What makes a Bali restaurant great, because it sure as hell isn’t the furnishings?

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Luxury Villa Amala Ubud nestled amongst Bali's expansive rice terraces
overlooking the rain forest as seen from The Leading Villas of Bali

What makes a restaurant great, because it sure as hell isn’t the furnishings, the decor or the service provided by the run off their feet waitresses? The menu was simple, ribs, ribs or ribs with mash or rice.  This was an open air, street Ubud restaurant known as a Warung, Warung is an open meeting point, devoid of glitz, pomp or ceremony. A Warung has an area to keep you off the floor and a roof to keep you dry, a Warang is where scantily clad old and young men chew on their tobacco, munch on their rudimentary makan (food) and pass the time of day, discussing, no doubt the trials and tribulations of their long suffering women folk.   This Warung however, unlike others was packed with tourists and locals alike, there were even people queuing at the metaphorical doors.

To eat here you have to share a grubby table, you eat off well used ingrained plastic plates, your knife has a lime green plastic handle, your fork well you don’t need Uri Geller to bend it.  Yet this restaurant, in Ubud, the artisan area of Bali was full, people were squeezing alongside others on bench seats, at tables that could easily seat six people but now had eight.

The tropics as seen from The Luxury Villa Amala on the edge of
Bali's rain forest - worth a visit from The Leading Villas of Bali

So what made this restaurant so special, so revered and in so much demand?  Strategically placed at the street side of the restaurant sat a barbecue.  At this barbecue stood a lady with a pile of ribs a bowl of marinade, consisting of some secret ancient recipe no doubt, duly dipping racks of ribs in this gooey sauce before tossing them onto an open, smoky barbecue.  The smoke emitted was not a fine wispy trace of smoke, this smoke billowed from the burning embers before wafting across the restaurant, encapsulated the diners with aromas’, creating an atmosphere with all its rustic charm. 

For me I found a place to sit by squeezing alongside others, sitting amongst the debris of the recently departed contented guests.  I took a moment to view the menu and chose ribs with mash potato; I ordered a large Bintang, Indonesia’s beer. I sat patiently, in awe of the missing opulence at this eatery; here I waited, still sitting amongst the previous diners debris, like some weary traveller back from trekking the Amazon having stumbled across my first village with real food as I exited the rain forest.

A lady lent over my shoulder and cleared the crocks that surrounded me and gave the table a cursory wipe with a damp cloth.  My ribs arrived along with my garlic mashed potato; the ribs were of a good quality and laden with tender meat which seemed to become thicker as you looked at one end.  I looked around me and everybody in this restaurant was tucking in to their ribs as though it was their first meal for a week.  Mucky fingers, sauce still on their cheeks for this was a place to be remembered, to be talked about or even written about for this was a restaurant that defied logic, defied all norms that you would expect of a normal restaurant. This was a restaurant that a Michelin star rating would indeed kill their business stone dead, this restaurant was basic beyond belief.

To compound the absurdity, next door to this place of such rustic charm sat another restaurant, smarter in appearance, tidier in style, yet empty.  This restaurant had followed the philosophy; “if you can’t beat them join them”, as this restaurant had at its front step a barbecue, shinier than their neighbours, here a lady stood tossing her fresh ribs on her barbecue, but for her business was slow as the restaurant had but a few guests to mention.  

Luxury Villas Amala one of Ubud's finest by; The Leading Villas of Bali

All in all I have to say I chomped on my ribs savoring every mouthful, I tucked into my mash which was creamy and garlicky.  I like all the others in the establishment was pleased that I had stumbled across this restaurant.  I licked my lips and guzzled my beer.  I joined in with the banter with my fellow diners from around the table, although most were silent as they plough through their aptly presented meals that were now placed in front of them.  

As for the restaurant it was called Nuris Warung and I am sure this is a restaurant that needs to be added as a tourist destination a place well worth a visit. Nuris Warung a place to go once you are here on Bali, this wonderful Island.

Bali's Beauty as seen through the eyes of The Leading Villas of Bali http://www.theleadingvillasofbali.com

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