BATAGOR RANKS 2ND BEST DEEP-FRIED DISH IN THE WORLD
Batagor from Bandung ranked 2nd in TasteAtlas's best deep-fried dishes list, September 2026. Here's what it is, why it won, and where to eat it.
Korean fried chicken took first place on TasteAtlas's list of the world's best deep-fried dishes. Right behind it, with the exact same score, sits a plate of fish-and-tofu dumplings from a Bandung street stall.
Batagor is a fried fish-and-tofu snack from Bandung, West Java. TasteAtlas, a Croatian food guide, ranked it second in its "100 Best Deep-fried Dishes" list in September 2026, with a rating of 4.4 out of 5. Korean fried chicken scored the same 4.4 and took first place. In Bandung, one reviewer of Batagor Burangrang pays Rp70,000 for a combo of assorted batagor and grass jelly.
At a glance
- Rank: 2nd out of 100 deep-fried dishes
- Rating: 4.4 out of 5
- Valid ratings: 22,794 out of 28,786 (counted up to September 15, 2026)
What is batagor?
Batagor is short for bakso tahu goreng, which means "fried meatball tofu." Cooks mix ground mackerel or another white fish with tofu, then deep-fry it. Some shops steam it instead for a softer bite.
At the stall, the pieces are cut into small chunks and covered in peanut, soy and chili sauce. A squeeze of lime goes on last. The skin crackles, the middle is soft, and the lime cuts through the thick, nutty sauce.
View this post on Instagram
Why did batagor rank second in the world?
Here is the fact worth sharing: this is not batagor's first podium. In September 2025, TasteAtlas ranked it third in its "100 Best Seafood Dishes in the World" list. So one plate of Bandung street food is a top-three seafood dish and a top-two fried dish.
RRI reports that batagor is the highest-ranked Indonesian dish on the fried list, even though other Indonesian fried foods also made the top 50.
TasteAtlas says the serving style is part of the appeal. The dumplings are cut into bite-sized pieces and covered in one sauce. That makes a snack that is easy to share, and easy to finish.
The dish was also already a favourite on the site. An earlier TasteAtlas list of Asian deep-fried dishes placed batagor third, and the site names Batagor Kingsley, Batagor Abuy and Batagor Darto as its best restaurants for the dish. So the September 2026 result looks less like a fluke and more like a climb.
How does TasteAtlas rank dishes?
TasteAtlas ranks dishes using audience ratings. It says its system ignores bot, nationalist and local patriotic ratings, and gives extra weight to users it sees as knowledgeable. For this list, 22,794 of 28,786 ratings counted as valid. That is about 79 percent.
It is not a final verdict on food, and TasteAtlas says so itself. But a 4.4 score from more than 22,000 valid ratings is hard to wave away.
Bandung has done well on these lists before. TasteAtlas placed the city 10th in its 2023 city ranking, with 4.66 points, ahead of Paris, Bangkok, Seoul and Milan. In April 2026, the Bandung city government said the city ranked 34th in the new list of the 100 best culinary cities.
Where can you eat batagor in Bandung?
TasteAtlas names Batagor Kingsley, Batagor Abuy and Batagor Darto as places to try it. Batagor Kingsley is on Jalan Veteran.
Reviews of Batagor Burangrang say you can dine in, take away, or buy vacuum-sealed frozen packs to carry home. One reviewer says a single serving comes with three kinds of batagor, so you get to try a mix on one plate. Another says the peanut sauce can be swapped for a soup version. Prices change by shop and portion, so check the menu before you order.
