Where and What to eat?

Warung BaliBalinese warung
Dining in Bali is generally a highlight. You may choose to eat in a five star hotel restaurant, or you may prefer a breezy open sided bamboo cafe.

Hotels and restaurants in Bali offer guests a wide variety of excellent dishes to satisfy every budget and taste.

When you feel like venturing outside for a meal, there are dozens of good restaurants to be found in the main streets of Kuta, Legian, Ubud, Candidasa, Lovina, Sanur and most of the major tourist areas.

"Surprisingly you can dine for less than $ 2 in Bali"

The simple and relaxed restaurants, often with grass roofs  and cane furniture are almost everywhere. Even more simple, are the warungs, the snack bars and the mobile carts that cater mainly to local workers and adventurous travellers who have discovered that low cost hawker meals really can be safe to eat.
The night markets are traditional outdoor eateries that come to life at dusk, and are famous all over Southeast Asia. Even if you cannot work up the courage to eat in the markets, you must visit one to experience the thrills, the smells, the sights and the noises that define this part of the world.

Surprisingly, authentic Balinese food is rarely enjoyed by the island’s thousands of visitors, simply because it is rarely served in hotels and restaurants.

True, a wide variety of exotic dishes are available, but the typical fare is Indonesian and Chinese.
Popular Indonesian dishes
Imagem Babi Guling
Some tourist restaurants present special Bali nights, featuring dishes such as suckling pig, a Balinese banquet favorite, the Babi Guling.

Almost every restaurant will serve nasi goreng (Indonesian fried rice with a fried egg on top) and mie goreng (fried noodles with egg). These basic dishes are generally the favorites amongst tourists and travellers. Vegetarian versions may be requested.


Another Indonesian favorite is satay (spicy marinaded thin slices of meat, threaded onto a skewer, barbecued, and served with a spicy peanut sauce). Satay ayam is chicken served in the same way.

Gado gado is an Indonesian salad, served with spicy peanut sauce and often with prawn crackers.

Chinese dishes, such as sweet and sour, cap-cay (stir fried meat and vegetables) etc. are also widely available, as is an abundance of fresh seafood, which is often kept alive in tanks until ready for cooking.

Expect to pay for your meal about Rp.5,000 for basic dishes to over Rp.50,000. (USD 0,5 to USD 5).

Besides the traditional food you have also the most famous Western cuisine in the Island so don`t worry about the choice!



Some other popular Indonesian dishes are:
  • Martabak (a fried roti bread, filled with meat or vegetables).
  • Nasi campur (steamed rice with some vegetables and meat).
  • Nasi rames (rice with vegetables, meat and a fried egg),
  • Opor ayam (chicken cooked in coconut milk usually served with white rice (nasi putih).
  • Martabak Manis (A sweet pancake with butter, chocolate, cheese, condensed milk and peanut toppings - not common on Bali, but sometimes available).
A special Balinese treat that is widely available, is black rice pudding (Bubuh Injin). This is a desert made from natural black glutinous rice, served hot, in a sweet sauce of palm sugar and thick coconut cream.
Black rice pudding Bali
Black rice pudding
Mie Goreng Bali
Mie Goreng
Nasi Goreng Bali
Nasi Goreng
Satay Bali
Chicken and pork satay with peanut sauce