It's no secret that getting halal food in Ubud can be tricky. While Denpasar offers a bigger chance to spot one, as 20% of its city dwellers are Muslim, however Ubud represents the more common situation in Bali where less than 4% of its population are Muslim. A stark contrast to the 85% majority nation wide, which make Indonesia a country with the largest Muslim population in the world.

(Yes, Bali is not a stand alone nation but a part of a bigger nation called Indonesia, in case you haven't noticed.)

Well known as the Yoga Capital of Indonesia, and made more famous in recent years thanks to Julia Robert's movie "Eat, Pray, Love," most foodies sought for Babi Guling Ibu Oka when visiting Ubud. Acknowledged as one of the most delicious pork dishes in the world by international TV Chefs, many tried to keep up with Ibu Oka's achievement hence roasted whole pig, or its modernized siblings pork ribs, are two of the most common dish to find in Ubud's restaurants.

Throughout years of Epicurina's food blogging adventure in Bali however, we're able to recommend some Halal food selections worth to try in Ubud. Here they are in absolutely unordered list:

1. Puteri Minang 

Perhaps the most obvious selections is nothing else than the food from a region long associated with Islam and halal food: Nasi Padang, that's what Puteri Minang sells.

With dishes ranging from the well known Rendang Padang, into the more traditional options like Tunjang, Kikil, Otak, and Paru, Puteri Minang offers a wide selection fits the most selective eaters. Just a bit of warning though that car parking space is very limited, and the food here is quite spicy hot.

Alternatively there are also some other Padang Restaurants further down the road, but Puteri Minang is the most famous.

Puteri Minang
Address:
Jalan Raya Ubud 77,
Ubud,
Bali,
Indonesia
Phone: (+62) 361 975577

Halal status: HL2 - Halal by seller's claim

2. Nasi Ayam Kedewatan Ibu Mangku

Perhaps the closest contender to Babi Guling Ibu Oka in term of fame, Nasi Ayam Kedewatan Ibu Mangku is also a long standing brand in Ubud. Serving Kedewatan style Nasi Ayam Bali, where instead of Ayam Betutu, they're using Ayam Gerang Asam.

The other component of the dish are quite typical of Balinese Chicken Rice found throughout the island, like Ayam Sisit, Sate Lilit Ayam, Urab Sayur, Telur Rebus, Kacang Goreng, and Sambal.

Nasi Ayam Kedewatan Ibu Mangku
Address:
Jalan Raya Kedewatan No.18,
Ubud,
Bali 80571
Indonesia
Phone: (+62) 361 974795
⌚ Opens: 7:30 am – 6:00 pm

Halal status: HL1 - Halal by own observation

3. Warung Pulau Kelapa

Located really close to another one of Ubud's most famous eateries, Naughty Nuri's, Warung Pulau Kelapa serves Indonesian and some International food selections.

Led by Chef Lambon, Warung Pulau Kelapa occupies a joglo styled building, with both indoor and outdoor seating, including one set in a cow's cage setting. Another interesting feature of Warung Pulau Kelapa is the garden where guests can pick their own vegetables to be cooked by the kitchen staff, including the less common ones like Bunga Turi, or the edible flower of Sebasnia grandiflora.

To better fit the international audience, Warung Pulau Kelapa also applies #NoMSG policy.

It is not a coincidence then, that Warung Pulau Kelapa sits on the recommendation list of Indonesia's prominent food experts like William Wongso and Bondan Winarno.

Warung Pulau Kelapa
Address:
Jl. Raya Sanggingan,
Lungsiakan,
Ubud,
Bali,
Indonesia

Halal status: HL1 - Halal by own observation

4. Bale Udang Ubud 

Formerly known as Bale Udang Mang Engking, their Ubud branch is quite a new venue, Bale Udang Ubud is perhaps the only large sized restaurant in Ubud that serves Halal food. With parking space fits tourist busses and plenty cars all at once, the venue doesn't sacrifice quality for quantity, as the spaces are beautifully designed around the artificial pond, complete with individual bamboo huts erected over the water.

The restaurant is also well managed, and the foods are actually delicious, with affordable prices. It even has musholla (praying space) with decent facility.

As the name implies, Bale Udang Ubud serves prawn based dishes (Udang = prawn or shrimp) in several varieties like fried, grilled, honey marinated, boiled, or made into soup. They also serves other seafood like squid and crab, fresh water fishes like Carp and Gourami. And for the seafood challenged guests, there are also selections of beef, chicken and duck based dishes. There's quite something for everyone.

Bale Udang Ubud
Address:
Jl. Raya Goa Gajah,
Banjar Teges Kanginan,
Desa Peliatan,
Ubud,
Bali,
Indonesia
Website: http://www.baleudang.com/

Halal status: HL2 - Halal by seller's claim

5. Sitara Indian Restaurant

A decent Indian restaurant offering classic Indian food, which means normally there would be no pork, or beef, just mutton, chicken, prawn, fish, cheese, and lots lots lots of curry. 

Sitara Indian Restaurant

Address: 

Jalan Hanoman 99 X, 

Tegal, 

Ubud, 

Bali

Indonesia

☎ (+62) 361 977195

⌚ Opens: 11:00 am – 10:00 pm
🚗 90 minutes from Airport

Halal status: HL1 - Halal by own observation

6. Taco Casa

Serving Mexican favourite like Tacos, Enchiladas, Burritos, Quesadillas, and Fajitas, it's quite a rarity that they uses only beef and chicken for the meat selection. But we're grateful for that.

Taco Casa

Address: 

Jl. Pengosekan, 

Ubud, 

Gianyar, 

Bali 80571

Indonesia

☎ (+62) 812 2422 2357

✉ social@bali-bohemia.com 
💻 http://tacocasabali.com
⌚ Opens: 11:00 am – 10:00 pm
🚗 90 minutes from Airport

Halal status: HL1 - Halal by own observation

7. Sari Organik

Serving mostly organic and locally grown vegetable dishes, Sari Organik offers selection of local and international vegetarian dishes on their menu. When the menu is not vegetarian, they uses either chicken, or fish.

The catch -- or the beauty, depends on how you see it -- is that you have to walk through the rice fields for about 15 minutes as Sari Organik is located deep in the countryside, where only human and motorcycles (and water buffalos of course) can fit to the narrow path in between the rice fields. Some are so narrow that you have to step aside to give way to motorcycle passing by.

Impressive? Absolutely, if you've never seen rice fields up close before, or having your meal in the beautiful bamboo hut surrounded by lush green rice fields. But if rice fields is already abundant in your regular daily sights, Sari Organik still worth a visit, at least once.

Just don't forget to bring extra clothes and plan your trip outside of Bali's most hot hours. The setting sun do look beautiful to watch from here.

Warung Bodag Maliah Sari Organik

Address: 

In the middle of Tjampuhan countryside
Jl. Raya Tjampuhan, 

Ubud, 

Gianyar, 

Bali

⌚ Opens: 8:00 am – 8:00 pm
☎ (+62) 361 972087
🚗 120 minutes from Airport

Park your vehicle on the roadside, then continue by walking.

Halal status: HL1 - Halal by own observation

8. Bali Bohemia

It's a funky new hangout opened in early 2015, located just outside the Monkey Forest Ubud's rear entrance gate. Bali Bohemia offer various meze (appetizers) from Levantine cuisine, like hummus, tabouleh, and baba ghanoush.

Best reached through Nyuh Kuning, branched off the main Pengosekan street, Bali Bohemia offers a laid back atmosphere with lovely mural paintings, and lots of beautiful beads and trinkets.

Bali Bohemia 
Address:
Banjar Nyuh Kuning,
Jl Nyuh Bojog,
Monkey Forest Gate D
Ubud
Bali
Indonesia
☎ (+62) 361 978361
✉ social@bali-bohemia.com 
💻 bali-bohemia.com
🚗 90 minutes from Airport

Halal status: HL1 - Halal by own observation, HL2 - Halal by seller's claim

Last, some general notes:

1. Should you're nowhere near these recommendations, as a general rule you can expect all Padang Restaurants are 100% Halal, Vegetarian Restaurants are your next best chance to have Halal food, and Indian Restaurants are also worth options to inspect.
2. Most of the restaurants recommended above serves alcohol, which is among the reason why many don't bother to try getting certified by halal certification body (Majelis Ulama Indonesia - MUI) in Indonesia.
3. Observation and personal judgement should always be practiced, as these recommendations are made through a limited mean of personal observation which includes visual and listed ingredients inspection, interview with the restaurant staff, backed up with online research and peer opinions. 

There you are folks, your list of halal food recommendation in Ubud for your holiday. Which one is your favorite? Do let us know should you have other halal food recommendations in Ubud to include in the list. (byms)

Serving as the base camp for our Ubud Food Festival activities is the charming hotel Alaya Ubud. Looks narrow and unassuming from the front, the hotel is actually big, just that it's stretched a couple of hundred meters deep.

Located next to the Yoga Barn, Alaya is easy to spot, and ample of parking spaces are available. There are three main attraction at this beautiful resort hotel: The room (definitely), Dala Spa, and Petani Restaurant with live music performance featuring Bali's best talents. During the day, Petani also serves as a good meeting ground with its elegant chic interior.

Around Alaya Ubud, there's a lot of attraction you can visit by walking, eliminating the need of a cab. A major supermarket sits almost right next to the hotel, 15 minutes walk to the Monkey Forest, and a lot of interesting restaurants and shops only a walking distance away.

The Stay

First, service is awesome, loosely structured and feels genuine, no cliche. With only 60 rooms capacity, this is among the luxury you can experience from the staff in Alaya Ubud. For example, when I got back from my talk in Ubud Food Festival, the guest relation staff recognized me almost immediately, even though I'm sure that was the first time we met. Wanting to quickly get out of my sweat ridden t-shirt from the earlier activity, I was then accompanied by a younger male staff, who's also already know me by name, all the way to my room where my wife and kids are waiting.

On the down side the walk to our room on the third floor was unexpectedly long, given the narrow-deep hotel layout and our room was located quite to the rear end of the resort. There's also no elevator or ramps available meaning we can't carry the baby stroller either.

The view was amazing though. While I'm no stranger to rice fields, since I grew up with rice fields surrounding my house and treat them as my playground, the view is soothing nonetheless. I heard that the hotel bought those rice fields around the hotel, just so it can be preserved as is.

The room itself was simply beautiful. I love how the design makes the room felt cultured, with the texture, colors, and artworks, but not bare traditional, as the in-room facilities and the honeycomb patterned door nicely adds the contemporary feels.

The bowl shaped bathtub with natural lighting was surely gained my 6 years old kid attention, who's favourite hotel activity includes either swimming, or bubble bath, or both. Both the shower and the bathtub occupied an open space though, divided only by curtain with the rest of the room. Suitable for couples and families with little kids, it might feels a bit awkward for those not used to open space bathrooms.

The room was spacious, and its bed was enough to fit the whole crew of 2 3/4 people (2 adults, 1 kid, 1 baby). And what begun as a joke to address the daybed as "kid's bed" ends up with our kid actually slept on it, believing that joke to be true.

Outside of the room (literally), the other wonderful feature of Alaya Ubud's rooms are the balconies. Facing the lush green rice fields, it's equipped with comfy couch perfect to snuggle with your loved one(s), while enjoying the fresh air of Ubud.

While Alaya also have afternoon tea down at Petani as complimentary of our stay, we skipped it as our agenda for the rest of the afternoon was to enjoy the luxury treatment of Dala Spa.

Mesmerizing Dala Spa

Located at the at the hotel's farthest end, Dala Spa's lobby is at the second floor and the treatment room downstairs at the ground floor. What's special with Dala Spa is that each room have different themes, all were elegant and mesmerizing in their own ways.

Surprisingly, Dala Spa also has their own Spa menu which includes a nice set of high tea, with array of unique tea blends.

As we took quite a lot of beautiful shots here, it's only proper to put the Dala Spa experience in its own article. Stay tuned.

Dinner time at Petani Restaurant

For the evening, I heads down to Petani Restaurant. The view turned into dramatic with the lights turned on.

As Mrs. Epicurina suddenly experiencing a terrible headache, I have to enjoy the dinner alone. A pity, but still enjoyable nonetheless, especially with the live entertainment by Bali's own prodigy music artist Balawan.

Known for his double necked guitar and his unique tapping method, Balawan performance that night was both joyful and stunning. Combining intricate tunes with Balinese elements, Balawan combine technical prowess with ethnicity nuance beautifully blend it. This is for sure not your usual dinner band.

Later during the end of his performance, Balawan was also joined by one of his audience in a three way "battle" of scatting, Djembe drum playing, and Balawan mimicking gamelan on his guitar!

To accompany the evening, I ordered Grilled Jimbaran Bay Tuna. Two slabs of thick and juicy tuna, stacked on top of purple potato puree and edamame beans. The tuna was marinated with Kintamani lime and soy sauce, lightly grilled to create the firm surface, while at the same time maintaining the pinky juicy tuna meat inside. Well done!

I did find the dressing of spiced orange reduction a bit challenging though, since the purple potato is already sweet, and the dressing was even sweeter.

Breakfast in Alaya Ubud

Several options are available for breakfast in Alaya Ubud, you can pick from the Indonesian Nasi Kuning Komplit, Eggs, or Pancake. I certainly went for the poached eggs, on top of toasted baguette, perfected by a layer of smoked salmon. Delish! I always love the moment I sliced the poached eggs open and let the runny egg yolks melted out.

We find the Nasi Kuning a bit too mellow for our local tastebuds though, while our kid certainly enjoyed his freshly made choco chips pancake.

All of the breakfast choices includes a set of sliced fresh fruits, juices, homemade yogurt, bread basket with homemade jams, and a choice of coffee or tea. While it's not a buffet breakfast, it's surely fulfilling.

Conclusion and feedbacks

On overall our stay was awesome, the staffs were attentive, their Dala Spa's High Tea has definitely one of the best savory snacks among all the high teas in Bali. We love the bedroom and the bowl shaped bathtub, and the balcony was relaxing.

I would love to see flavor enhancement on some of their food, and there should be a better way to address family traveling with babies, or with elders, as for both cases the long walk might be an issue.

Where's your favorite place to stay in Ubud? Share with us!

Thank you Alaya Ubud for introducing your lovely resort to our Epicurina readers. As usual, all opinions are of my own. (byms)