Places to eat in Indonesia

Of course, there has to be at least one Maccas in probably nearly every major city in the world! I guess they are there mainly to cater for the kids who are fussy eaters, but sometimes nothing goes down better than some Maccas fries! We only went to the Maccas near the Matahari Dept. Store once to eat, and several times to use their toilet! We didnt eat at the Kuta Beach Maccas, but Tracy was keen for a surf with Ronald!!!

This place is an absolute haven after a hard mornings (or days!) shopping. It is close to the main shops in Kuta in Poppies Gang 1, a little side alley way. It is shady and cool with lots of plants and they give you an icy cold wet towel for the back of your neck! The food is cheap and delicious. We went here several times.

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I dont exactly know which restaurant we ate at - our guide Ketut just picked us up and took us there! The seafood is extremely fresh - that is because you go in an look at it swimming around, your order it and then they cook it!!! Cant get much fresher than that! This was our most expensive meal in Bali, about $25 each I think, but compared to Australian prices, that is still dirt cheap.

This is however a lovely experience - you actually sit on the sand - all the tables and chairs are on the beach.

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Once again, I can only tell you where we ate, I do NOT know if these Restaurants are still there or not.

La Lucciola - luxury restaurant right on the beach in Seminyak. This was a bit of a splurge compared to most Balinese retaurants, but well worth it. Cost was $21AUD each. Make sure you book a table early and be there for sunset, it is pure magic.

Poco Loco - a Mexican Restaurant in the back laneway Jl. Padma near the Melasti. Good value and good food. Meal and drinks for $8AUD.

Poppies - in Poppies Gang 1, this place was an oasis after a hard days shopping. Very very cheap about $10AUD meal and drinks.

La Porchetta - Italian Restaurant on Jl. Legian. Excellent italian/seafood about $12AUD meal and drinks.

La Terraza - another Italian Restaurant on Jl. Legain - probably the best meal we had in Bali only about $10AUD meal and drinks.

Puri Aggeng- small Indonesian restaurant in back street near Melasti. HUGE bowl of Nasi Goreng or Mia Goreng with drinks for ONLY $4AUD!!!

We also did the seafood at Jimbarin Bay on the beach. Setting was lovely but I would say not really worth it. Meal and drinks about $25AUD.

In the 8 days we were in Bali, our total food bill including drinks came to a grand total of $127!!! If you are on a budget, you can easily get away with $10AUD a day food and drinks, that is if your Hotel has breakfast included, which most of them do these days.

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This was our one little luxury meal, we were told it was a "must do" while in Bali, to book a table early and be there by about 5pm, then sit on the balcony watching the evening sun slowly setting while sipping cocktails and trying to decide what delicacies to order for dinner!!

I cant remember exactly what we ate, but I do remember it was delicious, but it more the ambience of watching the sunset that made it so special. This meal was our second most expensive while in Bali, costing about $21AUD each with food and drinks. The most expensive meal we ate was seafood at Jimbaran Bay, which I would not even really recommend.

We ate here only once near the end of our stay, and it was the best meal we ate in Bali, and also the best value. I remember they were quite surprised at the amount of the tip I gave them! Meal with a drink was slightly more expensive than most, but still only about $12AUD at the time (2004). It would be slightly more now, mainly because of the australian dollar.

I was originally reluctant to do tips on restaurants, not knowing if they were still in the same place and open, but I thought Id do it anyway.

Poco Loco was about a 2 minute walk from where we stayed at the Melasti Legian, so we ate here a few times. Food was very cheap, delicious and quick. A meal and drink back then in 2004 cost about $8AUD.

Michael the owner along with his lovely Indonesian wife Zerna take extreme pride in their food to the extent that Michael makes a weekly visit to neighbouring Singapore to buy his meat and spices from a German smallgoods maker.

Favorite Dish: The pork ribs that are slow cooked for hours just melt in your mouth.
Food here is expensive by Indonesian standards and for that matter even Australian prices but after you have partaken, you will say like me, worth every rupiah.