WHO WE ARE:
Family of 4 - Mum (my 6th trip), Dad (2nd trip - 1st was a 10 week stint 20 years ago for work), 13yo stepdaughter & 3yo daughter (1st visit for both kids)
WHERE WE ATE:
Day 1 - La Monde, Jl Padma Utara, Legian
THE VERDICT: Indo food was good, fresh & tasty, reasonably priced. Hubby's Singapore chilli crab was overcooked, a bit dry, but the sauce was delicious! The 2 girls loved the music they played here (top 40 stuff mostly) & my little one was up & having a boogie along with the tout at the front of the restaurant - happy 3yo equals happy Mum & Dad :o)
WOULD WE EAT HERE AGAIN? Probably not, the food was OK but not memorable & there are better places in the same area
Day 2 - La Lucciola, Seminyak for Sunday breakfast
THE VERDICT: YUMMO!! Need I say more? How does fresh banana & coconut juice sound? Or lime ice tea? How about a lamb & fetta omelette that's out of this world? All accompanied by outstanding service. Best breakfast of the trip. Expensive? Maybe by Bali standards but at around A$50 for 4 ppl incl drinks I think it is more than reasonable. Well worth the expense as we didn't need lunch after such a big breakfast.
WOULD WE EAT HERE AGAIN? Yes DEFINITELY (& we did, for breakfast again on our last day)
Day 2 - Goody's, Blue Ocean Blvd, Legian for dinner
THE VERDICT: Pasta dishes (2 ordered) were delicious, the ribs claiming to be 'the best in town' were extremely disappointing. Didn't order pizza but the family at the next table did & they looked & smelt fantastic & from the 'oohs & aahs' coming from their direction I'd say they tasted as good as they looked! We were too full for dessert, they sounded fantastic though. I wish I'd foregone the ribs & skipped straight to the toblerone cheesecake!! Great service, the owner (Italian I think) was very charming & gracious.
WOULD WE EAT HERE AGAIN? Yes definitely, for pizza, pasta & desserts
Day 3 - The Coffee Shop, Jl Padma Utara, Legian for breakfast
THE VERDICT: Great breakfasts here, reasonably priced & generous serves. Bacon was proper bacon, cooked well (not the shrivelled, hardened bits of bacon I remember from previous trips!). Loved the Aussie breakfast (from memory RP 30,000) which was 2 eggs any style, toast, bacon & tomato, fresh juice or fruit salad, tea or coffee. Muesli breakfast was also very nice (muesli served with fresh milk & yoghurt, juice or fruit, tea or coffee).
WOULD WE EAT HERE AGAIN? Yes, even if we weren't staying at the apartments directly behind. The food was good, cheap & tasty, they had good coffees (the iced cappuccino was pure indulgence!), they opened at 7.00am (great for us earlybirds) & closed at 11.00pm (handy for those late evening munchies - hubby was addicted to the banana fritters & icecream!)
Day 3 - Bali Deli, Jl Kunti, Seminyak for lunch
THE VERDICT: Food was good, pleasant setting, good for babies & toddlers (they had a small play area with some toys for little ones). Sushi & sashimi was good, fresh. Chicken curry wrap was delicious & a very generous serve. Expensive lunch but worth the cost to be able to eat out without stressing about keeping our 3yo amused. We bought some cakes from the patisserie section inside the Deli to take home for afternoon tea - SOOOO good & reasonably priced I think (most expensive was chocolate mousse cake at RP 20,000). The banana, apple & coconut crumble pie was to die for!
WOULD WE EAT HERE AGAIN? Yes definitely but probably only once per trip, purely because of the expense
Day 3 - The Coffee Shop, see above
THE VERDICT: We ordered dinner to eat in our apartment - mie goreng, nasi goreng, toasted sandwich & fettuccini carbonara - all good, fresh & tasty, no complaints here especially for the price & the convenience
WOULD WE EAT HERE AGAIN? Yes & we did LOL
Day 4 - The Coffee Shop for breakfast
Day 4 - The Coffee Shop for lunch
THE VERDICT: Hubby had ordered lunch while I was out taking care of business (ordering handbag, leather jacket & jewellery LOL) & when I returned he was raving about the club sandwich that I HAD to try. It was fantastic - chicken, bacon, egg, lettuce, tomato & mayo - and great value.
WOULD WE EAT HERE AGAIN? Yes
Day 4 - Ryoshi, Jl Seminyak, Seminyak
THE VERDICT: OVERRATED! Terrible service, extremely slow & very average Japanese food. Meals arrived over the course of an hour or more, I had finished my meal well before anyone else's had arrived. The iced tea was undrinkable - it had been drowned in so much sugar syrup that I sent it back, and a replacement never arrived. We had a hungry & irritable 3yo on our hands & just kept being told 'the sushi coming'. 'So's F**king Christmas I muttered under my breath' LOL.
WOULD WE EAT HERE AGAIN? No, not based on this night's experience
Day 5 - The Coffee Shop for breakfast (yep, again!)
Day 5 - Bali Safari & Marine Park - the food hall in the park
THE VERDICT: Confusing system of ordering, paying, then returning to wait for your food - nobody explains this is how it works! We had Pizza & Indo food both good, reasonably priced & tasty
WOULD WE EAT HERE AGAIN? Yes, would choose to eat here over the Tsavo Lion Restaurant if visiting the Park for the day
Day 5 - Tsavo Lion Restaurant, Bali Safari & Marine Park
THE VERDICT: Expensive, very average food, crappy cocktails (except for the Long Island Ice Tea - that packed a good punch LOL), menu items unavailable but not told this until you order them - very annoying when the first 3 things you try to order are 'not available yet' AAAARGH!
WOULD WE EAT HERE AGAIN? Only if we had no other choice!
Day 6 - Tsavo Lion Restauarnt, Bali Safari & Marine Park
THE VERDICT: Breakfast included in room rate - choice of breakfasts, the only worthwhile one is the Muesli Breakfast, the other choices were below average when it came to quality, taste, serving size.
Day 6 - some restaurant I don't remember the name of, beachfront at Padang Bai
THE VERDICT: Doesn't seem much point as I can't remember the name of the place!! Was great lunch though, we picked it because it looked busy, the chicken risotto & the garlic butter prawns with rice were standouts. I had a lovely fresh baguette with bacon, hard boiled egg, salad & mayo which was yummo!
WOULD WE EAT HERE AGAIN? Yes, if we could find it again LOL
Day 6 - Komang John Restaurant, Blue Moon Villas, Selang Beach, Amed
THE VERDICT: Good food, mainly Indonesian menu with a lot of choices. I tried Indo sweet & sour chicken for the first time - delicious! Kids enjoyed the nasi goreng & toasted sandwiches. LOVED the comfy cushion/seat thingys in the Bale where my toddler could lay down her weary head while we relaxed over the rest of our meal.
WOULD WE EAT HERE AGAIN? Yes, would pay the restaurant another visit even if not staying at the Villas.
Day 7 - Komang John Restaurant, Selang Beach, Amed
THE VERDICT: Breakfast included in room rate. Usual choices, Muesli with fresh fruit & yoghurt is hands down winner. Good toast too - the bread was so nice that we ordered extra toast & they didn't charge us for it.
WOULD WE EAT HERE AGAIN? Not for breakfast unless staying in the Villas.
Day 7 - Komang John Restaurant, Selang Beach, Amed for lunch (me & 3yo daughter)
THE VERDICT: Yummy nasi goreng & icy cold Bintang, comfy seats, beautiful views, sleeping child & a good book - this Mum was a very happy one!
WOULD WE EAT HERE AGAIN? Yes would return for lunch
Day 7 - the Japanese restaurant & Villas next door to Blue Moon for lunch (stepdaughter & husband)
THE VERDICT: Good food, very slow service, very reasonably priced
Day 7 - Puri Wirata Resort & Spa - Room Service from the restaurant
THE VERDICT: Good food, lots of choice, especially fresh seafood - seafood nasi goreng, seafood mie goreng, fresh fish etc.
Day 8 - Puri Wirata Resort & Spa for breakfast
THE VERDICT: Breakfast included in room rate. Buffet continental breakfast, muesli, cereal, fruit, rolls, toast, mie goreng. They had a special 'eggs included in room rate' so hubby had fried eggs cooked to order. We girls had stuffed ourselves with the delicious fresh rolls, heated on top of the toaster & spread with butter, jam or honey YUM! The owner/manager is French - the French do bread so well!
WOULD WE EAT HERE AGAIN? Yes, we plan to return to the resort on our next trip
Day 8 - Tropical, Monkey Forest Road, Ubud for lunch
THE VERDICT: Unbelievably good food, service, ambience. Huge serves, great value for money. The ribs were amazing (according to stepdaughter & she is a ribs connoisseur!). I shared a risotto & a fresh green salad with our 3yo - the salad in particular was very very good.
WOULD WE EAT HERE AGAIN? Try & stop me!
Day 9 - back at the Coffee Shop, Legian for breakfast
Day 9 - Tommy's, Rum Jungle Road for lunch
THE VERDICT: The best corned beef, cheese & salad roll I've ever eaten. Hands down. Hubby enjoyed his steak sandwich & 3yo wolfed down a ham & avocado sandwich (her favourite). Lovely fresh juices.
Had to laugh at the toilet situation - my husband is a plumbing consultant so I insisted he go upstairs & have a look, hehe they could've done with his services when planning that bathroom!!
WOULD WE EAT HERE AGAIN? I think I'm going to have a corned beef roll from here every single day when I'm next in Bali (so that's a yes!)
Day 9 - Yutz, Rum Jungle Road for dinner
THE VERDICT: Very good food (particularly if you're a meat lover - great steaks, pork chops etc), chicken curry was also yummy, fast service, great prices.
WOULD WE EAT HERE AGAIN? Definitely
Day 10 - La Lucciola, Seminyak for breakfast
THE VERDICT: Different menu on a weekday than for the Sunday breakfast. Less choice but still delicious food & the banana & coconut juice is still to die for!
WOULD WE EAT HERE AGAIN? Yes, first & last breakfast of every trip will always be here as long as they serve food this good :o)