Bali has a wide variety of food to indulge in. You get everything from traditional Indonesian and Balinese dishes to all sorts of fusion. While we typically try to stick to local cuisine when we travel, we found this to be a bit trickier in Bali. We had never traveled to a country with so much foreign influence before. To be honest, it was a bit shocking to be surrounded by other tourists and little to no locals at times.
However, all this foreign influence has allowed Balinese people to take various foreign cuisine and really make it their own. I am happy to report that the results are quite delicious! Here are some of my favorites:
SWEET ORANGE WARUNG
One of the more interesting restaurants we visited was located off the far, far, faaaar of the beaten path. Passed some long forgotten buildings taken back by nature, up a narrow incline and into Ubud’s gorgeous rice fields lies Sweet Orange Warung. The entire restaurant is open air, making every table a seat with a view.
The hut-like warung is decorated with unique carved stone faces piled on the floors or stacked in corners, while hand carved coconuts hang from the ceiling. Apparently, these coconuts were hollowed out by some coconut loving squirrels. They leave the shells empty with unique holes in them and the locals repurpose them into these funky looking masks. You can even make one yourself for Rp 50,000 and the proceeds go towards maintaining the roads and upkeep of the local community.
As for the food, we started with their signature Sweet Orange Taster Platter (Rp 25,000). This allowed us to try one of everything on their appetizer menu: Lumpia (fried spring roll), Bregedel (fried corn fritter), Bakwan (fried vegetable fritter) and Tempe Goreng (fried Indonesian tofu). Accompanied by a sweet and tangy sauce, this dish was super addictive. We wanted to order more, but decided to restrain ourselves to make way for more food later.
For our main dish, we shared an order of Mie Goreng (Rp 35,000). A common dish in Bali. It consists of fried noodles, vegetables topped with an egg served with a side of chicken. From the first bite, I was hooked! It would be the first of many more Mie Goreng dishes on this trip for me. It’s nothing too special, just incredibly delicious.
Finally, we washed it all down with a Sunrise Smoothie (Rp 35,000): banana, dragonfruit, mint and yoghurt. It’s made with fresh fruit, no additional sugar and I loved it! The hubby prefers a thicker slightly sweeter smoothie, so it wasn’t exactly his favorite. I suppose each to his own.
- Address
- Jalan Kajeng, Ubud, Kecamatan Ubud, Kabupaten Gianyar, Bali 80571, Indonesia
- Phone
- +62 813-3855-6428
CASA LUNA
As it turns out, brunch is a very popular ordeal in Bali. While we were pretty set on sticking to only local cuisine, we came across so many brunch spots throughout our stay we just had to try at least one. Eventually, we landed on Casa Luna since they only offer brunch on the weekends.
For me, brunch has to always include an order of pancakes or french toast, so we ordered their signature Blueberry Cornmeal Pancakes (Rp 60,000) which came topped with fresh strawberries and blueberries, a side of homemade greek-style yoghurt and some organic coconut syrup for my drizzling pleasure.These pancakes came stuffed with fresh bluebs! I literally got a blueberry in every bite. Magical.
Our second dish, however, was the real showstopper… Hash Browns (Rp 65,000). Of course I don’t mean your basic run of the mill hash browns. I mean a perfectly crisped pile of hash browns topped with fried eggs, bacon, asparagus, herbs and seasoned to perfection. These were the best hash browns we’ve ever had… period. There’s just something about the way Indonesians season their foods that sets their dishes apart from other countries we’ve been to. So much flavor!
Of course brunch wouldn’t be complete with out some caffeine. Coffee in Bali is everything! It may actually be my favorite coffee to date. While the hubby found happiness in his cafe latte, I decided to try out their Iced salted caramel matcha latte (Rp 35,000). It was all the sugar and caffeine I needed to power me through the morning. If you’re a matcha lover, this is a must try.
As it turns out, Casa Luna has a whole lot going on including a delicious bakery, live jazz on Fridays, homemade donuts on Sundays and of course weekend brunches. If you happen to be in Ubud, they’re definitely worth checking out.
- Address
- Jl. Bisma, Ubud, Kabupaten Gianyar, Bali 80571, Indonesia
- Phone
- +62(0)361973282
ACAI QUEEN
We spotted Acai Queen when we were desperately searching for a haven away from the afternoon heat. I was completely drawn in by their aesthetics. Bright colors, tropical patterns, adorable swing benches and delicious acai bowls, it felt like destiny. They have a really nice selection of acai bowls, ice cream bowls, smoothie bowls and protein bowls, but in the end we got an acai bowl. Honestly, you can’t go wrong with fruit in Bali. We ate as much fruit as we possibly could, and this was no exception.
The large Tropicana (Rp 95,000) came with acai sorbet, passionfruit, mango, papaya, dragonfruit, shredded coconut, gourmet chocolate sauce and granola. So really, just all the fruits. This heaping pile of colorful juiciness came served in an adorable wooden pineapple bowl accompanied by some equally cute palm tree spoons. Can you say Insta-Worthy?
It was, in a word, delicious. The fruit was sweet and juicy, the bowl itself was fairly filling and the ambiance gave off some excellent vacation vibes. We actually enjoyed it so much that we had it a second time before leaving Ubud.
- Address
- Jl. Gootama No.02, Ubud, Kecamatan Ubud, Kabupaten Gianyar, Bali 80571
- Phone
- +62 823 4130 8767
WARUNG BIAH BIAH
While we were exploring central Ubud, we had come across Warung Biah Biah several times. Each and every time, there had been a long line of people outside of it waiting for a table. It didn’t look too different from the numerous other warungs in the area, but our curiosity eventually got the better of us for a late lunch.
Based on what most people in the restaurant had ordered, I got the Nasi Campur (Rp 28,000) which is definitely one of those must try local dishes. Steamed rice, chicken, pork, shrimp crackers and an assortment of vegetables. It was basically Indonesian bibimbap, so I enjoyed it quite a bit.
We also ordered the Pangsit Goreng Keju (Rp 23,000) which is a kind of cheese filled fried wonton with a pelecing dipping sauce. Though the cheese to wonton ratio wasn’t ideal, these were insanely delicious! The hubby’s stomach was feeling a bit sensitive that day, but even he couldn’t help devouring a few.
As for my hubby, he ordered the Soto Ayam (Rp 18,000), a traditional chicken soup. This particular dish took some time to come out, but it was well worth the wait. The soup was jam packed with chunks of chicken, fresh vegetables, rice vermicelli noodles and Balinese spices. Like so many other Balinese dishes we had throughout our trip, this soup was rich in flavor and seasoned to perfection.
I’d have to say that the serving sizes here were very generous. The bowl of Soto Ayam was so full, we had a really hard time finishing everything. Needless to say we left very happy and very full so it was easy to see why there’s usually a wait to get in.
- Address
- Jl. Goutama Sel. No.13, Ubud, Kecamatan Ubud, Kabupaten Gianyar, Bali 80571, Indonesia
- Phone
- +62 361 978249
WARUNG LOKAL
We came across Warung Lokal when my hubby was recovering from Bali Belly. He was in desperate need of a dish that would be easy on his stomach and they had just what he needed. The Sayur Hijau was a simple vegetable soup (Rp 15,000) that quickly became his favorite dish of the whole trip. The bowl was filled with chunks of fresh vegetables in what was probably one of the most flavorful broths we had ever eaten. I only got a bite or two in before he completely devoured it, but thinking about it now totally makes my mouth water.
I ordered the Babi Goreng Tepung which is fried battered pork (25,000). As a native Texan, I felt it tasted an awful lot like chicken fried steak… but with pork. The batter was really well seasoned and the pork was insanely tender. It fell apart as soon as I cut into it. To round out the flavor, it came with a sort of tangy dipping sauce. While the flavor was nothing short of delicious, it definitely required a side of rice to balance it out. Overall another delicious meal in Bali.
- Address
- Jl. Gootama, Ubud, Kecamatan Ubud, Kabupaten Gianyar, Bali 80571, Indonesia
- Phone
- +62 812-4604-474
OOPS RESTAURANT AND BAR
Like brunch, Happy Hour is another widely spread concept in Bali. I guess that shouldn’t be too surprising with it being a major vacation hotspot and all. Most restaurants had signs outside displaying their Happy Hour specials, so we just perused them until something caught our eye. Enter Oops Restaurant and Bar.
Happy Hour here runs from 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm and it was their buy one get one free Frozen Coconut Mojitos (Rp 80,000) that brought us to their doors. Typically, the hubby isn’t really a fan of coconut, but even he was completely infatuated with these drinks. It was the perfect balance of booze and refreshing, which was exactly what we needed after a long hot day of sightseeing.
Of course we can’t drink without a little something to munch on on the side. So, we got an order of their Crispy Duck Spring Rolls and Chicken Wings. The spring rolls were super crispy with a generous amount of well seasoned duck inside. As for the wings, the were lathered in a delicious sweet and sour “Asian style” sauce. It has been quite some time since we’ve had bar food that good.
The prices are a bit higher than you’re typical warung, but that was pretty consistent with similar bar type restaurants. I’d say the only thing that I really didn’t enjoy was the fact that they allow smoking in the restaurant. Other than that, it was the perfect place to enjoy happy hour. Fantastic sides and drinks!
- Address
- Jalan Raya, Ubud, Kecamatan Ubud, Kabupaten Gianyar, Bali 80571, Indonesia
- Phone
- +62 (0) 361-975 013
THE COCONUT HUT
Our favorite restaurant of the whole trip was a little spot on Nusa Lembongan called The Coconut Hut. We had just arrived on the island and their Taco Tuesday had our names all over it.
First off, we ordered their Fish Tacos (Rp 70,000). This came with two tacos stuffed with chunks of deep fried battered barramundi, shredded red cabbage and a special chili mayo sauce. To be honest, the tortillas were so big they were more like open-faced burritos rather than tacos. No complaints.
We also got an order of Fish & Chips (Rp 85,000) which came with chunks of crumbed and fried barramundi with a side of fries and salad. The portions were very generous and I’ve got to say, we really enjoyed trying a new fish. Barramundi is a type of sea bass that is native to Southeast Asia. The texture is really moist and flakey and the flavor lacks that fishy briny taste. It was really tasty!
Food aside, the staff was really friendly and laidback. The atmosphere definitely captures those island vacay vibes with their straw hut-like umbrellas, snoozing doggos and a cute mini golf course. An absolute must-try in our books.
- Address
- Lembongan island, Jl. Jungutbatu, Jungutbatu, Nusapenida, Kabupaten Klungkung, Bali 80771, Indonesia
- Phone
- +62 812-3644-9119
HOTEL & VILLA (FREE BREAKFAST)
If you’re not getting free breakfast with your accommodations in Bali, then you’re definitely doing something wrong. Most hotels, resorts, villas, etc. on Bali offer free breakfast and trust me… you want it. We mostly book our stays through Agoda or Airbnb and while we don’t typically look for an included breakfast with our stay, we found it really difficult to find something without one.
Our first stay was at a private villa in Ubud. They provided us with a small menu every evening and we could choose whatever and as many items as we wanted from it. They would then have breakfast prepared and delivered to our room at whatever time we specified. We had never felt so pampered.
The breakfasts weren’t anything too fancy, but they were incredibly well prepared and very delicious. It was a great way to start every day. Many places can also prepare a floating breakfast for you if you want to eat in the pool. It’s a small additional charge, but totally worth it imho.
Our second stay was at a resort. Here they provided a more conventional buffet style breakfast in the hotel restaurant. It was a nice blend of western and eastern style dishes. What was really great is that they changed up some of the main dishes every day, so we always had something new to try.
In short, if you’re planning a Bali trip, don’t miss out on the free breakfasts. Also, be sure to check out the hotel restaurants. We don’t typically eat at our hotels when we travel, but we found the meals to be really tasty especially on Nusa Lembongan. Some of them even provide live music and entertainment in the evenings, so don’t miss out!
FINAL THOUGHTS
Eating our way through Bali was not a difficult thing to do. In fact, I’d say the hardest part was actually just deciding where to eat. There are so many options and the majority of them have excellent reviews. It’s hard to go wrong. Overall, we definitely got a pretty well rounded taste of Bali. Can’t wait to taste more of it on our next trip!
Which hotels had the floating breakfast?
Lots of places do, especially private villas. The best way to make sure is just to contact the places you’re interested in staying at and ask them directly.
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