With its unique combination of spices and ingredients deeply influenced by the island’s Hindu culture, Balinese cuisine delights the senses. Salty, sweet, sour, and spicy flavors blend harmoniously on the plate, and each bite reveals careful technique and tradition.

Here are some unique must-eats to try in Bali, Indonesia.

What to eat in Bali

Nasi Campur Bali

A staple in Balinese cuisine, Nasi Campur Bali is a heaping plate of steamed rice served with a variety of side dishes, including grilled meat, shredded chicken, satay, tofu, tempeh, bean sprouts, and sambal. If you savor different flavors (including bits of other dishes mentioned on this list) all on one plate, this filling meal is your best bet.

Nasi Goreng

Nasi Goreng is a tasty and affordable fried rice dish that makes use of leftover rice and ingredients. The rice is seasoned with shrimp paste and Kecap manis (an Indonesian sweet soy sauce), which gives the dish its signature brown color and caramelized savory-sweet flavor profile. You can’t go wrong with Nasi Goreng.

Mie Goreng

Indonesia’s take on fried noodles, Bali’s mie goreng is a backpacker favorite often served in authentic Ubud warungs (small, traditional family-owned eateries). The noodle dish usually contains chicken, seafood, or vegetables and is topped with fried egg and crispy prawn crackers for crunch.  I enjoyed the Mie Goreng we had at Labak Sari, a roadside warung in Ubud. This modest yet filling meal went great with Bintang Beer overlooking the rice fields.

Ayam/Bebek Betutu

A popular dish in Bali and Lombok, Betutu is a traditional chicken dish of steamed or roasted chicken or duck coated in Betutu spice mix. Different regions employ traditional ways of cooking, so expect variations across the regions for this highly seasoned curry-like spiced dish. Don’t let the color fool you. It’s not as spicy as it looks. I tried this in Jendela Bali in GWK, a traditional restaurant where you can dine with a view during lunch or dinner if you’re planning to spend your day in the cultural park.

Sate (satay)

Who doesn’t love sate? This seasoned, skewered, and grilled meat (usually chicken, beef, lamb, or fish) is typically grilled over a charcoal fire. What elevates the flavor is the rich, nutty peanut sauce. It’s commonly served as street food and in fine dining restaurants alongside rice cakes (lontong or ketupat). The warm satay served over a tableside grill that we had in Warung Bejana, a restaurant near Uluwatu Temple, really hit the spot.

Sate Liit

A variant of satay, this skewered dish is made from minced meat (mainly pork, fish, chicken, or beef), mixed with spices. The meat is wound around a “liit” a bamboo, sugar cane or lemongrass stick, which adds a distinct aroma and tangy flavor to the kebab-like meat, before it’s grilled over charcoal. We sampled this skewered meat dish along with other fish specialties over a buffet lunch at Kedisan Floating Restaurant, a unique restaurant located in Batur Lake in Kintamani, Bali.

Sup Buntut

Sup buntut is a traditional Indonesian oxtail soup, simmered for hours to create a fragrant and flavorful broth. The slow-cooked oxtail swims along with vegetables like carrots, potatoes, and tomatoes in a savory soup. It’s served with rice and garnishes such as fried shallots and fresh cilantro.

Babi Guling

Babi Guling or Pig Roast is one of Bali’s popular dishes. The pig is stuffed and infused with a mix of spices, typically consisting of turmeric, coriander seeds, lemongrass, black pepper, and garlic. It’s then spit-roasted and sliced up into smaller servings with crispy skin, considered the premium picks. I spotted stalls selling this Balinese pork dish reminiscent of our own lechon for only 25,000 IDR around the Kuta Night Market area.

Bebek

Bebek or duck is another popular dish in Bali, cooked in various ways from crispy fried goreng style to slow roasted, swimming in a blend of spices. Bebek Goreng is deep-fried duck that’s tender on the inside with a crispy, flavorful skin. It’s served with rice, sides, and sambal sauce.

Ikan Bakar

A grilled fish (or other seafood) dish, that’s marinated in a spicy paste with chili and turmeric, and cooked over a charcoal grill. This was one of the seafood dishes we had, along with prawns and satay, and refreshing tropical fruit shakes at Warung Made, a romantic sunset terrace dining spot on the grounds of the seaside temple Tanah Lot.

Gado Gado

Gado gado is a well-known Indonesian salad that combines slices of carrot, cucumber, spinach, and bean sprouts doused in rich, nutty satay sauce. It’s typically served with a hard-boiled egg and tofu or tempeh. This makes a great side dish to meat-heavy dishes.

Pisang goreng (fried bananas)

Pisang goreng are banana slices coated with batter and deep-fried in hot oil, resulting in a crispy batter and sweet, tender fried snack. This makes a good, quick street-side snack or paired with coffee.

What to drink in Bali

Balinese Coffee

Speaking of coffee, Bali has a vibrant coffee industry, particularly in the Kintamani highlands. We got to sample different coffee flavors at Bali Pulina, one of the original coffee plantations in Bali. This agri-tourism spot, located north of Ubud, offers coffee and tea samplers from their coffee tasting decks facing the jungle.

Each coffee sampler tray contains flavors like Bali coffee, vanilla coffee, pure cacao, chocolate coffee, ginseng coffee, along with Lemon tea, ginger tea, turmeric tea, Rosella Tea, and Mangosteen Tea. Bali Pulina also serves Black coffee: wet coffee, dry coffee, natural coffee, and honey coffee.

Arak Bali

Arak Bali is a traditional, high-alcohol distilled spirit from Bali, made from fermented palm sap, rice, or other grains. It is a central part of Balinese culture, used in ceremonies and social gatherings, and can be consumed neat, on the rocks, or mixed in cocktails. This is commonly sold as a souvenir. Some variants are even mixed with coffee.

Bintang Beer

Whenever I travel to Indonesia, I make it a point to drink Bintang Beer, Indonesia’s most popular beer, which is produced by a subsidiary of Heineken. The refreshingly light beer is known for its slightly sweet and bitter taste.

Fruitier and sweeter Radler versions are also widely available in convenience stores along with mainstream beers Bali Hai and Anker and stalls.

Stark Craft Beer

Stark Craft Beer claims to be the only premium craft beer originating from Indonesia. Brewed in the northern region of Bali, Stark Craft Brewery sets itself apart by utilizing natural spring water in its brewing process, with unique tropical flavours like mango ale and lychee ale, along with an Indonesian Pale Ale/IPA, wheat, and dark wheat brews. I first visited this brewery in Kuta in 2019 and recently revisited for some refreshing Mango Ale and live music.

Other good craft beers I found from D’Booze, a specialty liquor store in Kuta, were from Island Brew, Kura Kura and Black Sands Brewery.

Best food souvenirs from Bali

• Pie Susu: A sweet and creamy milk pie with a crunchy crust. Flavors often include original, chocolate, and cheese.
• Kacang Mentari / Kachang Rahayu: Savory or salty roasted peanuts, a popular local snack.
• Pia Eiji: A round cake with various fillings like chocolate, cheese, or mung bean.
• Cashew products: Snacks and granola made from cashews, often harvested in East Bali.
• Kopi Bali: Locally grown coffee in Bali.
• Balinese chocolate: High-quality chocolates made from locally grown cacao beans.

• Balinese spices and condiments: Kecap Manis (sweet soy sauce) and sambal (chili-based sauce). Bango is cited as the top brand for Kecap Manis.
• Indonesian Cup noodles: Indomie, Mie Goreng, Hot & Spicy, Soto Ayam (chicken soup), and Rasa Ayam (spicy chicken)
• Potato chips: Lay’s potato chips has Indonesian flavors like Saus Pedas Manis and Ayam Goreng Bawang

Save this post for your food trip reference if you’re planning a trip to Bali, Indonesia!