Ubud was our first stop in Bali, and an excellent introduction to Balinese and Indonesian cuisine. We definitely did not go hungry. We ate our fill of nasi goreng (fried rice, often with chicken, a fried egg on top and crunchy shrimp crackers on the side) and mie goreng (fried noodles). Most meals came with sambal, the chili-based condiment found on nearly every Indonesian table. Bali’s own version, sambal matah, is a fresh, uncooked mix of shallots, chilies, lemongrass and coconut oil.
With tropical fruit everywhere (dragon fruit, watermelon, pineapple, mango), Hazel had a fresh juice or smoothie with almost every meal.
And when we needed comfort food, plenty of Western dishes were on offer: pizza, tacos and, to my delight, a surprising number of menus featuring two of my favorites, chicken parmigiana and tuna melts.
We stayed for 10 days, basing ourselves in Peliatan, a traditional village on the southeast outskirts of Ubud.
Central Ubud is busy and packed with traffic, and we enjoyed Peliatan’s relative serenity as we looked out over rice fields. It was still easy to get into central Ubud when we wanted to. The ride-share apps Grab and Gojek are everywhere. A car ride into town for the three of us typically cost $5 to $6 USD each way, and when one of us ventured out alone, a Grab moto cost about $0.75.
Our home base in Peliatan shaped our favorite dining spots, since we loved being able to walk to several local places. But we found delicious spots in central Ubud and other outlying areas too. Here is a collection of our favorites.
Peliatan
We were frequent visitors to Kelapa Muda, which combines a couple of pools, waterslides and swings with an excellent happy hour and tasty food. A great combination for kid and parents alike! No large roads lead directly to it, so guests either arrive by moto or walk the final stretch through the rice fields, as we did. There’s a variety of seating. Some seats were always “free” (i.e restaurant tables), while other areas, like the loungers by the pool, required a fairly low minimum spend (150K IDR, about $8–9 USD, when we visited; policies change, so check when you go). Happy hour ran from 4 to 6 pm, making this a great spot to watch the sunset from the pool. We heard there’s a kid-oriented foam party on Sundays, but we didn’t get a chance to check it out.
Our first dinner in Bali was at Warung Hana, and we made sure it wasn’t our last. After entering from a busy main road, we were immediately struck by the calm and quiet of the back patio overlooking the rice fields. There’s a swimming pool here too, although we didn’t try it. They also have a great happy hour for cocktails, and their Balinese dishes were delicious.
This large, peaceful campus is filled with ponds, fountains and seating areas tucked in between. It was a beautiful, quiet escape from the hubbub of Ubud. The specialty is bebek (duck). I don’t eat duck (my allegiance to the Oregon Ducks prevents me), but Bekah tried the bebek timbungan, duck cooked inside a piece of bamboo, and said it was delicious. This place was full of surprises: a cow even wandered through while we had dinner one night. It apparently felt safe there, given the restaurant’s focus on duck over beef.
Central Ubud
The Herb Library is a bright, open-air spot wrapped in greenery. The menu leans plant-based, with plenty of vegan and vegetarian choices plus a few fish dishes, and most ingredients are sourced locally. I visited after a yoga class, and it was a great place to recharge over coffee and lunch. It serves food all day, so it works for breakfast, a post-yoga juice or dinner.
Hungry as we walked the hot streets of Ubud, we popped into Cafe Lotus for lunch more or less at random. It turned out to be a great stop. The restaurant opens onto the Ubud Water Palace (Saraswati Temple), so you can watch the fountains and lotus ponds while you eat. We hear the water palace is even more beautiful lit up at night. It was quiet when we arrived for lunch, so we got a great seat at the railing looking straight into the water palace, but you may need to plan ahead for prime seating at night.
Other Areas Around Ubud
We attended a sound healing at Alchemy and ate dinner beforehand at their restaurant directly across the street. It’s all vegan and full of healthy choices. We enjoyed dinner so much that we returned for dessert after the sound healing. Hazel and I had giant ice cream sundaes made from coconut milk, with healthy-sounding ingredients like Irish moss (who knew?).
As we described in our post about the Sari Organic walk, our morning started a bit rough as we dodged moto traffic on the way out of central Ubud. Tori Cafe was a welcome respite. We regrouped over delicious smoothie bowls, coffee and juice in this oasis among the rice fields. Thus refueled, we found the rest of the walk much more pleasant.
Discover more from CURIOUSx3
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.