'Bakpia', 'geplak' still favorite Yogya souvenirs
'Bakpia', 'geplak' still favorite Yogya souvenirs
Slamet Susanto, The Jakarta Post, Yogyakarta
"If you want to buy bakpia (baked cake stuffed
with a mixture of green bean powder and cane
sugar), you had better not buy it here.
It's expensive. I can take you to a producer that sells
bakpia more cheaply, but with the same
quality and taste. You can try it yourself
there. Please come with me, I'll take you there."
Don't be surprised if you hear comments like these from
bakpia brokers awaiting customers in front of
bakpia stores along Jl. KS Tubun, or Pathok as the
region is more popularly called, as that is the way
they get customers.
Even the owners of most of the bakpia stores there do not see
it as a problem. They let the brokers "hijack" their potential
customers that way, arguing that the practice will not
significantly affect their sales as long as the quality
of their products is well maintained.
"That's the way they make a living. We can't just
get rid of them," Weny Yuningsih of Bakpia Pathok 75
told The Jakarta Post in a recent interview.
The brokers, according to Weny, have emerged as the
result of strong competition between bakpia
producers who offer the highest incentives to
brokers who can bring them customers.
Sometimes, the incentives can be 40 percent of the money
spent by the customers they attract.
"But, again, we're not afraid. We believe our true
customers will never run from us. They know that our
products are more expensive but the quality is
guaranteed. We only use pure sugar and green beans of
the best quality for our products," Weny explained.
Bakpia Pathok 75 is just one of dozens of bakpia stores
in Pathok, which is also renowned as a bakpia center.
The business was first pioneered by Weny's grandmother, Lim
Bok Sing. In 1948 she started the business by producing not just
bakpia but also other traditional cakes and snacks, including kue
bolu, resoles, kue kukus and bakwan, which she
sold from door to door.
In 1950 she settled down on Jl KS Tubun 75 and
eventually produced only bakpia, mostly because it
keeps longer than other items. As the product grew in popularity,
more producers emerged in
the region, such that Pathok eventually become a bakpia
center. It is always crowded with buyers every
holiday, especially during Idul Fitri (the Islamic celebration
that marks the end of Ramadhan), when many people
visit the city.
Bakpia Pathok 75 alone, according to Weny, with the two
outlets it has -- the other being on Jl HOS Cokroaminoto --
can sell up to 400 boxes of bakpia containing an
average of 20 cakes each, with over 100 customers
visiting its stores every day.
During holidays, sales increase by up to 100 percent of those
on normal days.
Pathok, of course, is not the only place where customers
can buy bakpia. In fact, the cake can be found at
many snack stores across the city as well as at modern
and traditional markets.
Bakpia makers, too, not only reside in the Pathok area and its
surroundings. Many, especially those who produce the items as
part of a cottage industry, can also be found in villages
across the province.
Another specialty of Yogyakarta's that has also
attracted tourists to taste and local residents
to buy is geplak, which is made from a mixture of
sugar and grated coconut. Like bakpia, this
traditional cake has also become one of the
trademarks of the city.
As such, therefore, tourists or visitors to Yogyakarta will
not be considered to have completely enjoyed the city of
culture unless they have tasted these sweet cakes.
Bantul, in the southern part of Yogyakarta province, is
the center of geplak production. The products,
however, can be bought not just at the regency but
at almost any snack store in the city, as well as
traditional markets and modern supermarkets.
Many believe that geplak originated from
Bantul, with Geplak Bantul Mbok Tumpuk, whose main
store is located on Jl Wachid Hasyim, Bantul, as one
of the pioneers in the business.
The company, according to Arif Dihamto of Geplak
Bantul Mbok Tumpuk, was established in the 1960s by his
mother, Mbok Tumpuk, at Badegak village, Bantul.
It was only in 1975 that the store moved to Jl Wachid
Hasyim, where it has remained until now, mainly because the
original location was considered not to be as strategic
as that on Jl. Wachid Hasyim.
On weekdays, Arif says, his store can sell an
average of 250 kilograms to 350 kg of geplak,
which is priced at Rp 10,000 per kilogram.
During weekends and holidays, however, sales increase by up to
100 percent of normal days.
Purwanto, a buyer, told The Post that he never
missed an opportunity to buy geplak every Idul Fitri.
"I always buy it ahead of Lebaran to serve to
visiting families or relatives, and buy more by the
end of Lebaran for them to take home.
They love it, for Lebaran is not complete for them without
taking some geplak home," Purwanto said.