Balinese cuisine

Food is a large part of Balinese culture and I am proud to say we have immersed ourselves fully.  Even though we have participated in a traditional feast, and a "rice table banquet" the best meal we have had was at a roadside restaurant recommended by two different people we spoke to - Naughty Nuri's.

Barely worth a second glance as far as restaurant decor and street appeal go - in fact the day of our first visit we walked right past it, but that could have been due to the Neka Museum of Balinese Art being opposite so I was a little distracted.  We walked on by for quite some time until we realised we had overshot the mark.  About turn, and back up the hill, but boy was it worth it.  The restaurant is always busy and you sit at communal tables to eat.  It is obviously a favourite haunt of locals, and tourists in the know.

So, what's all the fuss about? BBQ Ribs!  Not being a huge rib girl I ordered a local noodle, chicken and vegetable dish. Then proceeded to steal ribs off Frank's plate.  Wow, they were sooooo good.  The ribs are grilled on a BBQ which virtually stands on the street.  Pre cooked in a huge pot, as orders come through the rack of ribs are removed from the pot, dipped until they ooze in a vat of sauce, and are then grilled on the BBQ.

Served with rough cut potato chips or salad, they are incredibly good.  So much so, that we ordered a second plate.  Only fair given I was helping Frank to eat his!

Established 1995 they advertise Good Indonesian Food, and it is.

The next day we went to a traditional Indonesian restaurant.  This was located within a large complex, with a traditional building and seating around the garden.  Looked good, but the food left a lot to be desired.  The flavour of my chicken dish was good, but the flesh of the chicken seemed to be missing, leaving succulent bones, but a hungry Tammy.  Frank made the mistake of ordering ribs - bad move as they just didn't compare.  The noodle dish however was good.

The highlight for us, and what made it worth eating here was the spice and herb garden.  Open to restaurant diners we went for a walk to explore to find that beyond the garden beds were open rice paddies.  We walked along the edge of one and stopped to watch some men threshing rice the traditional way.  Best thing was no one demanded money for the privilege.  This little hidden corner of Ubud was a highlight of our day.

A little indulgent perhaps, but with both of us still a little hungry we again headed up the hill and shared a plate of ribs at Naughty Nuri's.  with a bottle of Bintang, the local Balinese beer, it was the perfect way to end our day exploring.

28.5.13