Collection · Focused shortlist
Local food, unhurried. Family warungs and calm neighbourhood kitchens where the plate is honest, the bill is small and no one rushes you.
Restaurant · Umalas
French loft-style artisan bakery and café in Umalas, opening early at 7am when most neighbouring cafés are still shut. Two-storey space known for sourdough, pastries and fresh coffee, with strong wifi and outdoor seating.
Best for: early risers wanting breakfast/brunch before other cafés open; laptop/remote workers on strong wifi; sourdough and pastry lovers
Restaurant · Pererenan
An all-day kitchen at the Shore Amora hotel in Pererenan serving fresh Western food with a healthy, locally-sourced twist, with a pool, daybeds and a nomad work space on site.
Best for: A slow brunch, a laptop-and-coffee day by the pool, and easy all-day eating.
Café · Batu Bolong
A dedicated healthy organic cafe and espresso bar on Batu Bolong, sourcing local permaculture-grown produce, with no palm oil, cane sugar, wheat flour or MSG and plenty of vegan and raw options.
Best for: Health-conscious eaters and vegans wanting an organic breakfast, lunch or dinner; a calm, wholesome brunch stop.
Restaurant · Batu Bolong
A long-running (est. 2014) Indonesian restaurant on Batu Bolong serving Balinese family-recipe dishes in a romantic, plant-filled setting split between open-air tables and cosy indoor nooks -- known for its free-roaming resident rabbits. Previously traded as Dandelion; same venue, team and menu, now under the Casa Tua name.
Best for: A romantic dinner with real character; travellers wanting authentic Balinese home cooking; a memorable one-off setting for a couple.
Restaurant · Pererenan, Canggu
Modern Balinese cooking from Chef Wayan Kresna Yasa in a seaside Pererenan setting, reworking family and island recipes with contemporary technique. The kitchen is spice- and produce-driven and keeps a full vegan section alongside its seafood and traditional dishes.
Best for: a considered balinese dinner; introducing someone to indonesian flavours done well; a table mixing meat, seafood and vegan diners
Restaurant · Pererenan
An all-day kitchen with a Mediterranean flair set over Pererenan's rice paddies, serving real, honest food from brunch through dinner.
Best for: A rice-paddy-view brunch after surf, and an easy early dinner.
Restaurant · Canggu shortcut / Subak Canggu
The all-day cafe inside Earth Island's surf compound on the Canggu shortcut: simple island food, coconuts and good coffee built around a surfer-and-creative community, with music, art and film events layered on top.
Best for: Surfers refuelling after a session, casual daytime meals, and anyone who wants a relaxed community-hub cafe rather than a formal restaurant.
Restaurant · Seseh / Cemagi
A local eatery and coffee shop set among the tranquil Seseh fields, serving slow breakfasts, laid-back afternoon snacks and weekend dinners with fresh, simple dishes from local produce.
Best for: A relaxed breakfast or brunch, an easy weekend dinner, and calm coffee stops away from the crowds.
Restaurant · Umalas
Long-running open-air café/restaurant set beside Umalas rice fields, serving all-day Western and Indonesian food from breakfast to late (8am–11pm). Known as a calm rice-paddy escape a short hop from Seminyak's bustle.
Best for: relaxed rice-field brunch or breakfast; couples/groups wanting a calm all-day meal off the strip; vegetarian/vegan and gluten-free diners
Restaurant · Cemagi
A tranquil garden cafe in quiet Cemagi from the Riviera Group, leaning Mediterranean-Italian, with cozy interiors, greenery and live acoustic music on Saturday evenings.
Best for: A calm, unhurried breakfast, lunch or relaxed evening meal away from the Canggu crowds; couples wanting a low-key setting.
Restaurant · Pererenan / Pererenan north
An all-day plant-based restaurant in Pererenan built around a customizable build-your-own-bowl with 50+ ingredients, plus bold drinks, serving vegans, vegetarians and anyone eating less meat.
Best for: Plant-based and health-focused eaters, a customizable brunch or bowl, and casual laptop-friendly daytime sitting.
Yoga · Batu Bolong / Canggu
A yoga and wellness hub on Jl. Padang Linjong in Canggu's Batu Bolong area, with an organic vegetarian cafe certified by the Slow Food movement, serving superfood bowls and traditional Indian dishes.
Best for: Yoga-goers and wellness travellers wanting a calm, plant-based meal before or after a class.
Restaurant · Pererenan / Canggu edge / Batu Mejan
A daytime fusion cafe on Jl. Pantai Batu Mejan blending Australian cafe culture with Japanese-influenced flavours and minimalist design, from a chef with Australian fine-dining training.
Best for: A brunch or lunch of fusion cafe dishes in a calm, design-led room; a laptop-friendly daytime stop.
Restaurant · Seseh / Cemagi
An Aussie-owned corner cafe bringing Melbourne coffee culture to coastal Cemagi/Seseh, doing well-made breads, sandwiches and salads a short step from the beach, with a community-hub feel.
Best for: A morning coffee and pastry, a casual sandwich-and-salad lunch, and a laid-back neighbourhood cafe stop after the beach.
Restaurant · Berawa
A breezy all-day vegetarian and vegan cafe overlooking the Berawa rice fields, from the team behind Betelnut. Big wholefood menu — all-day breakfast, smoothies, salads, share plates and vegan desserts — in a leafy, open setting.
Best for: A healthy post-surf brunch; plant-based eaters; a relaxed early dinner with a rice-field view.
Restaurant · Seseh (Adjacent Pererenan)
Organic Ocean, the plant-forward restaurant at the Udara wellness retreat in Seseh, focused on healthy, community- and earth-conscious cooking, open daily to guests and visitors.
Best for: Wellness- and health-minded diners wanting calm, organic food; a quiet, restorative meal near the beach.
Restaurant · Berawa
A sit-down Indonesian restaurant in Berawa celebrating dishes from across the archipelago — hand-ground spices, no MSG or palm oil, ingredients sourced from small-scale farmers and fishermen. A pretty, fairy-lit garden setting.
Best for: A relaxed dinner of traditional Indonesian food; groups sharing classic dishes; an accessible introduction to the country's cuisine.
Restaurant · Batu Bolong / Berawa
A local Indonesian warung on Jl. Pantai Batu Bolong doing buffet-style nasi campur — pick-your-own Balinese dishes with plenty of veg and vegan options, generous portions and famously good sambal, all halal and cheap.
Best for: An easy, affordable local meal; just-landed travellers wanting authentic Indonesian food without fuss; solo and casual lunches or dinners.
Restaurant · Batu Bolong / Berawa
A long-running, affordable Indonesian warung (Waroeng Nonii) just up from Batu Bolong beach on Jl. Pantai Batu Bolong, open breakfast through dinner with nasi campur as its house plate and takeaway available.
Best for: A cheap, easy local Indonesian meal at any time of day, including a low-key just-landed dinner.
Restaurant · Ubud
A boutique-hotel restaurant and bakery next to the Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary, built around fresh, wholesome East-Mediterranean-inspired cooking with a plant-forward focus, plus a standalone bakery arm and live-music evenings.
Best for: Health-conscious travellers wanting a plant-forward breakfast, bakery pastries, or a relaxed dinner with live music in a colourful, creative setting.
Café · Ubud
Long-running Bali wholefoods institution (operating in Ubud since 1994) combining an organic grocery/bakery with an all-day restaurant covering raw vegan, Italian, and traditional Indonesian dishes.
Best for: Health-conscious travelers, longer-stay visitors, and mixed groups wanting a big menu with vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free options (including Bali's only gluten-free pizza base) in one place.
Restaurant · Ubud
Established in 1986 on Monkey Forest Road, a long-running Ubud institution with a bakery out front and a rice-paddy-view garden behind, serving a wide Indonesian/Thai/Italian menu plus a Sunday-evening traditional Balinese buffet.
Best for: Groups or families wanting an easy, established garden restaurant with a broad menu and a well-known dessert to share.
Restaurant · Ubud
Ubud's most enduring restaurant, opened in 1992 by food writer Janet DeNeefe on Jalan Raya Ubud; the menu moves between authentic Balinese cuisine (nasi campur, ceremonial curries, slow-cooked spice-paste dishes) and a modern Mediterranean side, with pastries from the sister Honeymoon Bakery.
Best for: Travellers wanting a genuine, long-established Balinese dining experience in the centre of Ubud, from breakfast through dinner.
Restaurant · Jl. Kajeng (rice-field walk, north of Ubud centre)
A rice-field-walk warung on Jl. Kajeng (Subak Juwuk Manis) north of central Ubud, run by a mother-daughter team, known primarily for its hands-on Balinese cooking class (garden spice ID, 7 dishes + 2 drinks) alongside a la carte Balinese food such as betutu bebek.
Best for: travelers wanting a hands-on Balinese cooking class amid rice fields, or pre-ordered betutu bebek
Restaurant · Ubud
A social-enterprise warung on Jalan Sriwedari (Taman Kaja) run by the Fair Future Foundation/Bali Sari Foundation, where restaurant proceeds fund free medical consultations for the local community; serves Indonesian, Asian-fusion and vegetarian dishes daily.
Best for: Travellers wanting an easy, good-value Indonesian meal that also funds a local healthcare program; casual lunch or early dinner.
Restaurant · Ubud
A modern Indonesian restaurant in Ubud Center by chef Will Meyrick, housed in a stylishly renovated two-story building (bar downstairs, dining room with temple and street views upstairs), reworking street-food flavours from Java, Sumatra, Sulawesi and Bali with modern presentation and locally sourced ingredients.
Best for: Travellers wanting an elevated, chef-driven take on Indonesian regional cooking for a dinner or shared meal.
Restaurant · Ubud
A long-running restaurant and gallery on Jalan Monkey Forest founded by the family of Ibu Rai (born 1925, who ran a food stall near Ubud Palace); opened as a restaurant in 1992 and now serves a fusion of Indonesian specialties and European dishes in a central, art-filled setting.
Best for: Travellers wanting an easy, centrally located sit-down meal that mixes Indonesian classics with familiar European comfort dishes.
Café · Ubud
A rice-paddy and jungle-valley hideaway café along the Campuhan Ridge Walk, serving organic meals, seasonal fruit smoothies, and gourmet coffee with unobstructed green views.
Best for: Travelers finishing the Campuhan Ridge Walk who want a calm, scenic break with healthy food; quiet daytime pause surrounded by rice fields.
Restaurant · Ubud (Jl. Raya Goa Gajah, Peliatan)
A Filipino warung in Peliatan set in a bamboo hut with rice-field views, cooking home-style Filipino comfort food. It stands out as a dedicated Filipino kitchen in an area dominated by Balinese and Western menus.
Best for: filipino comfort food; calm rice-field setting; shared table meals; family dinner
Restaurant · Ubud (Jl. Gootama)
A tiny eight-table warung run by a French-Laotian couple, serving fragrant coconut curries, stir-fries and crepes off a short blackboard menu that changes daily. The Laotian herbs and French dessert touches make it distinct from standard Ubud warungs.
Best for: an intimate dinner; herb-forward coconut curries; a short curated menu; foodies after fusion flavour
Café · Ubud
A vegan/vegetarian warung and cake shop in Peliatan (Ubud) known for a budget, all-you-can-eat home-style buffet and made-in-house cakes; dishes are prepared without garlic or onion to also suit Buddhist diners.
Best for: Vegan, vegetarian, or allium-free travelers wanting an affordable, home-cooked-style lunch buffet.
Café · Ubud (Peliatan)
A raw-vegan and plant-based cafe in central Ubud focused on living-food cooking, cold-pressed juices and a rotating case of raw desserts, with an attached plant-based academy. The kitchen leans into raw preparation rather than standard cooked vegan fare.
Best for: plant-based and raw eating; relaxed daytime meals; wellness-minded visitors; long cafe sits
Café · Ubud Center
A 100% raw & vegan restaurant and Taoist tonic bar in Ubud Center (on Jalan Goutama, operating since 2014), built around raw-food dishes made from fresh, locally grown produce, with Ashtanga yoga classes upstairs.
Best for: Raw-food and vegan-focused travelers, and wellness/yoga-oriented visitors wanting a calm plant-based meal in central Ubud.
Café · Ubud
A well-known Ubud specialty coffee roaster and café near Ubud Palace, treating coffee as a craft with sourced-and-roasted Indonesian origin beans, multiple brew methods, and a food menu spanning Indonesian and Western dishes.
Best for: Remote workers and digital nomads wanting a serious specialty-coffee spot with room to sit and work; coffee enthusiasts wanting origin-focused brews.
Café · Jl. Monkey Forest, Ubud
A coconut-focused dessert and drinks shop where everything is built around fresh coconut, including vegan coconut ice cream served in the shell with roasted coconut curls. A quick, cooling stop in central Ubud.
Best for: a cooling coconut treat while walking ubud; vegan dessert; quick sweet break; fresh coconut drinks
Warung · Ubud (Jl. Gootama)
A long-running home-style Balinese warung open since 2002, serving authentic nasi campur and local classics at warung prices. Known for its house chili sauce and a spread of Balinese sides.
Best for: authentic Balinese food; budget local dining; nasi campur; a casual central Ubud meal
Restaurant · Ubud
A central-Ubud warung (found online as "Warung Mangga Madu" — note the DB entry drops one 'g') serving straightforward, affordable Indonesian comfort food near Jl. Gunung Sari, a short walk off the main Ubud strip.
Best for: budget travelers wanting classic Indonesian comfort food close to central Ubud
Restaurant · Ubud
A small warung tucked in Penestanan village northwest of central Ubud, run by an all-women kitchen team, serving Indonesian and Javanese-influenced dishes with an MSG-free, low-plastic ethos.
Best for: travelers wanting a quiet, home-style Indonesian meal off the main Ubud strip in Penestanan
Restaurant · Ubud
A family-run Thai warung on Jl. Goutama in central Ubud, opened 2014, known for cooking dishes the traditional Thai way with fresh herbs, lime, and chilis rather than a Westernized menu.
Best for: travelers craving authentic home-style Thai food in central Ubud
Restaurant · Ubud
A tucked-away Belgian bistro in the S-bend of south Ubud (near Jl. Raya Pengosekan) serving Belgian comfort classics alongside Indonesian-influenced touches, easy to walk past because of its small, unassuming signage.
Best for: couples wanting a romantic, tucked-away dinner with Belgian comfort food
Restaurant · Ubud
A small, hole-in-the-wall all-vegan warung in the Peliatan area of Ubud, cash-only, serving an Indonesian menu of nasi goreng, tempeh, smoothies, and vegan sweets at very low prices.
Best for: budget-conscious vegan and vegetarian travelers wanting simple, authentic Indonesian dishes
Café · Jl. Mertanadi, Kerobokan (Seminyak)
An artisan gelateria and caffe turning out house-made gelato in a wide flavour range, from classic fior di latte to local twists like lemongrass, ginger and sesame. It also pours proper coffee in a calm sit-down space.
Best for: afternoon dessert stop; cooling off in the heat; family treat with kids; coffee-and-gelato pause
Café · Jl. Drupadi, Seminyak
A compact smoothie-bowl specialist whose bowls are each named after a famous surf break and built from tropical fruit, house granola and simple toppings. It is a grab-and-go healthy breakfast spot rather than a sit-down cafe.
Best for: a fast healthy breakfast; a post-beach refuel; a light fruit-based bite on the go
Warung · Seminyak
A homestyle Indonesian warung on Jl. Kayu Aya in Seminyak, known for a 12-hour slow-cooked beef rendang alongside oxtail soup, rawon and corn fritters — everything cooked traditionally from scratch, with adjustable spice levels and plenty of vegetarian and vegan options.
Best for: A relaxed sit-down lunch or dinner for travellers wanting approachable, spice-adjustable Indonesian classics in central Seminyak.
Warung · Seminyak
A casual Balinese warung in Kayu Aya Square on Jl. Kayu Aya (the Oberoi strip), best known for slow-cooked, spice-marinated pork ribs sold by weight with a range of chilli levels, plus babi guling, satay and rijsttafel.
Best for: A relaxed, well-priced local lunch or dinner for travellers wanting authentic Balinese pork ribs without the fine-dining setting.
Restaurant · Sanur beachwalk near Jalan Duyung
A beachfront restaurant directly on the Sanur paved coastal walk (Jalan Duyung), serving Indonesian and European dishes plus seafood, cooked without MSG, with tables facing the sea. Open all day from breakfast to late evening.
Best for: couples and families wanting relaxed seafront tables; long-stay visitors after an easy, calm sit-down meal; anyone who wants toes-near-sand dining without a resort setting
Café · Jl. Danau Tamblingan
Long-running casual cafe on Jl. Danau Tamblingan serving Indonesian staples alongside international dishes, with vegetarian, vegan and halal options.
Best for: families and long-stay visitors wanting an easy all-rounder; travellers after familiar Indonesian dishes in a relaxed setting
Restaurant · Sanur
A Sanur restaurant known for grilled seafood and mixed BBQ platters alongside Indonesian mains, open all day, with live acoustic music at dinner.
Best for: groups sharing a seafood/grill platter; families wanting an early dinner; visitors after casual Indonesian grilled food
Restaurant · Jl. Segara Ayu beachfront
A beachfront bar and restaurant on Sanur's shore at Jl. Segara Ayu, serving seafood, pasta, Indonesian dishes and pizza with ocean views, beach happy hour and live music.
Best for: groups wanting beachfront tables with drinks and live music; families dining early by the sea; a relaxed seafront meal
Restaurant · Jl. Pantai Sindhu (Sindhu Beach)
A beachfront restaurant on Sanur's Sindhu Beach (next to INNA Sindhu Beach Hotel), serving Indonesian, Asian and Western food from breakfast to dinner, with a swimmable white-sand beach and views toward Mount Agung and Nusa Penida. Vegetarian and vegan options available.
Best for: families and groups wanting all-day beachfront dining; a relaxed seafront breakfast or early dinner; visitors wanting a swim-and-eat spot
Warung · Jalan Danau Tamblingan
Long-standing Indonesian warung (since 2012) with a bohemian recycled-boat-timber interior, serving generous home-style Balinese plates; live music some evenings.
Best for: relaxed local dinner; travellers wanting authentic Indonesian food with atmosphere
Warung · Jalan Danau Tamblingan
Laid-back, budget-friendly warung on Sanur's main artery serving authentic Balinese and Indonesian dishes; easily walkable from the beach area.
Best for: cheap, relaxed local meal; long-stay travellers and solo diners
Warung · Jalan Cemara
Small, tidy family-run warung serving Balinese, Indonesian and some Western dishes with plenty of vegetarian options, plus local coffee and fresh cocktails.
Best for: relaxed local meal; vegetarians; travellers wanting a home-style, no-fuss dinner
Restaurant · Jimbaran (Jl. Raya Kampus Unud)
A popular Indonesian bakso (meatball) chain — hearty and affordable — whose Jimbaran outlet opened in 2025. The draw is generous meatball bowls, including wagyu bakso, in comforting well-priced broth.
Best for: a cheap, comforting bowl of bakso; a quick casual local meal; groups after affordable Indonesian comfort food
Café · Jimbaran
A roadside cafe-restaurant on Jalan Raya Uluwatu in the Jimbaran fishing village, opened in 2012 by Belgian design-and-restaurateur couple Blaise Samoy and Zohra Boukhari, in a vintage-European-meets-colonial interior full of antiques the pair collected across the archipelago; the menu is Indonesian-led, with a multi-dish rijsttafel as the signature spread, rounded out by European and fusion plates.
Best for: A relaxed, atmospheric lunch or dinner for travellers who want Indonesian home-style cooking and characterful décor away from the beachfront.
Café · Jimbaran (Jl. Raya Kampus Unud)
One of Indonesia's largest specialty-coffee chains — reliable and affordable, with several Bali outlets. Fore pulls consistent everyday espresso and signature palm-sugar (aren) lattes in a modern grab-and-go format.
Best for: a reliable, affordable specialty coffee; a quick aren latte on the go; an everyday caffeine fix
Warung · Jimbaran
A no-frills, family-run roadside seafood warung on Jalan Uluwatu II in Jimbaran that grills just three things — fish, prawns and clams — served with three sambals plus free plecing kangkung and raw vegetables, and closes entirely on any day the catch isn't fresh.
Best for: Travellers who want cheap, genuinely fresh grilled seafood over the touristy Jimbaran beach-BBQ setups; come after it opens around 1pm and before the day's catch sells out.
Restaurant · Nusa Dua
The signature Indonesian restaurant at The Ritz-Carlton, Bali in Sawangan (Nusa Dua), set on the cliffs above the Indian Ocean, serving regional Balinese and archipelago dishes across three levels including a Culinary Cave open kitchen; its centrepiece is the Archipelago Rijsttafel, a shared multi-dish Indonesian rice-table feast.
Best for: An unhurried dinner for travellers who want elevated Indonesian cuisine and cliff-top ocean views over a special evening.
Restaurant · Nusa Dua
A long-running authentic-Balinese restaurant and cooking school founded in 1996 by Swiss chef and cookbook author Heinz von Holzen, serving home- and ceremony-style dishes such as babi guling and a multi-course rijsttafel in a traditional courtyard-compound setting on Nusa Dua's northern edge.
Best for: Travellers who want to try a wide spread of traditional Balinese cooking, or take a market-and-cooking class, over a relaxed dinner.
Restaurant · Nusa Dua
An independent, family-run beachfront restaurant on the sand at Geger Beach in Nusa Dua, running since 1995, where fresh grilled seafood (prawns, fish, lobster) shares the menu with Indonesian and Western dishes and pastas, all looking over the calm turquoise Geger Lagoon a short walk from The Mulia.
Best for: A relaxed all-day beach outing — breakfast, long lunch or sunset dinner — for families who want fresh seafood on the sand without resort prices, easily paired with a swim or snorkel in the lagoon.
Restaurant · Nusa Dua
A modern Indonesian restaurant at Kayumanis Nusa Dua Private Villa and Spa, named after the bamboo-and-palm-frond ceremonial roof structure and set in a glass-walled, bamboo-accented room serving archipelago dishes such as lemongrass Balinese chicken salad and black oxtail soup.
Best for: A relaxed lunch or dinner for travellers wanting regional Indonesian cooking in a quiet resort setting rather than a beachfront scene.
Warung · Bualu / Nusa Dua
A famous hole-in-the-wall babi guling (Balinese suckling pork) warung on Jl. Srikandi in Bualu village, Nusa Dua — a long-running local institution a short trip from the resort gates, known for its pork plate and rich pork soup, and often queued before it opens.
Best for: Travellers staying in Nusa Dua who want an authentic, affordable local meal as a contrast to resort dining; babi guling lovers happy to go early.
This is a themed shortlist, not the full catalogue and not an ordered route. Each linked place has to pass the publication gate, and the grouping uses stored collection rules rather than star ratings, review counts or paid placement.
Away from the busiest strips — quiet warungs and neighbourhood kitchens across Ubud, Sanur, Canggu and the south. The spots here are chosen for a calm, local meal, sorted by area.
