How this place has so many high ratings is beyond me! We went on a day that was a bit humid and warm and there was no AC inside. Ambiance felt like a casual street food cafe with the indoor and outdoor noise and an air mixed with various aromas. We ordered quite a bit-nasi goreng, gado gado, papaya salad, pork skewers, ceviche, roti, charred eggplant, and mie goreng. The dishes all fell somewhere between barely mediocre and good. The overall theme was overly seasoned and overpriced for the portion. How people are ok paying $21 for a thin layer of fried rice the size of my palm is astounding. There were no expensive ingredients that justify a tiny portion of rice for $21. I'm sure a native Indonesian visiting this restaurant would have a heart attack. Service was passable and standard. Nothing was worth the hype and price. read more

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Solo dining on a Thursday evening and sat by the bar. Service was great: servers were nice, greeted and checked on me timely. Food arrived promptly but didn't feel rushed. Loved that the details of the restaurant were thoughtful, modern, and balanced. I ordered a lychee martini, grilled roti served with lamb jus sauce, and a beef rendang dish. They were all really delicious. The martini was dangerously good: the lychee was prominent and not too sweet. The roti tasted fresh and great texture; I didn't really care for the lamb jus. The beef rendang was definitely a favorite: the meat was so tender; the dish was seasoned perfectly but had a lot of deep flavors, balanced with the pickled vegetables, egg, and fresh mint. The coconut rice though was not cooked well or at least to my liking where it was a tad bit al dente. It can be a little pricey but I think worth a try in the area. Will definitely be going back soon to try their spicy mi goreng or just order the beef rendang again. read more

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Industrial yet intimate space and mood lighting set the stage perfectly for date night! The Balinese-inspired menu meant for sharing is practically an aphrodisiac in and of itself, and our server helpfully recommended 3-5 dishes for a party of 2. We decided on the following: CHARRED EGGPLANT (TOMATO SAMBAL : LEMON LABNEH : FRIED SHALLOTS : BASIL) PORK BELLY SKEWERS (BLACK GARLIC : SAMBAL MATAH : PEANUT AIOLI : MINT) NASI GORENG (WOK-FRIED RICE : BAY SHRIMP : SUNNY EGG : & OUR DAILY PROTEIN) GINGER & CHOCOLATE PANNA COTTA : BLACK SESAME ICE CREAM : SPICED SHORTBREAD : BLOOD ORANGE Fabulous flavors in all! My standalone favorite was the eggplant which so well-balanced and also surprisingly generous in size for a small plate. Our server warned us that dishes come out whenever ready, but I do wish I'd waited for the nasi goreng before devouring the pork belly, as the latter - while still delectable - was rather salty when eaten by itself. read more

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I liked this place, but I wish they had more variety in flavor. I absolutely loved their sea bream ceviche 10/10 and their pork belly skewer. The eggplant was also great but the tomato taste tasted very similar to the migoreng so I thought it was okay. They have decent amount of tables but recommend making a reservation ahead of time via Resy or they will ask you to sit at the bar! read more

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amazing bartender, amazing food, and amazing hospitality! Everyone who worked here is amazing, especially the cooks and the servers. Definitely recommend and definitely a great restaurant and experience. read more

The place is welcoming but the service is not. Ambiance is ok and relaxed but we had a first impression at our entrance that the smell wasn't pleasant(mold or wet). The food was beautiful plated but very spicy and not told when ordered even though we had a kid ordering. Beautiful plating and small portion. As we expected. For someone that likes spicy foods and not good mood servers is a great place. They knew we were celebrating our 24 anniversary and they never even acknowledged. read more

Dim setting restaurant. Great for date night or group hangout. They have a bar with fusion cocktails. Small dishes here and is great to share. Very tasty food here. Started off with the roti that was fluffy and comes with 2 sauces. The curry sauce has a lingering flavor. The ceviche has a pungent lime flavor. The mie goreng has a good sauce. The charred eggplant was my favorite dish of the night. I don't usually eat egg plant but the sauce and fried onions go amazing with the egg plant. Service was nice. Servers checked up on us multiple times. It is a small restaurant, I would make reservations for this place. read more

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First time to Dija Mara which has a great reputation and a Michelin Bib Gourmand distinction. It's a little dark and with an industrial chic decor. Only a few tables and can get a bit loud. I messed up the timing of my reservation and thus my date didn't show, and I ended up dining alone. Disappointing because I could only sample two dishes. But will definitely want to get back! Dija Mara is best described as Indonesian/Malay cuisine with a SoCal influence. Started with a Lychee martini which was delicious. For an appetizer I had the Big Eye Tuna Skewers 'small plate'. Were perfectly seared and topped with a chili aioli, curry leaves and some sort of crumbs. Delicious! Short rib beef rendang as a 'large plate'. It was not very spicy but served with a side of sambal which gave it perfect heat for me. The dish came with a pickled hard-boiled egg, Indonesian ferments served and on top of coconut rice. Haven't seen it with the pickled egg before. Typically, rendang is made with poor cuts of beef and simmered for a long time to tenderize it. Start with a short rib and it's especially tender. Likely the best rendang I've ever had. If you're a foodie, you need to visit Dija Mara. read more

Delicious, the Dina Lychee Martini, skewers pork belly, the roasted eggplant, Gado Gado, and sea Bream ceviche! Wow delicious. Already full then we got the Sato ayam. Excellent food and service. Coconut pudding with fruit and condensed milk. Just yum! read more

Dija Mara - Dessert, coconut pudding - Indonesian Near Me - Oceanside, California

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Incredible food and service. If you haven't yet been, you must go! Reservations hard to get so call days in advance or we just grabbed a FCFS open bar seat. Going back for sure! read more

Excellent ambience for a nice date. Service was perfect as well. Our cocktails - the paloma and a litchi one were delicious. Grilled Roti - 5/5 and excellent start to the meal - thick roti with lamb jus which was just perfect. Chicken skewers - 5/5 Great appetizer Charred eggplant - 5/5 This was a winner. The portion however did throw us off - it was a lot. The fried shallots on top were the perfect accompaniment. Nasi goreng - 4/5 Pretty good but wont live up to it if youre craving it from your south east asia trips Tiger prawn laksa - 4/5 My only problem with this was that the grilled prawns were warm while the laksa was hot. Otherwise it was pretty good. read more

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I've been meaning to check out Dija Mara for awhile now but it's such a far drive from La Jolla. They are a Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurant so expect delicious food at moderate prices. The restaurant is pretty small so reservations are highly recommended. They do take walk-ins but you'll most likely only get seats at the bar, if they're available. Parking is easy with a ton of street parking around the area. After we had some time to look over the menu, our server briefly went over everything and recommended her favorites. This restaurant is tapas-style, so expect to order about 2-3 dishes per person to share with the entire table. The food will also come out whenever it's ready, instead of everything all at once. Grilled Roti: A single roti that's big enough to split between 4 people. It came out warm and toasty...fluffy on the inside with a little crunch on the outside. It's also lightly salted with salt chunks that's easily brushed off if you don't want it. Comes with two delicious dipping sauces, a vegetarian rendang and a lamb jus. Sea Bream Ceviche: This was recommended by our server and I enjoyed how light and refreshing it tasted. It's like this herb oil mixed with cream. The radish slices were crunchy and added a good contrast with the soft and tender fish. Doesn't come with many pieces so it was one of the first things we finished immediately. Beef Tartare: This was an interesting take on beef tartare. It's spread across a piece of toast and it reminded me of bruschetta. The meat doesn't look that raw and it might be from the aioli mixed in and coating everything. But it was very good so I recommend ordering one to share. Gado Gado: This was our obligatory vegetable dish and it's a decent portion size. Mixed in with a peanut sauce are red cabbage, green beans, radish, zucchini, cauliflower, and I think some potatoes? Or it could've been the quail egg according to the menu. This was one of my favorites and I thought the mix of different vegetables made the dish look colorful and aesthetically pleasing. Big Eye Tuna Skewers: Comes with 4 long, rectangular slabs of tuna. The meat was slightly seared but I thought some of the tuna was overcooked. I didn't think the seasoning or marinade was enough too. They usually have pork skewers but the restaurant was just out of pork the day we visited. Mie Goreng: A classic noodle dish but the noodles here are thicker, closer to a lo mein dish. There's also a kick so if you're averse to spicy, you should steer away. The portion size also is pretty small and barely enough for 4 people. We each had like 2 bites and finished the bowl. The protein changes based on what's available and since they ran out of pork that day, we got chicken. Nasi Goreng: A fried rice dish that comes with a fried egg. Again, a small portion but it's to be expected from a tapas restaurant. It has shrimp and an additional protein, which is based on what's available that day. Beef Rendang: Short rib over a bed of rice. And you get a lot more rice compared to the Nasi Goreng. The meat is super tender and ripped off very easily. Good move using plain, white rice because it just soaked up all of the flavors and juices. It's a little more expensive than everything else but I think it's enough food for one person if you didn't want to share. Prawn Crackers with Sambal Terasi: Last but not least, we ordered some prawn crackers. We snacked on this in between each dish and loved the sambal sauce. I was afraid it would be spicy but no kick at all. At the end, we walked away feeling stuffed and satisfied. I think this restaurant is perfect for a smaller group of friends but when you get past 4 or 5 people, you'll need to start doubling up on orders. I heard that they used to have a completely different brunch menu and would love to see that come back! read more

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Went to Dija Mara tonight for my first time! I had heard so many great things and they didn't disappoint. I had a 5pm reservation and the doors opened right at 5 and led us right to our table. The server was able to give us a ton of recommendations and asked about allergies or preferences. The portions are good. Not too big but not too small. The flavors are amazing though, so I'd recommend sharing a few things with your party in order to experience more. It's a small place, probably 10 tables and a bar. They only serve agave wine cocktails and natural wine. Service was friendly. I'd go back. Oh! Get the Gado Gado and the Roti with the vegetarian sauce! MUST! read more

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Complex, assertive flavors combined with a unique menu and clean presentation make Dija Mara an O-Side standout. The space does not appear particularly Indonesian, but each item that we tried made me realize that I was enjoying something special and rare to find in Socal. The roti was perfectly fluffy and salty, giving my palate a nice break from the bold yet absolutely scrumptious savory and spicy notes of the Mie Goreng (shutout to Indomie for first introducing me to this, which was of course way better executed at Dija Mara). The tuna skewers were also a hit, encrusted with flecks of herbs and crispies that intrigued my palate with every bite. read more

Grilled pork belly skewers and roti were the highlights of our meal. Honestly it was a good meal but it was hyped up a lot so we had high expectations going in and were underwhelmed. I guess there aren't many options in the north county area for good asian. When: Friday 5:00pm, party of 2 Overall: 4.5/5 Food: 4.5/5 - we had high expectations going in and were left with more to be wanted, especially at the price point. Surprisingly, the pork belly skewers and grilled roti were our favorites! The nasi goreng, mie goreng and ceviche were all meh. It was definitely good but nothing noteworthy where we would order it again. Service: 4.7/5 - server was attentive and on top of it. Nothin over the top though but no complaints here! Vibe: 4.8/5 - love the art inside- graffiti but it was done very well. Had a grungy/industrial look to the place with the furnishings and lighting. Cool! Other: plenty of street parking especially if you go early. we got a parking spot right in front! read more

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Dija Mara had been on my list for a long time, so when our friends asked where we wanted to go for our birthday dinners, my fiance and I immediately thought of this spot! - PARKING - Street parking is fairly easy to snag in this area, at least during the time we went! It was on a Saturday evening near 5pm, and there were several spots open. - SERVICE/ENVIRONMENT - Definitely make a reservation, I overheard some walk-ins come in and the server said only bar seating was available. Unless you don't mind sitting at the bar, make your plans ahead of time! The restaurant is not big at all, with only a 49 person capacity per the signage above their door. It's a very casual atmosphere in my opinion, but the attention to detail in each dish feels elevated. The server recommended 2 dishes per person, so we ended up with 8 dishes. They also let us know that the food would come out when ready, so it might not be the order we expect. - FOOD - Grilled Roti ($11.00): Huge piece of Roti with two different sauces - one was a Lamb Curry and the other was a Vegetarian Curry. Both sauces were delicious, and the Roti itself was warm and a nice texture! Sea Bream Ceviche ($18.00): Super fresh flavors, and the Cassava Chips gave a nice texture change with each bite. Beef Tartare ($21.00): When this came out, it didn't look like what I usually expect as it was spread on a piece of toast with lots of seasoning mixed in. This was delicious though, so I didn't mind the change up in presentation at all! Gado Gado ($17.00): Really interesting mix of vegetables that you don't usually see! There was zucchini, squash, cauliflower?, red cabbage... and the peanut sauce was also very unique! Big Eye Tuna Skewers ($20.00): We actually wanted the Pork Belly Skewers but they ran out! We were shocked as they had just opened, but maybe their supply goes through the entire week and we got unlucky. This was OK but I think bits of Tuna were overcooked. Mie Goreng ($19.00): A beloved Indonesian staple that we had to try! The noodles are thicker than your typical packaged Mie Goreng, almost like a lo mein thickness. The spice level was great, but I do wish they gave a bit more in this portion. Nasi Goreng ($18.00): Another classic dish, and again, I do wish there was more in this portion. Still, the flavors were great and we definitely enjoyed this! Beef Rendang ($32.00): I didn't realize the price until looking it over again, but wow this is quite steep for what you get! I do think they gave a good amount of Beef, and the dish itself was delicious, but definitely glad we shared amongst a group! Prawn Crackers with Sambal Terasi ($6.00): Nice little snack to have amongst the bigger entrees! We all loved the Sambal a lot! - OVERALL - Great casual vibes with elevated dishes! A nice spot for a group dinner with sharable plates. I really hope their brunch menu comes back!!! read more

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The service was incredible, however, I only like to rate on food because taste is the only thing that will bring me back or keep me away. Let me say this staff could blow cigarette smoke in my face and I'll still be back tomorrow. How does this place not have a star? If you're a Michelin critic and test this place, keep the star to yourself, so it doesn't blow up. I cried mid-meal. Everything was a balancing act of smoke, herbs, texture, and emotion. I put this above three-Michelin Addison. Perfect food in a casual environment in the middle of Oceanside. read more

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I was looking for Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurants in the area and found Dija Mara, an upscale Indonesian restaurant in Oceanside! I've never had Indonesian food so I was very excited to try. I ordered the Beef Rendang, which came with short rib, indo ferments, pickled egg, and coconut rice. This was one of the most tender pieces of beef I've ever had. While all of the components gave the dish a nice balance of flavors, the beef was lacking just a little. read more

Dija Mara - Beef Short-Rib Rendang - Indonesian Near Me - Oceanside, California

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Dija Mara is absolutely delicious. Highly shareable; if you're hungry, I suggest 2-3 plates per person! Great service; the dishes come out as they're ready. Cute and vibey. Here's what we had ~ Beets by Bali Pineapple Soda Lychee Soda Grilled Roti Sea Bream Ceviche Big Eye Tuna Skewers Chicken Thigh Skewers Mie Goreng read more

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Got sat quick on a Friday night, enjoyed the vibes of the place and the waitress was very attentive but the overall experience was just alright. There was about a 10 min gap in between each plate (ordered 5 dishes) so by the time we got the last dish we were already full. Food is extremely rich and very very very salty. read more

This restaurant came highly recommended, so some hype was in play. My partner heard the place gets packed and was wondering whether she should have made a reservation. I figured we would be fine if we went early before they open at 5PM. Late Sunday afternoon, street parking was plentiful, and we turned out to be the first ones in. Waitstaff was kind and recommended us to sit away from the glare of the sunlight. The decor, especially the gated black door hiding in the corner of the bare concrete walls, really did put me in the mindset of ordering street food. There was also a mix of beautiful art pieces, colorful graffiti, and skeletal shenanigans for Halloween. For drinks, we ordered a Ginger and Hibiscus and a Paloma, and for food, we chose the Grilled Roti, Papaya Salad, and Chicken Skewers. As day turned to night, more and more patrons were coming in which livened up the place. Paloma was okay, not as refreshingly balanced as ones elsewhere. The Ginger and Hibiscus paired well with the dishes, since everything we ordered tasted really salty, overshadowing some of the other more unique flavors. Portions were small as well, so while we weren't full, we did get tired of eating. If we're ever back, I'd give the other items a try instead. read more

Dija Mara - Ginger and hibiscus, Paloma - Indonesian Near Me - Oceanside, California

My boyfriend is Indonesian and a foodie. When this place showed up as recommend by Michigan stars, we had go for his Birthday! We live in central san diego, so it was an exploration for us to travel to oceanside to try this place. It's s a cute and chic whole in the wall vibe Fairly small space, dark esthetic with modern and fun art decor, creates an alive yet intimate experience. And the best part of our time was the food! We couldn't help but order multiple plates, from spicy noodles, to chicken and pork screwers. We also ordered some lychee cocktails, but they don't have a full bar. Although they did a great job of making there own wine cocktail variations! My boyfriend loved this place, he was very pleased with the authentic flavors of each dish. We will definitely be back! read more

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The food here is amazing, high quality, and unique flavors. The service was great, they were very attentive, came by often and refilled our waters and took our plates. The ambience was intimate, cool art, spacious, it felt like we were outside of San Diego. My favorite plates: 1. Pork Belly 2. Roti Bread 3. Fried Rice 4. ceviche read more

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Elevated and refined Balinese food. Much care and pride in the food here. Full of flavor,technique, love, and soul. I liked the food here better than in Bali! read more

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First time in Oceanside, saw this restaurant on my social as a must try. Made a reservation for my birthday and was really looking forward to it. Unfortunately, the whole experience was a letdown. We were greeted by the host who showed us to our table. We waited at least 10 minutes as no one acknowledged us or brought us water in 80 degrees weather with no ac. The hostess literally just stood there looking at us while our waitress ignored us. We actually enjoyed the food except for the part where we had to fight the flies from getting to our food. When I washed our waitress about the flies, all she said was sorry and walked away. The restaurant knew it was for a special occasion as it asked what we were celebrating for the reservation but there was no acknowledgment of it. Overall, it was such a disappointing experience that totally ruined my birthday. read more

New owner. Improvements needed food / service. Small portions. Extremely expensive. Cocky bar staff. Destroyed broccolini Not again. read more

Came here last night with my boyfriend celebrating our anniversary per a recommendation from someone in the area. We made reservations in advanced -- 5pm on a Sunday. We arrived and were seated immediately. The inside is small and cute with some graffiti edge on the walls. We started off with drinks -- him the paloma and me the pandan-y dropper. I thought the pandan cocktail was super unique! The drinks here have an agave wine base which I found interesting, as I don't think I have had anything like it before. For food, we shared the charred eggplant and each a large plate -- him the tofu rendang & me the mie goreng with lamb. Our food came out in a timely manner, and portion sizes were perfect for the both of us. I thought we would need more food, but we were pretty full by the end of our meal. I enjoyed the spice level and complex flavors all the dishes had. The eggplant was also a favorite as it had fried shallots on top with a creamy-like texture blended with the toasty flavor of the char. My noodles were cooked to perfection & I loved the thai basil sprinkled in it. His tofu rendang was so good with the coconut rice, which had a nice and fluffy texture. They gave a lot of meat in my noodles which was more than what I expected. I appreciated that it wasn't just all carbs! Parking was super easy to find on the street, as they do not have a dedicated parking lot that I knew of. I definitely would come back to try something new! read more

Dija Mara - Mie Goreng, Charred Eggplant, Tofu Rendang - Indonesian Near Me - Oceanside, California

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Food was good but it was SO loud I had to shout to say anything. They had music playing really loudly on top of concrete acoustics. Really bummed to Spend a lot of money on dinner to not enjoy conversation. read more

I want to preface this review by saying I really wanted to love this place. I've read great reviews, and I've been told great things. However for whatever reason, today I did not have a good experience. I can't say this is bad food, but for the price I expected much better. Underwhelmed would be the best way to describe it. We had the Nasi Goreng and Gado Gado. I really liked the rice, but our egg was burnt. Not toasty or fried. Burnt and bitter. When I told the server this afterwards she just said "okay" and nothing more. The cold salad was good actually, although the green beans had seasoning that felt overwhelming. It was just too expensive for what is essentially a basic salad. For what it's worth the place smelled great. The ambience was good. Decorations were nice. We walked there so I can't say anything about parking. And the wait was about 45 minutes so we walked over to a brewery to kill time. I would not come back here, I won't recommend it to anyone else. But I give them props for having authentic food. And our initial waitress was nice, just not the one we had after. Save your money and go literally anywhere else in downtown. read more

Great place, but ONLY IF YOU LIKE EVERYTHING SUPER SPICY, which I don't. Good service at the bar. Michelin rated. Must make reservations about a week in advance if you want a table. read more

I was excited to try this place based on its mention in best of Oceanside articles. Very warm inside. Ordered Roti (pretty good, but nothing special), Chicken skewers (tasty), Charred eggplant (disappointing--salt bomb, large mushy pieces of eggplant, Crispy rice with pork was good but tiny. Recipes need tweaking. read more

I had the big eye tuna skewer, the nasi goreng fried rice, the beef rendang short rib, and the ayam penyet fried chicken. Everything was great. The fried rice was really flavorful. The tuna skewers really worked well with the sauce and the seaweed paper. There was a really good spicy sauce that went with the chicken that was delicious. Everything was presented well and beautifully plated. Another great thing is that the prices were very reasonable. read more

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The hype brought us here. We came at 4:45pm without a reservations and there were about 4 couples before us. There were 3 of us and they sat people with 2 people at a table of 4, and sat us at a tiny table for 2 people and brought a chair and we shared a tiny table. I assume, they gave the table of two the larger table because they had reservations. About 3 other couples were sat down after us but everyone got served first and got all their order first and we waited for about what felt like 15-20 mins. The whole experience (service) - felt like they catered to people who had reservations and were super snooty to us because we didn't have reservations. The service was ok. The food options weren't a lot. We ordered 5 things to share and 4/5 items came out and 1 item was forgotten. This place doesn't have a full bar, the interior is ok just like the service- nothing special about it. The food portion are tiny and it was also ok. I really don't see what the hype of this place is nor do I understand the Michelin star that they got in 2021. Truly a disappointing experience across the board. But hey, a lot of people seem to like it and had a lot of great things to say so maybe try it for yourself. For me personally , there are many great restaurants in Oceanside and this wouldn't be in my top 5. read more

Dija Mara - Seasonal veggies & tofu dish & roti was pretty decent... but I had expected more especially from the review and their Michelin star - Indonesian Near Me - Oceanside, California

Gourmet takes on Indonesian food with flavors that explode in your mouth. The pork belly skewers have a ton of flavor, only bad thing is they are pretty small. The eggplant is another unique choice and has a lot of volume. I didn't think the nasi gerang was that great so I would skip that next time. Great service and a small interior that has a lot of character. read more

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We lucked out when we stopped by for an early dinner but would highly recommend making reservations. Limited but very unique menu. We enjoyed sharing a number of dishes but might get tricky with a larger group. The service was quick and efficient with a trendy industrial decor. read more

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My favorite North County restaurant so far. Suzanne is an accommodating host and has created a singular menu riffing on Indonesian and other cuisines. The agave wine bevs are delightful. Heather and the team are top notch. You can walk ten feet away for live dive bar jazz next door.Don't miss it; you might very well see me there as well :) read more

Food, service, ambiance, all very pleasant. We showed up at 5:30 (opening time) without a reservation and they made it work for our party of three. read more

We dined here on Mother's Day for the first time and our meal was exceptional! My wife is part Indonesian and she loved each dish and can't wait to go back. The Gado Gado, ceviche, chicken skewers and mussels were a highlight! Will definitely try the whole fish and eggplant next time! Super cool ambiance! 5 stars! read more

Dija Mara - Gado Gado - Indonesian Near Me - Oceanside, California

My husband wanted to try this place and so we Came here for dinner on a weekday evening. He was very excited to try this place as this is a Michelin recommended restaurant. We got the sea food Nasi Goreng - not my favorite but husband enjoyed it. I ordered the pork belly skewers which were the highlight of our dinner along with the grilled Roti. The roti was so soft yet piping hot and came with lamb curry - just amazing! If you have to get 1 thing here, it's the grilled roti! The dessert was Thai panna cotta which was okay. Reducing a star because we felt like we were rushed to place an order. And oh!our service spilled an entire glass of water on me. read more

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Amazing first time experience at Dija Mara. Great service, delicious cocktails and even better food. Loved the fried rice, the noodles, amazing eggplant and tuna skewers. The desert topped off the evening. Will certainly be back read more

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