Bali Eats and Drinks

Bali is not known for its food. Balinese people regard food simply as sustenance, and thus there is usually little fanfare surrounding meals. I was also unbelievably paranoid in Bali, since Bali Belly, a rather cute name for the very unpleasant upset stomach (to put it mildly) that strikes foreign visitors, is incredibly common, especially since the water is so unsafe to drink. The washing of hands also just does not happen in Bali, even after using the toilet or before preparing food. I went through practically enough hand sanitizer to fill a large bottle, and also made Shweetie incredibly paranoid. Given our experience at the spa and the horrible aftermath, I'd say my paranoia was warranted.

Despite all my fears surrounding food, we did manage to have a few good meals, particularly when they involved traditional Balinese staples, and some delicious drinks while in Bali.

Suckling Pig at Ibu Oka in Ubud


Fried Chicken at Depot Kalasan in Denpasar

Our villa included breakfast in the nightly rate, so every morning we had a personal butler come to our villa to specially prepare our meal in our private kitchen. Two of the days we had this incredibly sweet woman named Yani, who is probably the happiest human being I have ever met (with the exception maybe of the Hawk). She smiled constantly and said "Yah" a lot and always addressed us as Mr. and Mrs. Shweetie. Our breakfast selections consisted of traditional western choices (e.g., eggs, bacon, ham), fresh fruit, or traditional Balinese breakfasts. I realized how much I love papaya in Bali, though I can't stand the kind we have at home, and that Balinese breakfasts are pretty darn good.

Nasi Campur: rice topped with various meats, vegetables, peanuts, eggs, and Balinese spices

As for drinks, Juli brought us to a coffee plantation Shweetie wanted to visit, where you can try six varieties of tea and coffee for free. If you wanted to try their coffee luwak, one of the world's most expensive coffees, it was only $5. However, they were selling coffee luwak beans for $100 per pound, and that was even AFTER bartering. Coffee luwak beans are processed through the digestive tracks of civets (these cat/weasel-looking animals). Yep, the animals poop these beans out whole, and they're then cleaned and used for coffee. Appetizing, huh? The flavor was actually pretty good, but we wished we had a French press with us (I'm sure that would have gone over with them well). Balinese coffee is not filtered very well, so we tasted a lot of grinds. For the rest of the time in Bali, Juli tried to help us find affordable coffee luwak beans, but to no avail, so we ended up coming home from Bali empty-handed.

Free tea and coffee tasting