It all started with a simple tweet from Dan Hong about a legendary Indonesian dish of deep fried chicken, where the bones are completely edible with the flesh and the skin is fried to a satisfying crisp. Apparently, there is only one restaurant in Sydney which serves this dish, a place called Maranatha in Ultimo (197 / 392 Jones Street). But upon some further research, we’ve also found a restaurant with much of a similar name, ATL Maranatha in Kensington (Corner of Todman Avenue and Baker Street).

It turns out (and this is according to the man who works at the Kensington restaurant) that the original Maranatha in Ultimo had moved to Kensington a few months back, but the owners who bought the Ultimo space opened up a restaurant with an almost identical name and serving the same deep fried soft bone chicken dish. I guess we had to take the man’s word for it and headed to the little place on Todman Avenue.

It was a small space restaurants that seated no more than 15 people at a time. Once seated, menus, a writing pad and a pen is handed to you. It’s all very self-served on here on, as the staff concentrate on what the kitchen does best – the fried chicken.

ATL Maranatha offers a few types of “ayam tulang lunak”(literally translates as soft-bone fried chicken), in different flavours – sweet, spicy, salty yolk, original. There are also the normal offerings of Indonesian dishes such as Nasi Goreng, Gado gado or cah kangkung (water spinach).

The ayam tulang lunak is not for the faint hearted – literally. If my doctor was reading this right now and she saw what I was eating with my cholesterol levels, there would be a definite lecture ringing in my ears. Only in moderation, I tell myself.

From my understanding, the soft bone texture is achieved by using a pressure cooker, along with an unknown additive to transform the bones in the chicken into a biscuit like crunch.

We ordered the original recipe, along with the salted egg version as well. Served with sambal sauce on the side, the outside of the chicken leg was reminiscent of panko crumbs, encasing tender, fall off the bone chicken flesh. This is one time you would never get your hands dirty with fried chicken. Every mouthful is cleanly dissectable with your spoon and fork, every bite is a winner – if the greasy, satisfying crisp of deep fried skin and juicy chicken flesh is your thing. The soft bone adds an interesting texture too, it’s somewhat like a soft shell crab dish.

The salted egg yolk version is equally delightful, packed with an extra punch of rich, delicious cholesterol. This one is a must try – especially if you’re bringing along your hangover.

It’s probably also a great time to mentioned that the bones are an excellent source of calcium and iron that you cannot generally receive from eating just chicken meat, so some good will always come out of this indulgent dish. Do it for your healthy bones!

When it all gets a little overwhelming, wash the grease down with an Ice Kacang or an Es Cendol to end with a sweet note – Bagus!

ATL Maranatha
Ayam Goreng Tulang Lunak
Corner of Todman Avenue and Baker Street
Kensington NSW 2033
Phone: (02) 9663 3410

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