"Let's go in and check out their resort, pretend we're going to held an event here" said my boss smiling before turning our rented car to enter The Westin Resort Nusa Dua front gate. Judging by Nusa Dua's reputation as the staying place of movie stars and presidents, this invitation alone gives a sheer feeling like we're doing something forbidden.

But that was about ten years ago, when the image of staying in one of Bali's top resorts is just a distant dream, especially for someone with entry level salary in an IT startup company.

Our perception of Westin changed however, since the early years of us moving to Bali. Westin has been a highly supportive venue, and a close companion for our Bali food blogging activity. Starting from the numerous invitations to Prego's Family Brunch, participating in charity shows for Unicef involving nation's rising stars, invitation to annual appreciation dinner, and last but not least, a staycation chance!

Just a fresh reminder, "staycation" is a form of vacation where we focus on experiencing the whole offers that a destination hotel have, to take advantage of the hotel's included amenities and facilities. Recently staycation has also been recognized as the sustainable tourism way to make our travel more eco-friendly. With the huge size of Westin Nusa Dua, and lots of entertainment options, we eagerly started our journey.

The Westin Nusa Dua Bali Experience

Westin has one of the largest hotel lobby on the island, definitely, with high ceilings all the way to the roof. The interior emits the conservative luxurious feel, dominated with dark brown solid woods and white marbles. This condition alone helps setup the feeling that we're starting something grande.

After a smooth check-in, we're escorted to our room in Westin's new hotel wing, right above Prego Restaurant, which has becoming quite familiar for us as one of the island's top family brunch destination. More on it later, as our staycation includes Sunday Brunch at Prego!

Our room exist almost at the end of the alley on the third floor. While it's not the biggest room we ever stayed in, it comfortably fits two huge beds, a couch, a receded desk, and there's also a comfy balcony with garden view.





By the way, please don't mind our kid's expression, it's something he caught from his friends at school which seems to be their smiling standard now, and he's been practicing this style constantly in every picture we shot that day. So this is his happy face, for now, please bear with it. And no it's not contagious, not to adults at least.

On the bathroom, beside of the large bath tub, we were also pleased to find the scented soap and bathroom amenities ready to help us refresh after our long travel.

Kids Activities at Westin Resort Nusa Dua

After we settled down, now it's time to scout around the resort for facilities that we can enjoy. Our kid surely love the pools, and there's even an artificial cave with waterfall that feels like you're on a treasure hunt.


The biggest draw for our kid attention though, was the resort's Kids Club, and beside the pools, that's his benchmark to determine if a resort is cool or not. After taking a long walk passing the lobby and the restaurants, we finally arrived at the Kids Club at the other end of the resort.

The first kids club

We're there just in time for a kite coloring session, and our boy thinks it's cool, so I left him there with all the small people. Outside there's also a lot of physical activity facilities, so if he ever get bored with the all the drawings and kite flying, he'd have a lot of options.

The second kids club

What's interesting with Westin's Kids Club is that it's a complex made up from three different facilities organized by age. The one that my kid in, was for children whose in early school years. For even younger children under 5 years old, there's a separated facility right next door. It was less populated than the main one though.

The third kids club!

If you think the two grouping is already impressive, turned out that Westin has a third section which devoted for teenagers! Here you can find youngsters enjoying their time watching movies, playing Playstation, or simply reading books from the library. It was set as a lounge, so it has this nice relaxing feeling.

Pinky White Beach and Interconnected Swimming Pools at Westin Resort Nusa Dua

Outside nearby, Westin has a pinkish white sandy beach complete with sheltered and non sheltered beach bunks. It's an ideal space to laid back and enjoy the serene beach with gentle breeze, something that Bali is best for.

Not ready to jump into the salt water yet? Westin's interconnected swimming pools is the one you should be at then. It's made up of several swimming pools with close distance from one to another, together creating a huge swimming pool complex, with the water that still feels fresh, despite its closeness to the sea. Something hotels in Kuta area are now struggling with, due to the sea water abrasion.

Breakfast at Westin Resort Nusa Dua

On the next day, we eagerly rushed down to Seasonal Tastes restaurant to have our breakfast. Staying truthful to our epicurean nature, breakfast is certainly something we're looking forward to.

We were quite surprised to see there's a Halal Food station set up during Breakfast. Beside of some hotels targeting domestic tourists, we almost never seen such feature, especially in a five-star resort like Westin.

Other than the halal station, most of breakfast items in Westin are clearly labeled whether they contains pork or not, vegetarian or not, that help the guests to quickly recognize which food matches their dietary rules.

Outside of the traffic and the commotion of breakfast, we found food at Westin was good, very well catered, heap of menu choices to pick, and we especially love their Indian food station, it was awesome! One of the best breakfast we ever had in Bali hotels.

Temperature is a bit challenging though, as we're staying in Westin during one of the hottest seasons in years, we found the heat is quite high, even on the corners of the restaurant which have air conditioners. As basically the restaurant is open spaced, make sure you dress lightly, and come early to get the coolest spot on the venue.






After we've done with the amazing breakfast, now it's time to try the waters, so we heads down to the swimming pools which located right outside of the restaurant. Sadly we found most of the ideal spots have been reserved, but this is something we now realize as a common happenings in Bali hotels: mark your ideal pool side bench by leaving something of your personal belongings, before you go for breakfast. This way you can ensure to get the best pool experience later after you eat, which usually meant shaded benches, and this is important as Balinese sun tends to be unmercifully hot. Good for skin tanning, but not for someone already on the dark side like me. The skin, not the force.

Family Sunday Brunch at Prego

To close our staycation experience in Westin, we're thrilled to end it on a high note with Westin's Family Sunday Brunch at Prego.

Prego is an Italian restaurant that focuses on "fun dining not fine dining" and it's Family Sunday Brunch is designed to entertain the whole family.

As Bali food blogger, my focus lies on enjoying the treats that Prego have:

My favorite part of Prego are their fresh pasta station, where I can order any kind of pasta Prego have, and it's a lot, cooked upon our order. Next is the cold seafood table where prawns, crabs, and mussels are lying down gorgeously on the ice rocks. The rather new grilling station is responsible for the delicious seafood bbq and meats, including steaks and kebabs.

There are special of the week's menu which revolves between fish or other type of meat, some options for soups, grilled vegetables, a long table of antipasti, lots of delicious cakes and gelato, and last but not least, the cheese station. Well in fact it's among my favorite stations in Prego, as they have a good selections of both young mellow soft cheeses, and old mature strongly flavored ones. I usually comes to this section first and assemble my plate of cold cuts, grilled vegetables, cheeses, seeds, nuts, and even fruit jams from the nearby bread station.





As a father however, I want to also ensure that my kid is having a good time as well. As he's quite picky with what he eats, he find the fresh pasta station as the only choice, and he always go with the Bolognaise.

Pancakes and chocolate cakes are also his favorite, but we don't usually let him roaming in those stations unless he finished his plate of pasta first.

Outside of the food, we find the activities in Prego Family Sunday Brunch really engaging. Whether it's playing Playstation games with newly met friends, outdoor activities like face painting or ball games, Prego has cute mini stations to cater for our kid's sweet tooth, like popcorn stall, ice cream cart, and cotton candy corner.

They even have magic shows that made our kid both entertained and curious.

Westin Staycation in conclusion 

It's been one kind of a stay, a little bit hectic due to the high season, but we find the quality service made up for what Westin might lacked. Our concerns are promptly addressed, the food was good, and our room was comfy. Nice surprise for the halal section on breakfast, and everything else creates memorable impression.

As a blogger with two kids, the availability and quality of kids activities sits high in our checklist, and with the three kids club which includes outdoor activities, kids friendly selection during our breakfast, large bath tub, and huge swimming pool, our kid was surely entertained.

Thank you Westin, until we meet again! (byms)

The Westin Resort Nusa Dua

Address:
Kawasan Pariwisata Nusa Dua, BTDC Lot. N-3,
Nusa Dua,
Kuta Selatan,
Kabupaten Badung,
Bali 80363
Indonesia

Phone:
+62 361 771906

Fax:
+62 361 771908

Email:
reservation.00035@westin.com

Website:
http://www.westinnusaduabali.com/

Spending our family weekend in Bali, Epicurina Bali Food Blog was invited to experience the staycation at Le Grande Hotel in Uluwatu, near Pecatu Beach.

Set in the tranquil and rejuvenating neighborhood of the New Kuta Golf Course within the huge Pecatu Indah Resort complex, Le Grande Hotel Uluwatu vibrates the rustic and intimate atmosphere. While the hotel is no longer young, just like people said about good wine, it aged with charm.

Pecatu Beach itself is located at the south western coast of Bali, about 15 km from Ngurah Rai International Airport, without traffic, that's about 30 minutes away. With the sunset traffic along the Garuda Wisnu Kencana stretch of road, expect 60 minutes at least.

Entering the complex from the main Uluwatu street, roads are continually intersecting with the golf cart track, meaning you have to continually watch your surrounding for passing by golf carts. The road leading to Le Grande itself is might pose a challenge for first-time visitors, so pay attention to the road signs.

Or set your Waze/Goggle Map to look for "Hotel Le Grande".

Checking in at Le Grande Uluwatu

We were greeted by the female security officer at the stone entrance gate, and after informing our purpose of visit, we proceed to the lobby area and park our car.

There were not many cars parking when we arrived, which is something quite usual for resorts in Bali by the way, since most of Le Grande Uluwatu's guests are visitors from out of the town, and they're arriving at the hotel using either taxi or other type of chartered transports.

The lobby of Le Grande Uluwatu itself felt casual, spacious, with wall to wall glass meaning there's a lot of outdoor lights flooding in, very uplifting.

Epicurina checked in into Le Grande Uluwatu's One Bedroom Suite, which located in the main building. While it says one bedroom, the title was a bit misleading.

The Suite has one single big bedroom, yes. With huge bathroom that comprising of a toilet, and a bath tub that's connected to that main bedroom. Our 6 years old kid surely getting very excited about this feature, as bath tub sits highly on the list of factors to determine if a hotel worth a second visit or not, and now he can take his bubble bath while interacting with the whole room!

The most interesting facility of Le Grande Uluwatu One Bedroom Suite though, is the adjoining living room so large we could held our own small party here!

The living room itself was also equipped by a pantry, complete with electric stove and large refrigerator. For long staying guests, the hotel also lend out simple cookwares for free.

Outside of our window, the inner garden was dressed in green, with roofless top to allow air circulation.

From the outside, the building itself looks tropical classic with wood elements dominating the facade. There are several pools accessible for the hotel's guests, one right outside of our room -- which also house D'Bar's poolside bar and dining deck suitable for weddings and medium large parties (first photo above), the others are located within the rear building complex like this one below.

Traveling with a baby, we found Le Grande is mostly accessible for baby stroller, except for some few facilities where we need to maneuver the cart carefully through the stair steps.

Dinner at Le Grande Uluwatu

While we noticed some food shops on our way to the hotel, and there were nothing really interesting we headed down to The Grand Cafe restaurant instead, which offer various dishes from different corners of the world, and we're managed to get a glimpse of the restaurant's specialties.

While the food was good, and the drinks were refreshing, what also excited us during our dinner was that The Grand Cafe adhere to the general halal standard, meaning outside of some obvious liquor related choices, there's no pork on the menu. The executive chef is also a Muslim thus fully aware of the Halal standard.

Breakfast at Le Grande Uluwatu

Personally my favorite part of a stay-in vacation. Breakfast at Le Grande is served in full buffet style, comprising of both European and Asian style cooking. As always, I immediately heads to the European section and construct my regular starting plate of salad, olives, capers, topped with some cold cut meats, sausages, cheeses, and grilled vegetables. I have some difficulties locating their egg station though, but managed to get some omelet near the end of the breakfast.

Our kids was happy enough to find there's Bubur Ayam on the menu, and proceed to devour on some chocolate pancakes afterward.

As Le Grande Uluwatu is located in the middle of New Kuta Golf Course, our breakfast was embellished with the beautiful morning song of the wild birds living in the neighborhood. Some golf carts passed by occasionally, and you can also spot some gardeners tidying up the gardens.

After the breakfast, we found ourselves back by the pool so our six years old kid can take his last dip before checking out in the afternoon.

Outside of some technical issue with the air conditioner in our room, we found our staycation in Le Grande Uluwatu really rejuvenating and fun for the whole family. Spacious luxurious room, Beautiful view, good food, and quite secluded location, with only minutes away from the famous New Kuta Beach, and the happening El Kabron. (byms)

Le Grande Uluwatu

Block 5,
Pecatu Indah Resort.
Jl. Raya Uluwatu -
Bali 80361
Indonesia

Phone number:
+62 361 848 1388

Fax number
+62 361 848 1366

Email:
info@legrandebaliuluwatu.com

Website:
http://www.legrandebaliuluwatu.com

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)

One of the biggest pleasure I have as a food blogger in Bali, is when I can present you dear readers, something new and uniquely Bali, and last week we found something perfectly fit that description named Warung Basang.

Located near the Krishna gift shop in Tuban, Kuta, Warung Basang serves quality Balinese food with affordable prices, and authentic home cooking Balinese dishes.

Warung Basang itself was born out of passion to preserve Balinese cuisine tradition, which contains many wonderful delicious dishes, including those less known to people outside Bali. That's why on the menu you'd find lots of interesting selections like Lawar Klungah which uses very young coconut shells (yes its shells!), with a crunchy rubbery texture. Or Tum Ares which uses young banana stalks, beside of the well known Bebek Betutu, or Sate Lilit Ikan Laut. 

For a modern and easy to like alternative, Warung Basang also serves creations like Nasi Goreng Bongkot which uses fragrant torch ginger root and white fish meat.

Aiming for authenticity, Warung Basang ensure they only minimally adjust the flavors to match domestic tourists' palate, including toning down the spiciness standard to better fit non-Balinese heat tolerance level. And we have testimonies from our fellow Balinese foodies in #Mekulicious to certify its authenticity.

That being said, I personally find the heat level of food in Warung Basang still sits on the top end of my heat tolerance range, however my lovely spouse think the spiciness level was just standard and fits her appetite really well.

For you spicy food lovers though, Warung Basang serves six different kind of Balinese sambal to please your appetite.

Outside of the heat factor, I found Warung Basang cooking is flavorful, rich, and memorable. Something I'd happily recommend even to my most reserved, judgmental, annoyingly truthful friends.

Halal Balinese 

What's even more interesting from Warung Basang though, it's something that's very rare in Balinese eateries: a halal standard.

Therefore if you've been wondering how Lawar taste, but was hesitant as you're following a no-pork dietary like majority of muslim are, here's your chance.

Upon asked why choosing halal Balinese concept, Warung Basang's owner Anindya Mantik (Indy) revealed that the decision was come after a thorough research, and her wish to preserve a family's culinary tradition:

The Tuban area was chosen since its close to the Ngurah Rai Airport, and quickly becoming a prominent destination for domestic tourists, especially with the development of new budget hotels in this stretch of street, not to mention the famous shops already residing in this street: Krishna souvenir shop, Joger Bali, and Nasi Ayam Ibu Andika.

While there's already some Balinese eateries in the area, Indy figured none caters a fully fledged Balinese menu yet. On the other hand, one of her fondest memory of childhood was the cooking of her grandmother from Tabanan, which despite her experience living abroad, kept lingering in her mind. 

Her decision to go Halal was further fueled by the fact that most domestic travelers are muslim, and they rarely touch Balinese dishes for fear that it contains pork, while in truth Balinese cuisine is not always about pork. That's why it's becoming her passion also to introduce the halal side of Balinese cookings.  

To ensure the Halal standard, Warung Basang employs a muslim female chef, and source their ingredients from muslim sellers in the nearby traditional market.

Lending her passion in fashion design, Indy ensures that your visit in Warung Basang creates a lasting impression with its comfy atmosphere, that's ornamented with snapshots from the past.

Warung Basang (@warungbasang) 

Jalan Raya Tuban 58A (next to Rahayu), 

Tuban, Kuta, Bali, 

Indonesia. 

Phone: +62 812 3632 0603