KBRN, Surakarta: No visit to Surakarta, or Solo as it is more popularly known, in Central Java, is complete without tasting the legendary Dawet Telasih Hj. Sipon, a beloved traditional dessert that has become a culinary icon at Pasar Gede Hardjonagoro.

For decades, this humble stall has served generations of loyal customers, offering bowls of refreshing dawet made from cendol (rice flour jelly), selasih (basil seeds), jenang sumsum (sweet rice porridge), and jenang ketan hitam (black glutinous rice porridge), all swimming in rich coconut milk and palm sugar syrup.

More than just a dessert, it’s a taste of Solo’s cultural heritage.

Located inside the culinary center of Pasar Gede—the city's oldest and largest traditional market—Dawet Telasih Hj. Sipon has not only stood the test of time but continues to thrive, thanks in part to younger visitors who spread the word through platforms like TikTok.

The second-generation owner, Sri Mulyani, recalls how it all began with her mother, Hj. Sipon, who originally sold raw ingredients for dawet. A customer’s request eventually led to her first serving of dawet telasih, and the rest, as they say, is history.

"My mother initially sold raw ingredients for dawet, such as cendol (rice flour jelly), such as selasih (basil seeds), and kolang kaling (palm fruit)," Sri Mulyani explained on Tuesday, October 14, 2025.

"One day, a customer asked my mother to make dawet telasih, so she gave it a try. Since then, she kept making it. Before long, many people started coming to enjoy it,” she added.

Meanwhile, Gempol Pleret is a sweet dish made from rice flour and grated coconut, served in a light coconut milk sauce that is usually sweetened with gula Jawa (palm sugar).

The dish typically consists of two main components: Gempol (soft, chewy rice flour balls or dumplings, often plain or subtly flavored) and Pleret (slightly firmer rice flour discs or shapes, sometimes filled with palm sugar or flavored slightly differently than the gempol)

Gempol Pleret is documented in the classic Javanese literature Serat Centhini as one of 48 popular foods between the 16th and 18th Centuries, but its popularity has since waned against modern drinks.

In addition to the traditional dawet and gempol pleret, the stall also offers modern variations to appeal to a wider range of tastes. These include dawet topped with durian and dawet served with tape ketan (fermented sticky rice).

The original dawet and gempol pleret are priced at IDR 10,000 (approx. USD 0.60), while the durian-topped version costs IDR 15,000 and the tape ketan variant is IDR 13,000.

"I hope selling dawet at Pasar Gede becomes even more successful and continues to grow, so we can eventually open branches in other places," she said, expressing her aspirations for the future.

The stall’s ongoing success highlights the enduring local love for this traditional Javanese dessert. ***