
Lastly, for dessert, we got the Chocolate explosion. To be honest, I’d give that dessert two stars purely because I’ve had better chocolate cake and the raspberry sauce was a bit to tart for our tastes. I would suggest trying another dessert there.
Now, I want to take a moment to address a few issues that I saw were consistent in other reviews. First the best time to go to Kuta is, during the week. After reading some reviews I found some people felt it was crowded and the servers weren’t very attentive and or the food too forever. I can see that happening but I think it all has to do with the time you go and how much staff they have. The space is very small so they can only serve so many customers and have so many servers before the place is popping over capacity. That brings me to our server. He was very attentive and made sure to check on us to see that the food was good and to our liking. The other customers seemed pleased as well and he seemed organized enough to keep track of his tables.
Finally, if you’re here with a Groupon realize that the check will not reflect your coupon. What they had us do was simply pay the difference + tip and leave it on the table or they would charge the difference to a card. Absolutely no hassle with this what so ever.
Overall I definitely recommend Kuta and what’s even more awesome, if you don’t have a Groupon but you mention Unilocal,you get a 20% discount off your bill. Sweet!

Thank you Groupon. If it wasn’t for you, i don’t think i would have ever tried this place.
We sat by the door and it was a little hot since people were coming in and out quite a bit. The place is so small, it seats about 30 guests at most. The prefix menu is a good deal. I had the kalbi, the wings, and the beef rendang. Everything was good.

Hmmm, I’m a little mixed about this place.
I had gotten a deal off Groupon and decided to go with it since the reviews on Unilocal were decent enough. I called ahead 2 days in advance for a Saturday night reservation. They don’t open until 5pm so it was a bit of a struggle to get someone on the phone during the workday.
The restaurant is quite small and it’s no wonder that reservations are required. We were able to secure a seat outside; there were 5 tables of 2 and 1 table of 4 you could pick from. Inside was quite dark and I noticed that there was seating set up for a large group which is probably why they had to keep turning away customers that walked up with no reservations.
The staff is nice, yes. But they were disorganized. We were asked 3 times after we sat down if we had a reservation, twice if we had ordered after we already had our first course cleared away. A couple of times our waitress delivered the wrong food to the wrong table, including one of our dishes.
We decided to go with the prix fixe since it is selecting items off the regular menu and not a special menu, which I definitely liked. I hate the prix fixe places that offer you mediocre food.
We ordered the following:
Korean Kalbi satay — good taste, meat quality was on the eh side
Indonesian Madura satay — good! chicken was tender and sauce was just the right amount
Lumpia Shanghai — this was the frozen kind… I guess I should’ve expected it but I THOUGHT it would’ve been handmade. Passable.
Potstickers — filled with beef, which was a surprise. Also came in 3, which was a weird number?
Kuta Steak w/​garlic fries — the steak was drenched in the same kalbi sauce as the satay! This got kind of ehh after the first 5 bites… get something else if you don’t want a kalbi tasting steak. The garlic fries were a disappointment since they didn’t have any garlic flavor.
Phad Si Ew w/​chicken — a bit too sweet… but aside from that it was alright.
At the end of the meal when the check was brought out and our Groupon rate was not reflected, they were easy-​going about it and deducted the amount right away.
I may consider coming back here again just for the prix fixe menu since their a la carte prices are on the high side for what they offer, and the quality of their food.

I absolutely love this place, the dishes of food comes out one right after the other and it surprises me every time. The food just gets better and better, gosh I was in heaven.
Korean Kalbi — moist and juicy with great flavors that enhances the meat so well. it was also tender, gosh i didn’t want it to end.
Indonesian Chicken Madura — chicken was nicely covered in peanut sauce that was not too overwhelming, it was also very soft and easy to eat.
Crispy Lumpia Shanghai — a simple crispy roll with an extraordinary taste, the sauce wraps up the whole experience of what a crispy roll taste.
Curry Puff — i really don’t recall what’s in it, but all the flavors pulled together and made it so good, the extra little sauce on the bottom of the curry puff made a huge difference… made it that much better
Grilled Atlantic Salmon — the salmon was grilled perfectly, didn’t taste dry at all. kudos to the chef for picking such a nice piece of salmon that had bits of fat that made the salmon that much more tastier.
Kuta Steak — lovely colored and cooked well to the point of tenderness. was medium-​well with 2 dipping sauce for you to enjoy with, the «lime cilantro chili dipping sauce» was perfect with the steak.
Coconut Crusted Fried Ice Cream — the ice cream was still hard until the crust, i was surprised! so many places would do this wrong and by the time i break the crust, the ice cream would already be oozing out. but, not this place! lovely…
my experience here was phenomenal, my bf and i love this place. décor gave the feeling of actually being in Indonesia, it’s great to eat here during summer evenings (since they have outdoor seating). the service was fantastic and the food was over the charts.

My friends and I went here for dinner at 7pm on a Thursday night. First of all I was so excited to see what this place looked like after we saw their website and read the reviews, but those pics and reviews did not live up to my expectations at all!
The place is the size of a shoe box, literally. We made reservations just in case but when we arrived there was no one else there but the three of us. OMG I was like, please make their food be good… womp womp, the satay and the dessert were the highlights because the appetizers and the entrée were mediocre. We ordered 2 $ 25 Prix Fixe — Four Course Dinner for the three of us:
Appetizer:
Jimbaran” Crab Cake (too dry)
Spicy Kuta Wings (decent)
Entrée:
Spicy Duck Udon (this duck meat was so tasteless)
Spicy «Drunken» Noodle (this was okay)
Dessert: (They tasted good, but for the price I could have bought a bucket of ice cream to last me a week)
Krakatoa
Crusted Coconut Fried Ice Cream
I think this place is overrated.

Delicious Peanut Indonesian Fusion Heaven!
I’ve been here twice. The first time with a group of my lady friends for a birthday party. I wasn’t that hungry so I was the only one of the group to order a la cart and get the pad Thai (I apparently wasn’t in a creative mood). It was delicious, but what my friends ordered on the prix fixe was far better!
I then vowed to come back and enjoy the prix fixe myself — which I did about a week ago!
I took my boyfriend here for his birthday. We wanted an early dinner since it was Monday and made it in time for happy hour. I enjoyed the lycheetini, which was OUT OF THIS WORLD delicious. It was a lycheegasm with muddled lychees and just enough booze to kick start a party in your mouth. Let’s just say that after two I was tipsy enough to clap as my food arrived.
We were the only ones there on Monday. Although this would cause me to feel uneasy, the guy who was serving us was friendly but gave us our space. He was also extremely helpful when deciding what to order. What we ordered:
Starter:
Crab Cake — SO delicious… although not huge, it was packed with flavor.
Curry Puffs — omg so good. I could have just eaten this all night long.
Satay:
Beef Indonesian Madura — pretty much the best peanut sauce with steak you will ever eat in your life. This was the main reason I came back as the birthday girl had this and let me try it. This is a MUST if you come here (if you like meat that is).
Shrimp Teriyaki — We were going to get the other shrimp, but the guy told us it was really spicy. I’m glad we went with this because these shrimp had a kick of their own. Big, delicious, sweet n’ spicy juicy shrimp. So good!
Entrée —
Sumatra Beef Rendang — my bf got this. It was SO much food, he took more than half home and apparently the left overs were even more tasty. It was delicious and flavorful.
Spicy Duck Udon — I am a HUGE fan of Udon and when I asked about it, the waiter (could be the owner…) told me to get it since it was that good. It was. OMG the udon was so tender and melt in your mouth good. The broth was so interesting and delicious. It was a little spicy with hits of spices I couldn’t quite place. The duck was tender and added to the complex flavors of this GIANT bowl of soup. The left overs were just as good. Thinking about this makes me want it right now!
Dessert — Because the server overheard that it was my bf’s birthday, he came out unexpectedly with fried ice cream with a birthday candle… it was really sweet! The fried ice cream was AMAZING! I’m a lactard and even I had a little bit.
Overall, the dinner was delicious. It was perfectly timed too, so that each dish came out just as you were finishing up the last. I can’t wait to come back here again — although I feel I will be unadventurous and keep getting the same food over and over again because it is just that good.
Also, the happy hour, which includes really strong and delicious cocktails and beer for a fraction of what they normally cost also includes appetizers and satays that are 25% off. Great opportunity to come here and try all their tasty food for cheap.

I ordered from the prix fixe menu and for the most part I liked it because usually places with prix fixe menus give you a limited amount of dishes to choose from but for Kuta, that was not the case. Almost everything on their regular menu could be applied to the prix fixe menu. (There are certain dishes where you have to pay a few more dollars.)
I had their korean kalbi satay, spring rolls (Crispy Lumpia Shanghai), Sumatra Beef Rendang (spicy beef, coconut milk, tri-​color potatoes, and jasmine rice), and Crusted Coconut Fried Ice Cream. I liked their kalbi satay but the ones I had were a little too fat for my tasting (my friend’s wasn’t fat and she said it was good.) I don’t recommend the spring rolls though. The beef rendang was okay, I didn’t really understand the tri-​color potatoes description because my potatoes were all the same color. Don’t get me wrong though it was an okay dish. I never had fried ice cream the way they made it but it was okay especially since I’m not a big fan of the coconut stuff.
Aside from my dishes I was able to try some of the other dishes my party ordered. I only got to taste a bite full so take that into consideration. Their Jimbaran Crab Cake was good (the people who ordered it really enjoyed it), the Manado Spicy Duck Curry (crispy duck, seasonal vegetables, jasmine rice and pineapple basil red curry sauce) tasted pretty good as well. The Spicy Drunken Noodle (flat rice noodle, chicken, eggs, tomato, bell pepper and string beans) was spicy. I wish I ordered that instead because the level of spicy-​ness seemed just right. I don’t recommend this for people who can’t take spicy stuff. Their Bangkok Phad Thai (rice noodle, chicken, shrimp, bean sprouts, scallion, and peanuts) tasted good too! I did not get to try the Saigon Beef (rice vermicelli, flank steak, jicama, lemon grass, basil and peanuts) but it looked delicious!
Although there was only one waiter manning the restaurant, he was able to get all our orders (we were a large party) and if anything was wrong with the dishes he was more than happy to get it right for us. I would say my rating is really between the 3.5 to 4 star mark. I do think Kuta is worth trying. I paid less than $ 30 for the prix fixe menu and got to taste a lot of different dishes. Also if you go for the early bird special and mention it to Kuta, it’s even less!