Current Recommendations for Bali

[RickBehl]

Hi All,

I will be in Bali next week for 9 nights of which 6 will be in Seminyak and 3 will be in Ubud.

I know there have already been a lot of posts about Bali but I just wanted to check what the current hot tables were in both of these parts of the country.

My current list of places to go are:

Seminyak:

Husk

Ku De Ta

Queens Tandoor

Gado Gado

La Luciola

Ubud:

Ary's Warung

Mozaic

Bebek Bengil 1

Cafe Lotus

Casa Luna

Any up-to-date advice appreciated !

Rgds

Rick

[Austin]

For "real" (as opposed to touristy) Balinese food, I would recommend the night market at Gianyar. There you'll find delicious roast duck, oily but yummy fried veggies, spicy sambal, teriffic rojak and other great foods that, unfortunately, were somewhat hard to find at times.

I enjoyed Balinese food, but found it very oily and fatty (I broke my tooth on a particularly resilient pork rind!).

I would avoid the beachside restaurants on Jimbaran; we chose some beautiful, but very expensive, fresh fish and squid, only to see it ladled with a disgusting bottled chili sauce!!

Austin

[RickBehl]

For "real" (as opposed to touristy) Balinese food, I would recommend the night market at Gianyar. There you'll find delicious roast duck, oily but yummy fried veggies, spicy sambal, teriffic rojak and other great foods that, unfortunately, were somewhat hard to find at times.

I enjoyed Balinese food, but found it very oily and fatty (I broke my tooth on a particularly resilient pork rind!).

I would avoid the beachside restaurants on Jimbaran; we chose some beautiful, but very expensive, fresh fish and squid, only to see it ladled with a disgusting bottled chili sauce!!

Austin

←

Thanks for the advice. Yes, I think we would like to try at least some 'local' food while we are there so we will try and take in the night markets...

I like your pictures by the way ! Are you a professional (food?) photographer ?

Rgds

Rick

[torakris]

In Ubud, I absolutely loved Ketut's Place. This is "local" food that can get no better. He is only open a couple times a week so you need to check.

I also enjoyed a cooking class and more wonderful food at Bumbu Bali 2 (also Ubud), the pictures (and comments) on both places canbe found with this thread.

[Austin]

Rick: Yes, I do food, as well as travel photos, and also some writing, again mostly about food!.

I would encourage you to rent a vehicle while on Bali, this will allow you get around easier and really explore the food options. And eat local food!!!

Austin

[Bond Girl]

Cafe Lotus is very good, scenic too. The chef that heads up the restaurant in Amankila can kick any NYC four star chef's ass anyday.

[Bond Girl]

Cafe Lotus is very good, scenic too. The chef that heads up the restaurant in Amankila can kick any NYC four star chef's ass anyday.

[RickBehl]

Thanks guys !

I will add Ketut's place to my list and also will see if we have time for a cooking class at Bumbu Bali. Is there any preference from people on whether the class at Casa Luna is better or the one at BB is better ?

Austin, thanks for the advice about hiring a car. Another friend also suggested this. Is it better to arrange this through a hotel or do you have any recommendations ?

On the photo topic, I have the same three passions as you ! Food, Travel and Photography ! Unfortunately my photography is not quite up to your standard but hopefully one day !

Thanks again for all the advice and I will try and post some of my experiences once I return.

Rgds

Rick

[nakji]

At the cooking class at Casa Luna, it wasn't really hands-on. We just watched as the staff prepared most of the dishes. There was some perfunctory paste grinding by the guests, but almost everything else was done by the staff. I like to actually, you know, cook, during cooking classes. Call me crazy. I would refer to that more as a cooking presentation than a class. The resulting food was quite delicious but I felt like I didn't come away knowing much more about Balinese food.

Except that if you ate 3 nutmegs, you'd die. I learned that.

[PatyGirl]

Hi,

I've just arrived in Bali and am looking for places to eat.

Any recommendations?

Thanks!!

Pati

[lovefoodwilltravel]

Hmm Ubud for lunch...Ibu Oka Babi Guling.

I still dream of this place. It's quintessentially Bali....finding one of the best pork dish/restaurant in the world in one of the largest muslim countries in the world.

It's featured on multiple TV shows from Rick Stein, Bourdain....IMO a must eat place. You can easily google it. All i can say is...GO FOR IT. And ubud is a great place to visit too.

PS only available for lunch...and no reservations available.

In Ubud I love the Italian restaurant Ultimo in kerobokan. It has a sister restaurant in Jakarta. Wonderfully romantic with great food. And if you go for the Fixed Menu(check the menu) you will get one of the greatest deals on the island.

To be honest most places here I find overrated and overpriced. The places are truly beautifull and service is great...but the food is good but nothing special. Still the recommended places are good bets if you are looking for solid meals. Finding good eats in Bali is really hard.

I still love the Jimbaran Seafood. It's still damn tasty and the fish you get here is pretty nice and fresh. And well its expensive. But if you are form a western country...it's still pretty good value. The place iw ould recommend is the place where the bomb was placed a few years ago. This plavce is relatively fair and always good quality food.(Dont know the place exactly....but its furthest away from Kuta)

BTW did you notice that there is NO streetfood in Kuta?

The reason is that there is a moratorium on foodstalls near Kuta. To protect the restaurants there.

To find great value tasty streetfood...you need move a few blocks away from the beach area. I had some great seafood at Jalan Iman bonjol at a street stall. It's not fancy big fish like at Jimbaran...but the taste actualy better. And the price was so good...made me feel guilty.

Anyway in this area just behind the beach area...you will find these stalls. You need a car or a trusty driver to find it.

have fun in bali....one of my fave places.

Edited August 29, 2010 by lovefoodwilltravel (log)