There are many food specialties to try out in Bali and Indonesia in general, so I’ve made you a list of the most famous and tasty ones !
If you are coming to Bali, you cannot miss the food culture there.
Whether it is their famous Nasi Goreng, chicken Sate or their delicious pancakes, I’ll list here what specialties you can find and where to try them.
Indonesia’ most famous dish is definitely the Nasi Goreng, which means Fried Rice. In in you will find some sautéed vegetables and usually chicken or some other type of meat. The dish will be served along with slices of cucumber, a fried egg and some shrimp crackers.
The variation of this dish is the Mie Goreng, or Fried Noodles, which is exactly the same but with noodles :
Now, satay consists of small pieces of marinated meat grilled in bamboo skewers on a charcoal open fire. In Indonesia, Sate Ayam will be chicken, beef or lamb, served with a peanut sauce and rice.
Gado-Gado is a vegeterian salad. On the plate you will find steamed vegetables such as spinach, green bean or potato but also fresh bean sprouts, cucumber along with hard-boiled eggs, tofu and tempeh (soybean cake). A creamy peanut sauce will tie everything together (see picture 1 below, the peanut sauce was on the side).
Another specialty is Soto or soup. A bowl of soto will usually contain rice vermicelli, cabbage, bean sprouts and chicken or another kind of meat (see picture 2 below).The broth is made with lemongrass, shallots, garlic and turmeric. Absolutely delicious !
A variation of this is Sayur Lodeh : a soup with vegetables cooked in coconut milk, sometimes served with rice cakes and meat.
Nasi Uduk is a dish where the rice is cooked in coconut milk and served with fried chicken, tempeh, shredded omelette, fried onion, anchovies
One more balinese specialty is the Sambal Matah : grilled chicken with raw shallots, chilli and lemongrass, served with rice (see picture 3 below). This dish is so fresh and tasty !
Last but not least : Rendang. This is a spicy meat stew (beef of lamb) made with chilli and coconut milk.
One of the most famous local sweets are Martabak manis (also called terang bulan). This is a thick folded pancake, commonly stuffed with crushed peanuts, bananas, chocolate sprinkles, condensed milk or cheese.
Another specialty is Dadar gulung. A rolled coconut pancake, green from the pandan leaves and filled with grated coconut, palm sugar, and more pandan leaf for aroma (see picture 2 below).
A bit similar is Kue putu, a rice flour cake, also green from the flavourful pandan leaves, filled with palm sugar. It is steamed in bamboo tubes and served with grated coconut.
A popular dessert in Indonesia is Pisang goreng or fried banana.
Don’t be shy on the fruits, there are so many varieties in Indonesia, and they also make awesome smoothie bowls and smoothies !
Lastly, maybe not a specialty, but pancakes are EVERYWHERE in Bali, Lombok and the Gili islands. You will find some matcha or chocolate flavoured, some with fruit toppings, sirup or açai, the possibilities are endless here.
We only went to places that looked clean and with at least some good reviews, but other than that we neither avoided meat or raw vegetables, nor threw away the ice cubes in our drinks and everything went fine ! Food was not that spicy either so we had no issues whatsoever in Indonesia.
Regarding prices in Bali, it’s very affordable : a lunch or good breakfast will be around 3€ per person (50-60k IDR).
There are tons of great places to have breakfast or lunch in Bali, we’ve tried a few and listed for you the best ones below !
Note : We were on the lookout for local restaurants and non touristy places, so the “instagram-famous” spots won’t be listed here, only very reasonable prices, and not crowded cafés.
- Denpasar area :
For breakfast, the 707 Café & Bistro was our go-to in the morning : it is facing the rice field, their juices and pancakes are very good, plus the service is fast and the waiters are just so kind.
For lunch and dinner, Café Gemitir Bali was a true hidden gem : small huts on the water, delicious food and drinks :
- Uluwatu area :
We didn’t stay long in Uluwatu, but we stopped for lunch at Lima Café, and had awesome sate and spring rolls :
- Ubud area :
WYAH café is a wonderful place nested in the trees, and they have decadent Almond french toast and berry waffles :
Another great breakfast place was Blend Café Ubud. Definitely go for their stacks of matcha or chocolate pancakes :
Waybu coffee is also a great place to get lunch or dinner, the atmosphere is lovely, and the food was delicious :
More on the east side of Bali, on you way to Mount Agung or one of the many waterfalls in the area, make sure to stop by La Montagne Coffee, a panoramic restaurant with delightful local specialties !
We tried so many but I didn’t recommend some where we waited more than an hour for pancakes or for average tasting food.
Don’t worry, there are thousands of great restaurants and café in Bali, you definitely will find your happiness !
That’s it for my recommendations on the food specialties to try out in Bali. We had a wonderful time trying all the best food specialties in Indonesia, and I’m sure you will too !
If you plan on visiting Bali any time soon, check out my One week itinerary in Bali, or this article regarding a day in Nusa Penida.
If you need a custom itinerary, you can fill this form and I’ll make your own personalised itinerary.
