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Eating, Praying and Living in Bali (Part 2)

EAT

Now, I wouldn’t go so far as to call myself a glutton (ok, maybe I am, just a little), but food definitely excites me. Especially if it involves copious amounts of meat, preferably cooked over some kind of fire. Which is why the sublime BBQ ribs at Naughty Nuri’s Warung in Ubud is a match made in heaven for me. An open BBQ pit in front of the warung acts as their kitchen as well as a marketing tool for people passing by. The glorious smells and sight of slabs of ribs slow cooking over an open flame proves too much for many of the passers-by, which probably explains the popularity of Naughty Nuri’s. Admittedly, the price of the food is somewhat ‘expat’ and it does attract a sizable tourist/expat crowd, but I spotted a number of more middle class locals there as well. Opened by Isnuri Suryatmi and her American husband, Brian Kenny Aldinger, Nuri’s has a local yet international vibe to the place. I learnt of the mean Martinis being served there only after we left Bali so unfortunately did not try them, but we went back a couple of times for the succulent ribs, which are served in large slabs, and eaten in the dimly lit warung. I could barely make out what I was eating but it sure tasted good.

Nuri's buka

sauces on offer

At Nuri’s in Ubud

We also attended a cooking class conducted by Paon Bali, run by a husband and wife team of Puspa and Wayan, we were introduced to various produce on offer at Ubud market in the morning, before visiting a rice paddy to learn about rice cultivation (very hard work indeed) before adjourning to a traditional Balinese house to learn the basics of Balinese cooking (way fun). Lots of chopping, pounding, slicing, frying and tasting later, we were served the fruits of our labour. All in all, a highly recommended activity should you be in Ubud.

The rest of the trip was a blur of more fantastic food, temples, cycling, sunshine, and I could have sworn there were some monkeys in there somewhere too.

Puspa serving food

ginger and carrots and chopper

tempeh

Cooking at Paon Bali Cooking School

bananas

Fresh ingredients

cooking class

frying tempeh

Frying Tempeh

Puspa pounding paste

Puspa pounding the paste to make the Basic Sauce

paste for basic sauce

wayan fanning the satay

Wayan fanning the Satay on the hot coals

satay on the coals

Babi Guling at the famous Ibu Oka’s

Laksa at Uma Ubud

The quintessential Nasi Campur (Mixed rice)

View the rest of my Bali Series or check out the rest of my photography on Handcarry Only.

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X-Pro1 Diaries: Sleepy Weekends and Long Brunches

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Brunches are made for weekends, like ‘peas and carrots’ (as Forrest Gump puts it), a portmanteau of breakfast and lunch, unless one doesn’t work (in the conventional sense of the word), the concept of brunch on a weekday is nigh on impossible. Between scoffing down breakfast in the morning and a quick lunch later on, the two sessions of sustenance are more functional than enjoyable. Brunches, however, are a different story. The lazy and chilled out offspring of prim and proper Breakfast and high strung Lunch, Brunches are usually a long, languishing affair involving any combination of food, coffee, newspapers, magazines, idle conversation or simply staring into space. Brunches are by far my favourite type of meal, and I seldom turn down an opportunity to indulge in one.

at the bar with coffee

coffee and cookie

rocking horse

at the bar eiffel tower

colourful chalk

children's sweeties

diners at brunch

colourful popcakes

colourful flowers and straws

sitting by the window

tweety and mickey

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X-Pro1 Diaries: Just Before Dinnertime

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The hour before dinner time is a curious occasion. The working masses are spontaneously poured out onto the streets, evident in their eyes, relief that the workday is finally over. The fading light in the sky heightening the growling in their collective stomachs as they go in search of sustenance, mostly in groups, laughing and gesturing, occasionally alone, with the dim light of their mobile phones upon their faces.

The restaurants and street hawkers are in a frenzy of activity, preparing for what typically is their busiest time of day. Amidst the smoke and smells, the harsh fluorescent light and garish neon, a city is winding down.

Beers are poured, cigarettes lit, tales exchanged.

Its dinnertime.

queen street