We really liked this restaurant, we showed up without a reservation and that wasn't a problem. They helped us with the menu to navigate the menu options and find something that our 2 year old daughter could enjoy as well. We had the rice table and would have it again.

I was told that when in the Netherlands I had to eat at an Indonesian restaurant. While not a fan of spicy food, I was delighted to find that De Lachende Javaan has a much more nuanced approach to cooking than just adding peanut butter and pepper to chinese food. We thouroughly enjoyed this restaurant. The service was great and... More

Two years ago almost to the date (April), my wife and I ate at De Lachende Javaan, the wonderful Indonesian restaurant off the alley on Frankestraat 27. We gave it an excellent rating, back then. We were back in Haarlem again this April 23rd, so we decided to see if it was as good as before. When we walked in,... More

This lovely restaurant offers two choices of rijsttafel and both are excellent. The service is very good and the atmosphere is enhanced by authentic Javanese artwork. We enjoyed three delicious meals at De Lachende Javaan when we were in Haarlem last month, and can't wait to return again. Reservation are recommended, especially on the weekends as this is a very... More

I have picked de lachende javaan because of the many recommendations here and I was not disappointed. We had two small and two large rijsttafels for four adults and one child and one table could not hold all the food we have. We eat asian style foods very often and we all simply loved the food there. The service was... More

Have been excited to try 'rijstaffel' for years and was so disappointed. It was beyond anticlimatic. Okay, I'm a chef so perhaps a bit critical but this was simply terrible. The service pathetic...waited an hour for our food - our drinks were empty at 1/2 hour and were never offered another. It was almost as if we were invisible after... More

We wandered into De Lachende Javaan for dinner and were very pleased. They do not have an English menu, but our waiter discussed the choices with us. Because one of us cannot eat hot spices, he had a delicious chicken dish made. We also ordered a rijsttafel. It was all very good. We appreciated the help in ordering and enjoyed... More

This was actually a very good find, my girlfriend and I always enjoy good Indonesian food, and this restaurant was no exeption. The atmosphere (nice statues in the middle of the restaurant) was very pleasant and the staff was very polite and well trained. The toilets where clean, and the rijsttafels are really recommended! O yeah, dont forget to order... More

Food fantastic. Service excellent. Atmosphere wonderful. Can't wait to return.