G’day!
Bonjuorrrno!!
Bonjour!!!
Ahh yes the Bali that I forgot. Where street hawkers try and converse with you and mimic accents like the most skilled parrots in whichever language they think that you speak. Ubud is the place that every Balinese asks if you’ve been to. Mostly because as Made tells us, it’s a hub for foreigners as it is the cultural centre of Bali. ]Mr NQN’s mum, as an artist always bases herself here on her visits to Bali.
And we’re not crazy about the main markets here at Ubud. It’s mostly filled with tacky kind of souvenir items (I can do without a wooden penis bottle opener thanks). We both preferred the boutiques in Seminyak as the products themselves are nicer and Mr NQN and I are terrible at haggling. When a person who looks to be struggling tries to sell you a beautiful carved wooden jewllery box for 10c it’s hard to negotiate or say no to them.
Made is taking us on tour today and on the drive to Ubud from the villa we pass by rice paddies where people work all day planting and harvesting rice in a three month cycle. On the side of the road there is a set of tents with temporary Javanese workers set up to work. They make a mere the equivalent of $5-$6 for every 100kgs of rice that they harvest.
There are families of four on motorbikes and a travelling bike with a glass display containing donuts attached to the back drives past. Bikes carrying a perilously large and uneven load drive past and all of a sudden we hear Jingle Bells and an ice cream motorbike with a display of ice cream cones drives past.
It’s the Balinese version of Mr Whippy!
I ask Made to give me two words to best describe Balinese and after considering it for a minute he said: gentle and religious. I have to agree on both counts. All throughout the streets are offerings to the gods. We walk through the palace to the King of Ubud.
Offerings
Can you spot the ahem… souvenir? 
We do a little shopping around Ubud Markets but it isn’t great for much apart a Halloweeny mask so we make our way down two other streets. There’s a stall where we buy a pepes which is tofu, coconut and fish wrapped in a banana leaf which is deliciously soft and fragrant in lemongrass and ginger. And the princely sum for our little snack? 10c or 1000 rupiah!
Pepes: 1000 rupiah or 10 cents!
Incredibly inexpensive beauty treatments starting at $4.00AUD for a half hour massage!
We sidestep huge gaping holes in the pavement where covers have been removed. Queen Viv once told me that late night she fell down one of these and I can see why-the holes are enormous! We walk down Monkey Forest Street which is full of little boutiques that offer a welcome Arctic respite from the humidity and heat. We spy all sorts of options for food at incredibly low prices. One could easily live like a king or queen in Bali -indeed you can have a seafood hot pot for the tiny sum of $4 in a lovely looking “warung” or restaurant or you can have a 1 hour Swedish, reflexology or foot massage for $6 (55,000 rupiah!).
There’s a man selling honey with his very own honeycomb with live bees. Of course customs won’t allow us to bring any honey back but it is selling for a steal at $2 a bottle.
School’s out!
It’s 12:30pm and the children are let out of school and they clamour for frozen ices. We stop in for a little visit to the convenience store. I always like seeing what the local snack foods are (cassava chips are a favourite for me). And lo and behold, what do I spy but Cheese Tim Tams for $1(10,000 rupiah) a packet. We grab some of these plus a couple of drinks and pay the equivalent of $3.50.
Cheese Tim Tams-yes really!
Our next stop is lunch with Made! We ask him to take us somewhere where Balinese locals eat. He suggests a place that was made famous on Getaway. It specialises in suckling pig and we take a look at the menu where we see a few versions. You can get the special which is the meat, skin,vegetables, rice, soup and an extra bowl of rice or you can get just the mixed plate with the meat, skin, vegetables and rice or you can get the meat by itself or the skin by itself.
Inside the warung
They do a roaring trade here with both locals and foreigners. We start with a drink that is said to taste like a combination of beer and Sprite called a Green Sands. I go for a young coconut juice which is refreshing but not cold which would have been better for this weather.
Suckling Pig Plate 30,000 rupiah (approximately $3.50)
Green chillies
Our food arrives quickly and they are served on waxed paper plates within bowls. The meat is tender and there are three pieces and the skin is crispy although not as crispy as I like (I like it blistered). I particularly like the crackling that has been dipped in pork floss and deep fried and there is also a small piece of their black pudding aka blood sausage which is nice and spicy. The vegetables are tasty and one of my favourite things is the green chilli condiment which is hot but not a throat burning hot, it stays on the tongue and disappears shortly afterwards.
On our way home we drive past a large hanging bridge where there are some gorgeous view (although watch out as there are some slats missing!)
A villager
We walk through the village of Cepaka with its quiet streets and friendly residents. We watch the wood carving artisans. It’s a small village of 1500 and each year three residents become the leaders of the village for a period of one year where they make decisions and instigate improvements for the community. One only qualifies for this once they are married.
Cepaka village
A side street stall
Ahhh home!
We reach the villa where we are greeted with lovely pineapple, lime and ginger juices which Made had preordered for us so that they would be waiting for us. After we quench our thirst and cool down we wander out to an outer pavilion where we indulge in our second spa treatment-for me a facial and for Mr NQN a hot stone massage. I enjoy the facial which seems tailor made for the hot weather with light creams and chilled compresses and wipes.
Pineapple, lime and ginger juice
Before we know it, it’s dinner time-our final dinner at the Villa. We’re sad to see the end of our blissful time here and the food which has impressed us to no end. The chef Wayan from the Cepaka village actually never took formal lessons. Instead he observed and watched and studied Balinese chefs preparing food. I’m quite sure that they have a special pastry chef elf somewhere in the kitchen too as they have fabulous techniques with the sweets and buttery pastry.
Coconut prawns with sweet chilli sauce
Tonight, for a small change of scenery, we’re having our canapes by the pool. When we emerge from our spa treatments we notice that they’ve thoughtfully set up music and we sit back and relax to the cooing of the wild life outside and across the river. Our first canape is the coconut prawns. I know this is a huge serve and really more entree sized than canape sized. The prawns are juicy with a coconut crust which is an interesting alternative to breading with the dry coconut and sweet chilli dipping sauce.
Lemongrass chicken sticks
I love these lemongrass chicken sticks-as lemongrass is sometimes $1.50 a stick I don’t tend to make these at home for canapes but they always remind me of Bali as they are common here so I always like to order them. Serving them on the lemongrass sticks gives the herbed chicken mince on a lovely distinct lemony flavour.
Blinis with smoked salmon, sour cream, fish roe and coriander
I do love a blini and especially one with smoked salmon and fish roe. I was curious to see how they would do a blini here. I’m relieved to see that they do it well, with puffy, cushioney little blinis topped with folded smoked salmon, a dollop of sour cream and beads of roe and coriander leaves.
Duck Nasi Goreng with egg
The Duck nasi goreng has a soft centered poached egg and is flavoured with soy sauce and chilli and soft chunks of braised duck meat.
Spicy salad of caramelised pork
The generously portioned sweet caramelised pork comes with batons of mango and herbs. It’s fresh yet sweet and sticky at the same time which is a nice combination.
Lime and chilli prawns with green mango salad
The lime and chilli prawns serving has eight prawns (OK I know I count these things) and sit on a bed of green mango. It is spicy and flavoursome with notes of chilli, garlic, ginger and coriander.
Whole baby snapper steamed with Balinese spices
I adore the whole baby snapper which is coated in a tasty mix of Balinese spices as well as onions, garlic, tomato, chilli and lime. The flesh is soft and the spices complement the sweet fish well.
Crepes suzette
Due to my overindulging of the fish, I barely had room for dessert which is somewhat of a minor tragedy if you know me. The crepes are thin and eggy with a generous splash (or two!) or Grand Marnier.
Tiny melting moments with coffee glace icing
I got a second wind when it came to these though as they were tiny at about half an inch in diameter and light and buttery sandwiched together with a mild coffee icing and a dusting of icing sugar.
Kelepon
It seemed fitting that our last meal here at the Villa would be a local delicacy called Kelepon or Klepon. It is a pandan flavoured rice flour ball filled with liquid palm sugar.
Cheese Tim Tams
It’s hard to say goodbye to our home of five nights but tomorrow we check out and enjoy our last day in Bali. Oh and yes the cheese Tim Tams. Do you want to know what they were like? They were a slightly salty white chocolate flavour.
Inside a cheese Tim Tam
It was not a cheddar cheese or a blue cheese, but more a cream or mild cheese like those cheese sticks if anything. They weren’t quite as well made as the ones that we buy in Australia-some of them had areas where chocolate was missing and they were thinner and they were possibly hand dipped. But when you see a cheese Tim Tam, you’ve just got to try one out of curiosity! Even the customs people were intrigued by these and wanted to take a peek at them
We take our last frangipane filled bath and we lament that it will be so hard to go back home where we will miss Sungai Gold’s staff of 11 that attended to us and ran our baths for us and took care of us so well.
So tell me Dear Reader, do you like to try local versions of food?
NQN and Mr NQN travelled and explored Bali as a guest of Villa Sungai and flew as guests of Jetstar
Villa Sungai
Cepaka, Bali, Indonesia
www.bali-villasungai.com
Babi Guling Ibu Oka
Jalan Suweta/Tegal Sari No. 2, Ubud, Bali 80571, Indonesia
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64 Comments | Add your own
I’ve been to the babi guling ibu oka place! Have to say, I really love it a lot!
I knew you had to buy cheese Tim Tams! LOL
Lovely pics of the area but I’m not so sure about the phallic ‘souvenirs’ ….
cheese tim tams!
We always go for local food! I remember the suckling pig dish..YUM
I love trying local food and since we are heading to Bali and Ubud in a few weeks I will ne on the lookout for many of these delights particularly the pork and the pandan sweets oh and I will have to try the cheese Tim tams hehe
I think I would balk at Cheese TimTams. Almost sacrilegious I feel. Everything else looks YUM!!
Lorraine, I have been ‘with’ you for some 4-5 months – these are THE most beautiful photos I have ever collected from your column. My favourite is that of the very stately, elegant old lady at the gate. Thank you.
And, yes, I see it – will once send you a very similar photo – but of an avocado exactly the same shape I managed to grow in the N Rivers! Put it on the party table with frangipani! And that photo too is glorious.
Local food? – why go overseas if you are going to eat hamburgers in the hotel coffee shop? And, am stirring a pot of beef rendang for lunch as I type!! Just grated some pawpaw with chillies and fish sauce!
Babi Guling is a must in Bali, one local was almost in tears telling us how much he loved it.
When I was a young teenager my Korean Aunt(she married my mother’s brother) fixed a meal for all of the family. I was introduced to Asian food at a time when it was not available as widely as it is now.
WOW, i love your pics. You make me want to book a ticket right now! $6 for a foot massage, yes please…
Cheese Tim Tams?
I’m baffled. My Dad goes to Bali at least twice a year and he’s loving your Bali posts.
I’ll have to order a pack on his next trip.
I like the pictures of the tents along the road, we are so fortunate. I also like the look of the pandan palm sugar balls.
Oh, I really must get back to Bali. I haven’t been for years and it is such a relaxing, beautiful place.
The glorious picture of the beautiful Balinese matriarch has just come out fantastically on my lousy printer. Lorraine, it DOES have NGN clearly at the bottom. May I put it in a frame above my computer without infringement of copyright? I am not bad at this photo jazz – I could not have done better than Mr NQN!
Oh, on second-third read: ‘spoilsport’ that I am, the blini and crepes suzette, as far as I am concerned, actually belong in a ‘different world’?
And the fun phallic photo on a Sunday morning – just a wee thought – do the Balinese perchance have a few initiation customs similar to our indigenes? Have a look at bottom right!!
Curious about all foods is ME!
Colourfully suited to my personality!
Will try ANYTHING once, TRUE!
As one “never, never knows”, unless one ventures out of their food comfort zones too!
WHOO HOO!
Thanks for today’s blog too!
I do love to try local food. In Shanghai I had ‘drunken chicken’and many glorious meals on many trips to China – in particular szeuchan chicken in Chengdu.
Indonesian food is wonderful. I remember having some delighful desserts in Surabaya many moons ago.
I sigh everytime you post about this fantastic place. I would love a staff like that too please.
I would also like that suckling pig, the pork salad and the pandan balls…..ok,ok, maybe a cheese timtam as well!
I SO want to try those Tim Tams! especially with the crappy weather today, I’m dying for a hot chocolate and biscuits. That lemongrass chicken looks awesome as well
Definitely, oh very definitely – No cheese Tim-Tams, please! I’d hate to think what the locals really think about having to pander as to this utter stupidity to make their living, when they have such a rich and varied culture of their own – including what they put in their mouth!!
wow you get around – can hardly believe you got to Singapore and Bali this week. so jealous!
I’m not sure about those Tim Tams – were they for Balinese taste?
Lorraine, I just choked on my coffee as a spotted the souveneirs! My throat hurts as a result! (Oh wow, I feel like that could be read in the completely wrong way…)
The green mango and prawn salad looks amazing!
so so so beautiful, peaceful…this place makes one want to pray.
I almost expected to see Elizabeth Gilbert hanging around meditating.
I thank you, L. for allowing us to travel with you. xxx
Hahaha… you found the cheese tim tam too.
The food from side street stall is the only thing that I missed. I used to live in Indonesia and was able to eat those without getting any stomach bug. Nowadays when I go home, I don’t have any guts to try them again.
For me, eating local specialities is a very important part of overseas travel. Not only do you taste the myriad of flavours but you also mingle with the locals and discover new and exciting things about their culture. I love to travel and would do so at the drop of a hat, given the opportunity and finances !
Villa Sungai is a place that I would gladly go to unwind and eat
I have been to Bali and loved it – apart from the awful heat. The local food is great. That is an essential part of going to a different place – trying the local food.
Wooden penis souvenir? Seems to me like a good gift for girlfriends
OH i love bali! and i am glad you got to go to ibu okra! its one of my favourite eateries in Bali!
What a lovely holiday. I am yet to make it to Bali.
Thanks for sharing, Lorraine. I could be happy there. The people,I hear, are very laid back.
That Duck Nasi Goreng with Egg is calling to me. And I like how they cut the leaves into circles to grace the plates. Pandan?
Those BIG penis “trinkets”..ha!ha!…They WISH!
Lorraine, you’ve made me fall in love with Bali! The people and food look beautiful.
The food looks amazing! I would say though that we’ve always grown our own lemongrass as it isn’t hard to tend to at all and they grow super fast!
I need to visit Bali too apparently when I go to Jakarta this summer. Babi Guling Ibu Oka seems to be very famous, I’ve heard that being mentioned by everyone I know visiting Bali.
What a perfect day you have described! A symphony of amazing experiences. I always go native when I travel and absolutely try the local food. This always makes an impact on what I cook too…great inspiration. Just like your blog! Did you buy the Halloweeny mask?
Anne
I am becoming more adventurous in trying the local food but I am fascinated by the local supermarkets. I love browsing them.
I’ve never been to bali but it looks amazing – sounds like an interesting trip but those cheese tim tams really fascinate me
Why would anyone want a wood penis? Wait, that came out wrong I think …
Luckily the food is in much better taste!
Ooooooooooooohhhhhhhhhh your pictures are sooooo good! Lucky girl you are to be in Ubud! x
I am so wanting to go to Bali one day.. just not in the heat.. which I can’t bear… such a spoiled bratty girl. All of the food looks wonderful and I could just eat the beautiful places you visit.
Not my cup of tea here, but I had a good laugh at the at some hanging wooden bottle openers.
So where were the cheese tim tams made? In Indo? How interesting! And I always count my food, especially prawns
This post makes me want to take another trip to Bali.
Oh, Lorraine, what a gorgeous and evocative photo essay. I haven’t been to Bali since the 70s, but I think I would swim there from Mexico just to have a crack at the suckling pig or the duck nasi goreng…not to mention to be in exquisite surroundings with beautiful and kind people. Thank you yet again!
Cheese Tim Tams??? Are they sweet or savory?? My husbands comment… “Well, you and I both know that’s just wrong”
What a lovely adventure. With such nice food and such bargain prices I’m sure I’d come home twice the size. I’d love to get my hands on those tim tams!
*kisses* HH
I’m always up for a different version of food I’m used to, I’m almost always pleasantly surprised! Cheese Tim tams sound quite interesting. What a great trip you had!
Fascinated by the cheese Tim Tams (and the rest of your report which was wonderful, thanks!). Your readers may be intrigued to know that Tim Tams are manufactured in Indonesia – but to a different (and vastly inferior) recipe to the Australian products. If you’re in an Asian city like Bangkok you can often find them on supermarket shelves side by side – the ‘real’ Tim Tams from Australia, in a variety of flavours, selling for about four times the price of the Indonesian ones.
They’re not copies or fakes – the Tim Tam brand is owned by Arnotts which is owned by US food giant Campbells. They’re made to a lower spec so they can be sold at a price the locals can afford. Lorraine is quite right re the thinness of the Indonesian ones – and the holes etc… Also, if you look closely at the small print on the back of the pack you’ll almost certainly find a statement printed: “Not for sale in Australia or New Zealand” or words to that effect – they obviously don’t want Australians discovering the cheap – and inferior – equivalent lest it damages their brand value!
This all looks so fun/delicious! I am ALL about local food when o/s
Cheese tim tams?? wowsa! Oh, and I would love to have lime and chilli prawns with green mango salad for dinner tonight, please 
Heidi xo
I adore going to local markets and supermarkets to see the local specialities! Gosh, I’d love to travel to Bali one day
I love eating the local food, i am wary of the water and ice in these places, but if the locals are lining up for it (as they were when I was there), it has to be good. Why stick to eating “english” food when you are overseas? You may as well stay at home !!
I’ve never been to Bali, but because of your post I am looking into booking a trip now. Thank you!
really miss the babi guling. also the bebek bengil, ayam betutu – mmmmmmm
Ooh, that duck nasi goreng is making my mouth water!
When we went to Vanuatu a few years back, we hardly ate at the resort as we found the local village food and local restaurants far more superior to the poor and bland attempt by the resort to serve ‘western’ foods.
I’ve never been to Bali but have put it on my bucketlist – Thanks for a lovely post & so cheap !
Suckling pig plates, spicy caramelised pork salad, kelepon and, er, wooden penises. Thanks for the virtual holiday!
I am dying to go to Bali, it looks amazing, your piccys are wonderful. Feel like I am right there with you.
Did you bring home a little souvenir? LOL!
Im all for trying the local cuisine, it is ALWAYS worth the food poisoning.
Cheese tim tams?! Anything is possible these days ey?!
The massage price is not expensive if u count with Australian currency. But for Indonesian currency is between normal and quite expensive
Cheese in wafer/biscuit become popular nowsaday in Indonesia. Especially amongst kids. Then it seems all products try to compete by making same cheese product. If u look closely in indonesian supermarket, there are many cheese wafer/biscuit.
What do u think ab Tim Tam Cheese?
Tim Tam Cheese for 10.000 rupiahs? uhmmm…Its more expensive there.
Beatrice, 10,000 rupiahs is just over $1AUD
I’m all for local traditions and versions – that post is certainly a visual feast of culture Lorraine, love it!!
Yep. In australian currency. Indonesian currency is lower. I just knew, its 10.000 rupiahs in Bali. The normal price is cheaper than that
btw ur journey in bali is great. its showed by ur pics and story
Oh I am sure bourdain went to that place suckling pig place when he went to bali. It looks amazing. I have been wanting to go to bali for years!
So many posts to catch up on, but what a great one to start on. Getting inspiration for travel from this. Easter can’t come quick enough.
would you recommend the Babi Guling Ibu Oka? I mean would you go back to it? I’m only doing a day trip to Ubud where the best babi guling is supposed to be so I want to make sure I’ll be ordering from the best restaurant
I really do prefer a local restaurant over the fancy ones with imported chefs. Nothing quite like cooking food you’ve eaten as a kid 
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