Kue buatan sendiri lebih enak dimakan bersama keluarga.

Buatan sendiri means homemade or more literally made by oneself.

• buatan = something made / a product of making
• sendiri = self / oneself / by oneself

So kue buatan sendiri is cake that you made yourself or homemade cake.

Because sendiri by itself usually means alone, self, or by oneself, depending on context.
The word buatan makes it clear that we are talking about something that was made.

Compare:

• kue sendiri → this would not naturally mean homemade cake
• kue buatan sendiri → cake made by oneself

So buatan sendiri works together as a set phrase meaning self-made / homemade.

Indonesian often leaves out the verb to be in sentences like this.

So:

• Kue buatan sendiri lebih enak dimakan bersama keluarga.

literally looks like:

• Homemade cake more delicious eaten with family.

In natural English, we add is:

• Homemade cake is tastier when eaten with family.

This is very normal in Indonesian. You do not need a word like is/are in many descriptive sentences.

Lebih enak means more delicious, tastier, or sometimes nicer depending on context.

• enak = delicious / tasty / pleasant
• lebih = more

So lebih enak = more tasty or tastier.

In this sentence, it suggests comparison, even if the second thing is not stated directly. The implied idea is something like:

• homemade cake is tastier than other cake
• homemade cake is better when eaten with family

Indonesian often leaves the comparison unstated if it is understood from context.

Because dimakan is the passive form of eat.

• makan = to eat
• dimakan = to be eaten

Here, the focus is on the cake, not on the people eating it. So lebih enak dimakan means:

• tastier to be eaten
• more naturally in English: tastier when eaten

If you used makan, the structure would be different and less natural here.

Yes, di- is a common passive prefix in Indonesian.

So:

• memakan = to eat something
• dimakan = to be eaten

In this sentence, the passive is useful because kue is the topic. The sentence is talking about the cake and what it is like, not about who eats it.

Because Indonesian often uses passive forms in places where English prefers a different structure.

lebih enak dimakan bersama keluarga is a very natural Indonesian way to say:

• tastier when eaten with family
• best enjoyed with family

A very literal translation into English sounds stiff, but the Indonesian structure itself is normal and idiomatic.

Bersama keluarga means with family / together with family.

• bersama = together with
• keluarga = family

You could also say dengan keluarga in some contexts, but bersama often emphasizes the idea of togetherness more strongly. In a sentence like this, bersama keluarga sounds warm and natural.

So:

• bersama keluarga = together with family
• dengan keluarga = with family, but slightly less focused on the shared-together feeling

Indonesian often leaves that kind of information unstated when it is clear or meant in a general sense.

So bersama keluarga can mean:

• with the family
• with your family
• with one’s family
• with family

In English, we usually need to choose one. In Indonesian, the noun can stay general unless the speaker wants to be more specific.

If you want to specify, you can say:

• bersama keluarga saya = with my family
• bersama keluarganya = with his/her family

It could be singular or plural, depending on context.

In Indonesian, many nouns do not change form for singular vs. plural.

So kue can mean:

• cake
• cakes
• sometimes even pastry / sweets, depending on context

If someone wants to make it clearly plural, they might say:

• kue-kue

But in many sentences, plain kue is enough.

Because that is the topic or thing being described.

The structure is basically:

• Kue buatan sendiri = homemade cake
• lebih enak dimakan bersama keluarga = is tastier when eaten with family

Indonesian often begins with the thing being talked about, followed by a description of it. This is very common and natural.

Yes. That would also be correct.

• enak dimakan bersama keluarga = delicious / good to eat with family
• lebih enak dimakan bersama keluarga = tastier / better to eat with family

Adding lebih makes it comparative. Without it, the sentence is just a simple statement.

So both work, but the nuance changes:

• enak = tasty
• lebih enak = tastier / better

Sendiri is a very useful word with several common meanings, depending on context:

1. self / oneself

   • Saya buat sendiri. = I made it myself.

2. alone

   • Dia tinggal sendiri. = He/She lives alone.

3. by oneself

   • Anak itu makan sendiri. = The child eats by himself/herself.

In buatan sendiri, it has the self-made meaning, not the alone meaning.

Some changes are possible, but the original order is the most natural.

Original:

• Kue buatan sendiri lebih enak dimakan bersama keluarga.

You might also hear something like:

• Kue buatan sendiri lebih enak kalau dimakan bersama keluarga.

Adding kalau makes the meaning more explicit:

• Homemade cake is tastier if/when eaten with family.

But simply rearranging the words too much can make the sentence sound unnatural. Indonesian word order is flexible in some ways, but fixed expressions like lebih enak dimakan are best learned as natural chunks.

It is fairly neutral and natural. It would work in everyday speech, writing, advertising, or social media.

It is not slang, and it is not especially formal either.
If anything, it has a slightly warm, pleasant tone because of bersama keluarga.

Yes, absolutely.

Even though lebih enak literally means more delicious / tastier, in natural translation the whole sentence can sound like:

• Homemade cake is best enjoyed with family
• Homemade cake tastes better when shared with family

So the sentence does not have to be understood as a cold, strict comparison. It can also express a warm, cultural idea: food feels nicer when enjoyed together with family.