Most Sought-After Solo Souvenirs and Practical Tips for Bringing Them Home

A trip to Solo isn't complete without bringing home some of its signature souvenirs. This cultural city offers a variety of options, from traditional foods to interesting keepsakes. To make your shopping experience even more convenient, here are recommendations for Solo's unique souvenirs along with practical tips for bringing them home.

Traditional Solo Foods Perfect for Souvenirs

Traditional food is usually one of the most sought-after souvenirs by tourists. Here are some recommendations for Solo's signature foods that you can take home.

Serundeng

Solo's signature serundeng is known for its perfectly savory and sweet taste. It's made from grated coconut seasoned with shallots, galangal, coriander, tamarind, turmeric, and other spices, then dry-roasted until dry. This serundeng has a long shelf life and is suitable to bring home as a souvenir.

Sosis Solo

Sosis Solo is a rolled snack filled with seasoned minced chicken or beef. Its shape is similar to risoles and spring rolls, but sosis Solo has a soft egg crepe skin. Sosis Solo is usually packaged in a box, making it practical to carry during travel.

Srabi Notosuman

Serabi Notosuman is a type of Solo pancake made from rice flour and coconut milk, with a soft texture and a sweet, savory taste. Its presentation is quite unique as it is rolled first then wrapped in banana leaves. Serabi Notosuman is famous, making it one of Solo's culinary icons highly sought after by tourists.

Intip Solo

Intip is a crispy and savory traditional Solo rice cracker. Its shape is similar to rengginang, but intip Solo is larger and made from molded rice crust. There are two variations of intip Solo that you can buy as souvenirs: plain intip Solo and intip Solo drizzled with liquid palm sugar.

Roti Kecik

Roti Kecik has a dry yet dense texture with a distinctive sweet and savory taste, shaped like small sticks. Made from glutinous rice, roti kecik is one of Solo's legendary snacks. This bread has a long shelf life, making it suitable to take home as a souvenir.

Bolu Mandarijn Solo

This cake is similar to a layered sponge cake with a soft texture and is available in plain, raisin, and special variants. Packaged in a neat box, Bolu Mandarijn is perfect as a gift.

Teh Kombinasi Solo

Teh Kombinasi Solo, or more commonly known as Solo's traditional blended tea, is a brewed tea concocted by combining various types of tea and other ingredients. This tea has a distinctive and soothing aroma. Its practical packaging makes it easy to carry during travel.

Modern Solo Souvenirs

Besides traditional foods, Solo also has many modern souvenirs worth trying. Here are some recommendations.

Solo Flossroll's Shredded Meat Roll

Solo Floss Roll is a modern innovation of the very popular shredded meat bread. As its name suggests, this food is a combination of soft bread and shredded meat in a rolled shape. This bread has a relatively long shelf life, making it perfect as a typical Solo souvenir. With its attractive packaging and delicious taste, Solo Floss Roll can be an excellent choice for a gift.

Cheesecake from Solo Pluffy

Solo Pluffy is a cake shop in Solo owned by an artist, Jesica Mila. Solo Pluffy is famous for its soft cheesecakes with many unique flavors. This shop offers various flavors such as original, cheese, green tea cornflake, and strawberry. Its light texture and perfectly sweet taste make this cheesecake popular with many people. Besides being delicious, its attractive packaging makes it a great choice for Solo souvenirs. In addition to its unique taste, Solo Pluffy is easy to find because it is strategically located on Jalan Ronggowarsito No. 145, Timuran, Banjarsari, Solo.

Sourdough from Sofdoh

Sofdoh is a bakery specializing in making the first soft sourdough bread in Solo City. They offer a variety of sourdough breads with lower gluten content yet still delicious. SOFDOH's main location is at Jl. Kebangkitan Nasional Keluaran No.50, Penumping, Kecamatan Laweyan, Solo.

Sofdoh offers various soft sourdough bread variants with interesting flavor options. Some of the favorite menus include Brown Cinnamon, Choco-Cheese, Choco-Nut, Cranberry Cheese, and Garlic Cream Cheese. With its various variants and attractive packaging, sourdough from Sofdoh is suitable for you to take home as a gift.

Keong Puff Pastry from Nonie Solo

Nonie Solo is a famous cake shop in Solo, with its flagship product, keong puff (snail puff). This pastry has a unique shape like a snail shell with a crispy exterior and a soft interior. Keong puff comes in various flavors, such as chicken ragout, spicy chicken curry, tuna corn, and chocolate cheese banana.

Located at Jl. Ir. Juanda No.88, Gandekan, Kec. Jebres, Surakarta City, this keong puff is often chosen as a typical Solo souvenir because of its unique and delicious taste. In addition, the pastry has a good shelf life if stored properly, making it practical to carry during travel. The neat and attractive packaging also adds extra value as a gift.

Roti Sisir from Toko Roti Aren

Roti Sisir from Toko Roti Aren is known for its soft texture and distinctive sweet taste from palm sugar. Flavor variants like butter cream, double choco, and sweet cheese add interesting choices. Besides being delicious, this bread is also neatly packaged, making it suitable as a Solo souvenir.

With a fairly affordable price, this roti sisir is one of the favorite choices for tourists. Toko Roti Aren has two locations: on Jl. Jend. Urip Sumoharjo for take-away and on Jl. Kebangkitan Nasional for dine-in, making it easy for tourists to get this bread as a gift from Solo.

Souvenirs as Mementos from Solo

Souvenirs are also a popular choice as gifts. Here are some types of souvenirs you can bring home.

Solo Batik

Known for its beauty and profound philosophy, Solo batik is not just a fabric, but an artwork that reflects the cultural identity of the Javanese people. The characteristic features of Solo batik lie in its dominant brown and cream colors, as well as small geometric motifs that follow the Mataram batik tradition. Some well-known motifs often found include parang barong, parang curiga, ceplok burba, and srikaton.

Various shopping centers and batik centers in Solo, such as Kampung Batik Laweyan and Kampung Batik Kauman, offer a wide selection of batik. Here, you can find traditional fabrics in sheet form that can be used for various purposes, as well as various types of batik clothing, from dresses to shirts, suitable for everyday wear. The beauty and philosophy behind each motif make Solo batik a special souvenir for visitors to this city.

Antiques

In Solo, there is a famous market that has been established since 1939, namely Pasar Triwindu Ngarsopuro. Located on Jalan Diponegoro, Keprabon, Banjarsari, Solo, this market offers various antique items such as vases, plates, lamps, masks, and ancient money from the 1800s.

Antiques from Pasar Triwindu are often chosen as unique Solo souvenirs because of their uniqueness and historical value. Bringing items home from this market is not only a valuable keepsake but also a reflection of Solo's rich culture. The diversity of the collection and its aesthetic beauty make Pasar Triwindu an ideal place to find memorable and authentic gifts.

Kebaya

Solo kebaya is known as traditional clothing that reflects the elegance of Javanese women. The characteristic features of this kebaya lie in its simple and elegant design, with the use of neutral colors such as brown, black, or cream, and minimalist embellishments. This kebaya model also has a looser cut at the front, making it comfortable to wear for various occasions.

Solo kebaya is often used as a special souvenir due to its high cultural value and functionality in various events, both formal and daily. You can easily find Solo kebaya as it is widely available in shopping centers such as Pasar Klewer and Pusat Grosir Solo. Bringing home this kebaya is not only a keepsake but also a symbol of appreciation for Solo's cultural richness.

Famous Solo Souvenir Centers

Solo City offers various souvenir centers that are popular destinations, making it easy for tourists to buy a variety of gifts to take home. One of them is Pasar Klewer. Here, you can find various Solo batiks, clothes, and blangkon as souvenirs. In addition, Pusat Grosir Solo (PGS) is also a popular choice because it offers complete souvenir products at prices that tend to be cheaper than other places. The advantage of PGS is that the more you buy, the cheaper the price given by the seller.

For traditional food souvenirs, Toko Roti Orion Solo is a favorite with various delicious breads, especially the "roti semir" which has a delicious taste. Toko Oleh-Oleh Cokro also offers various Solo snacks such as intip, fried peanuts, and various chips. In addition, Pusat Oleh-Oleh Makutho Solo is famous for providing dried snacks or typical Solo snacks such as karak, crackers, shredded meat floss, and serundeng.

Practical Tips for Bringing Souvenirs from Solo

Bringing souvenirs home from Solo can be a challenge if your suitcase is already packed. To make it more practical and safe, here are some tips you can try. First, choose souvenirs that are durable and not easily damaged, such as cookies, dried snacks, or batik. These types of souvenirs are easier to store without worrying about them going stale or getting crushed during the journey. If you want to bring wet food like serabi or cheesecake in large quantities, consider the travel distance and duration to prevent the food from spoiling quickly.

To ensure your souvenirs remain safe in your suitcase, use unbreakable and airtight containers to prevent food from spilling or odors spreading to other items. Additionally, arrange your items properly by utilizing empty spaces between clothes for greater efficiency. For example, place food in containers in the middle of a stack of clothes to provide extra protection.

For more practicality, it's best to maximize your belongings from the start and leave dedicated space in your suitcase for souvenirs. A 24-inch expandable carry-on suitcase can be the right solution as it can be expanded up to 5 cm when needed. To add comfort, you can also use the available luggage hook so that additional items such as small bags or wet souvenirs remain secure without taking up space in your suitcase. Bringing souvenirs from Solo becomes easier and you won't have to worry about a cramped suitcase with a 24-inch Check In Medium Expandable suitcase.