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A Locals’ Guide to Bali, Beyond the Tourist Crowds

To some, the Indonesian island has become synonymous with throngs of tourists, but you can still break away from the pack. Here’s how, according to four insiders.

BALI HIGH The daily kecak performance at a temple in the Uluwatu region of Bali is unique in that the musicians use their voices instead of traditional gamelan percussion instruments. Alamy

FEW ISLANDS serve up as varied a grab bag of holiday pursuits as Bali. On a landmass about the size of Delaware, you can seek out tranquility in the DayGlo-green rice paddies around the yogi haven of Ubud and adventure up the slopes of massive volcanoes. Along Bali’s southern beaches, nightclubs attract big-name DJs and ever-more-ambitious restaurants are popping up like mushrooms after a downpour. But the secret is out—and has been for a while. As tourist arrivals return to prepandemic numbers and more transplants put down roots, Bali’s ever-growing traffic and garbage woes have turned it into an overtourism poster child. Luckily there are as many dimensions to the Indonesian island as the number of gods worshiped in its Hindu temples. Know where to look, and you can still experience the island not only as it once was but also as it might be in a more sustainable future. Below, four locals point you in the right direction. 

 

Murni’s Warung has been a staple for local cuisine since it opened in 1974.

The Writer: Radit Mahindro

Author of ‘Paras,’ an upcoming book about Balinese hospitality 

Radit Mahindro

REAL DEAL: Murni’s Warung: The nasi campur (rice with meat and vegetables) here is the best on the island. The owner opened this restaurant in 1974, and still occasionally pops in to meet guests and share fascinating stories.

Read the full article: A Locals Guide to Bali, Beyond the Tourist Crowds

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EAT

Murni’s Warung

Ubud’s first real restaurant, created in 1974 by Ibu Murni, who still owns and runs it, is famous not only for its excellent food dishes but also for its art displays.

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Rob Goodfellow Wollongong, New South Wales, The Jakarta Post, October 25, 2021

Throughout the global pandemic, business figure Ni Wayan Murni has been an inspiration to fellow Balinese people. Her landmark restaurant, Murni’s Warung, in the island’s highland village of Ubud-Campuhan, has been one of only a dozen or so restaurants to remain open for business and retain staff.

Before COVID-19, the vast majority of Balinese adults were directly employed in the tourism sector with 60 percent of the Balinese gross domestic product attributed to tourism alone. The collapse of overseas visitors, in particular the number one visitor cohort, Australians, has hit the Island of the gods very hard.

Over the course of the last two years, foreign tourist arrivals plunged from over 6 million to less than a million, with nearly 105,000 Balinese losing their jobs in August 2021 alone. (Six in 10 Indonesians work in the informal sectors, so this figure is likely to be much higher than reported.) As a result, the island’s economy contracted by a staggering 9.3 percent.

As an essential public health measure, the island was largely closed to overseas visitors, instead relying on domestic tourism to keep the economic wheels turning. (This strategy resulted in a “life-saving” turnaround of 2.8 percent for the second quarter of this year.)

Often referred to as “the Ibu of Ubud” and “the mother of modern-day tourism in Bali”, Ibu (Mrs) Murni was one of the very first Balinese to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. (President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has credited Bali’s high vaccination rate now 76 percent of the population for the first dose and 65 percent for the second dose—for the decision to reopen.)

Ibu Murni said, “I wanted to be a good example and show my staff and my community that the vaccination was safe. And, of course, we all want to welcome back visitors. In Balinese culture we have a strong sense of ‘we’ and not just ‘me.’ We understand responsibilities and obligations very well. And now we are being rewarded for working together and trusting the experts and the science as we move towards opening up our beautiful island again.”

To survive, Murni’s Warung resized its menu and played to its strengths, the way it began in 1974, serving mainly popular local dishes at local prices. Deliveries became more frequent than they used to be. In the process, her restaurant won Restaurant Guru’s Award for the Best Food Delivery in Ubud! (Her restaurant had earlier won the prestigious Gourmand Award in 2019—just before COVID-19 hit —and her Tamarind Spa at Murni’s Houses was the winner of the 2021/22 Contemporary Spa of the Year award—Indonesia Prestige Awards.)

Last week, the Tourism and Creative Economy Minister, Sandiaga Uno, sent a clear message to the Australian government that Indonesia has taken the necessary steps to welcome back tourists to Bali. On Friday, the Australian prime minister responded.

At an Oct. 22 press conference with the QANTAS boss Alan Joyce (reported in the national newspaper, The Australian), Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the words Ibu Murni and her nearly four million fellow Balinese have been waiting to hear. “I’ll be seeing President Widodo this weekend (at the COP26 United Nation’s sponsored Glasgow Climate Summit), and after at the G20. This [re-opening of Bali to Australian tourists] has been a regular matter that’s come up in our discussions over the course of the pandemic about when we can have travel to Indonesia going again.”

Confirmed in an ABC (the national broadcaster) news bulletin, Joyce reinforced the prime minister’s comments that discussions were underway with the Indonesian government about welcoming fully vaccinated Australians back to Bali with reduced or no quarantine requirements.

On hearing the news, Ibu Murni’s immediate comment was, “This is wonderful. It has really lifted our spirits. Not only does our President understand how difficult life has been in Bali during the pandemic, but now our neighbor Australia understands too and both leaders will meet and work together. This has made us all so happy and optimistic for the future.”

When Australians do return, however, there is a discussion about what positive changes can be made to improve the visitor experience. As Ibu Murni says, “Bapak Luhut (Luhut Panjaitan, the coordinating maritime affairs and investment minister) says, that in the post-pandemic future, there should be a greater emphasis on low ecological impact/high value tourism. I know my friends who have suffered during the pandemic too—like my neighbors at Casa Luna, the extraordinary Blanco Museum across the river from my Warung, and Yanie and Nigel Mason’s multi-award-winning Elephant Safari Park and rescue facility in Taro would agree.”

The “Ibu of Ubud” has clearly been inspired by the prospect of the Indonesian president and the Australian prime minister meeting on the sidelines in Glasgow: to help Bali. She said, “Because Australians are loved and appreciated by the Balinese, and because generations of Australians have fallen in love with Bali, these ‘man-to-man’ discussions can only bring our two neighboring peoples closer together.”

But more than this, Bali is the world’s most recognized tourism brand. And when Bali is doing well—the world is doing well too.

The writer is the co-author of the book, So Many Delicious Years: Murni’s Warung, Ubud, Bali

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 Andri Setya

Bali News

6 February 2021

Located next to the old Campuhan Bridge, a five-minute ride from Ubud Central, Murni’s Warung sits peacefully on a river’s hillside, boasting the view of River Wos flowing water. Built from the ground up, the restaurant first opened in 1974 and has been serving food and hospitality for 47 years now.

Owned and run by a Balinese woman, Ni Wayan Murni, the warung has expanded to four open-air levels, complete with shop and lounge bar. However the atmosphere remains the same. Each guest will be immersed in its traditional interior design carefully decorated with exquisite antiques and artworks.

Similarly, the menu has also been expanded to cater to both local and international tastes where guests can find pasta, steak and a hot dog, for example. But you cannot miss the time tested signature dishes, such as Bebek Betutu (Balinese Duck), Murni’s Tutu Ayam, and Nasi Campur.

Five Legendary Local Eateries in Bali

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Peter Stephenson

Hello Bali, February 2011

“It’s hard to imagine that present-day Ubud holds any secrets, given how well trodden it’s become. But like everywhere, the hidden is often right under your nose.

The tiny cocktail bar downstairs at Murni’s Warung is like a lost world, an artefact from another era, haunted by the strains of crooners and the crackle of torch songs; a hint of the 1930s all cast against the dark green ferny precipice of the primordial Wos river ravine. When I approach the bar, I feel like Jack Nicholson in “The Shining”; patrons like spectres, nothing outside but the wildness.”

The Secrets of Ubud – Eat, Paint, Laugh

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Traditional dish is so good that food critics struggle to describe it

Ian Lloyd Neubauer

Nikkei Asian Review, 28 February 2020

It’s what’s on the inside that counts: A duck is stuffed with the special mix of spices necessary to create the Indonesian delicacy bebek betutu.

UBUD, Indonesia  — “No question about it, this is the best pig I have ever had. Absolutely the best. You think even the finest French chef could ever come up with anything as delicious or as beautiful as this?”

When the TV chef Anthony Bourdain uttered these words while filming in Indonesia in 2006, he turned babi guling — Balinese pig roasted on a spit — from a local favorite into a global delicacy.

There is, however, another Balinese dish that rivals or even exceeds babi guling: bebek betutu — roasted leaf-wrapped duck. Richly seasoned with chili, ginger, candlenuts and garlic, this melt-in-your-mouth masterpiece upstages the flavor profiles of China’s Peking duck, France’s confit de canard and every duck dish ever conceived, according to many prominent food judges.

“The duck meat was black and moist and so tender that it fell from the bone with a touch. It was so delicious and entirely unlike anything I had ever eaten,” wrote Sri Owen, the Indonesian food writer credited with introducing her country’s cuisine to the world, after she sampled bebek betutu for the first time in 1962.

Nicholas Jordan, a Sydney-based food writer, voiced similar sentiments after recently discovering the dish in Bali: “It’s one of the few things I’ve eaten in my life that’s so good it’s taken up a mythical status in my mind … something so beyond regular deliciousness it shouldn’t exist without some sort of paranormal ingredient.”

To learn more about bebek betutu I traveled to Ubud, the Balinese spiritual hub made famous by Elizabeth Gilbert’s bestselling memoir “Eat, Pray, Love” and the 2010 film based on the book. Now a booming tourist town with a cosmopolitan dining scene, Ubud has several restaurants that list bebek betutu as a signature dish. Among them is Murni’s, where duck legs are plated with pyramids of yellow rice and a spicy green bean and shredded coconut salad called lawar. With a lightly sweet and herbal finish, the recipe has not been altered since Murni’s opened in 1974.

Indus, a restaurant overlooking a coconut tree-fringed river valley owned by Australian-Indonesian culinary icon Janet DeNeefe, is also known for its bebek betutu, though it must be ordered as a whole bird for two or three people to share.

Aperitif, an extravagant 1920s-style restaurant that cost $2 million to build at the luxury Viceroy Bali resort, offers an East-West interpretation of the dish: duck magret (the boned breast of a duck reared for foie gras) injected with bebek betutu spice mix in place of orange sauce.

But according to Astrid Maharani Prajogo of Good Indonesian Food, a culinary tour company, the best bebek betutu is not found in any restaurant. It is made by specialists who work from home and supply locals with ducks for Hindu ceremonies, celebrations and Sunday roasts.

“There are lots of these duck specialists in Bali,” Prajogo says. “But the one I always take my clients to is Pak Rimpin near the Royal Palace in the center of Ubud. I went there because someone told me his duck was the freshest.”

“They’re all very good at what they do … but with Pak Rimpin, it was his idealism that struck me … his desire to preserve the culinary tradition. He was very keen to open up his kitchen and share his recipe and stories with tourists.” She adds: “It’s also where the royal family of Ubud get their bebek betutu.”

The labyrinthine streets and alleys of Ubud are still semi-deserted at 8 a.m. when I arrive at Rimpin’s home, a traditional Balinese compound with intricately decorated stone gates and Hindu shrines. There I find the specialist at work in a central courtyard kitchen filled with cooking aromas and shards of bouncing light.

Rimpin’s bebek betutu must be ordered at least two days in advance. Normally he cooks between 15 and 20 a day, but today it is relatively quiet; he is making only four, plus an order of duck satay sticks. When I ask his age, he consults quickly with his daughter-in-law Junek, who tells me he is “about 60.” He has been cooking duck “since the 1980s” and learned the craft from an older brother. “I asked him to stop working because he’s getting old and the work is exhausting,” Junek says. “But he won’t listen.”

Rimpin sighs and turns his attention to the four ducks soaking in a pail of water. He chooses one, rinses it dry and starts massaging it with a marinade of coconut oil, fermented shrimp paste, soy sauce and salt. He also adds tamarind paste to the blend to neutralize the naturally unpleasant odor of duck meat.

He then stuffs the bird’s cavity with a handful of bay leaves and bumbu — Balinese for “spice mix” — which in this case also contains sesame seeds, galangal and pepper. “There’s no secret recipe. If people think my bebek betutu tastes good it’s because of the attention to detail. I make them one at a time,” he says, wrapping the bird like a birthday present in betel-nut bark, which contains natural oils to further enhance the flavor.

Next, he takes the package to a room blackened by decades of soot with a series of raised mounds for cooking on the floor. He places the package in a steel wok, covers it with a second wok, rests it on one of the mounds and then covers it with a 30-cm-tall pyramid of rice husks. Finally, he tops the pyramid with a few coconut husks, adds a few squirts of kerosene and sets it alight.

The term “betutu” refers not to the recipe but to the use of rice husks — a time-consuming cooking process that gives the ducks cooked by specialists a robust flavor. The ducks are baked in these medieval-style ovens for a minimum of five hours, although Rimpin cooks his for 12 hours.

“You get this dry roasting effect similar with steaming and braising that commercial kitchens designed 1,000 years later still can’t replicate,” says Will Meyrick, an expatriate chef from Scotland who teaches tourists how to make chicken betutu, a popular variant, at the Canggu Cooking Retreat on the coast. “All the spices and ingredients get broken down into this rich juice and the flavor is amazing.”

Rimpin’s customers normally eat his bebek betutu at home. But I want to taste it straight out of the oven and unwrap my parcel in the middle of his kitchen. As the bark curls open I am struck by an aroma so complex it seems to possess texture.

The meat at the top is golden-yellow from the turmeric and black on the inside from the spice mix. I collect some on a fork, mop up some of the golden juice, and take my first bite. The flavor is so remarkable it speeds my heartbeat for a few moments. As much as I try, I can’t find the words to describe what I am tasting.

“What words would you use to describe the emotion of hearing ‘I love you’ for the first time, or the sensation of the sun on your face after a month of winter rain?” says Jordan. “How do you describe one of the best things you’ve ever eaten?”

Bali scores gastro-points with ‘indescribable’ roast duck

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Murni’s Warung

Trip 101

10 January 2020

A household name in Bali, Ni Wayan Murni started out with Murni’s Warung, the first restaurant to open in the town of Ubud in the early 1970s. Now, Murni’s is an enterprise that includes a hotel, a spa, and a store. Besides embodying Balinese culture and hospitality, she has published a book and exhibited a collection of textiles in San Francisco. When planning a trip to Bali, a full experience at Murni’s will guarantee a wonderful vacation. Reserve a table and enjoy traditional Indonesian cuisine at a restaurant with an excellent view of the river, get a massage at the award-winning Tamarind Spa, and book a room inside the peaceful confines of Murni’s Houses. Keep reading because all these and more await at Murni’s in Bali.

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Murni’s Warung Ubud’s Most Romantic Restaurant

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Where to Eat, Pray and Love in Ubud Page 1

Where to Eat, Pray and Love in Ubud Page 2

Follow IAN LLOYD NEUBAUER’S advice
to enjoy the setting of the famous film

The West Australian

24-25 August 2019

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Smart Living: Of Food and Friendship: Memories of two Bali restaurants Page 2

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Murni’s Warung is a trailblazing modern restaurant in Ubud, and the name Murni is taken from the owner, Ibu Ni Wayan Murni. Where Murni’s Warung now stands, 41 years ago there were just four tables and a batik shop. Ibu Murni offered a simple menu, of coffee, toast, and customer favorite, bubuh injin, which she made herself.

Through persistence, hard work, and hospitality this small warung expanded. Together with her American husband, Pat, Ibu Murni opened a larger restaurant and enlarged the menu. Now there is not only traditional Balinese fare but also a number of international items to satisfy her customers, most of whom are foreigners. Ayam betutu is served with nasi kuning, and babi guling and bubuh injin remain favorites. To satisfy a sweet tooth, the Balinese Caramel Cake (created by Ibu Murni) and the apple pie are the most popular.

Because the restaurant is on the edge of a cliff next to the Campuhan River, it was built on four levels. Aside from the dining area, on the second floor there is a lounge bar where customers can enjoy snacks and drinks while listening to music. Choose whatever you want from the menu, then choose a great view to accompany your meal.

Murni’s Warung, Ubud – 100 Best Foods of Bali

by Bondon Winaro, Lidia Tanod and Harry Nazarudin, Penerbit Jalansutra, 2015

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Why bother to take a sightseeing tour when you can enjoy the amazing scenery over a leisurely lunch or a romantic dinner?

Ubud has it all – jungle, valleys, waterfalls and paddy fields. Fortunately it isn’t just a feast for your eyes – the food is equally divine!

These are the dining experiences that you, and your photo album, will remember forever!

The Queen of Ubud – Murni’s Warung

Everyone in Ubud knows Murni’s – ask any taxi driver and they will take you to her fantastic hillside restaurant.

Murni’s Warung is iconic; it’s almost as well known and popular as Ubud itself.

Murni opened her little Warung with just 1 table, 2 chairs and an icebox in 1974, and her devoted and ever growing number of satisfied customers has been increasing ever since.

The restaurant now sprawls over four levels down the side of a steep valley – land that used to be farmed by Murni’s father.

Murni’s Warung by the roadside on level 1, and immediately look out on to the luscious hillside greenery. If you want to be by the river, then descend down to level 4 and find a table on the terrace. The lazy river snakes past below you, and in front of you is a sprawling wall of foliage.

The only reminder of modern day life is the bridge above you; which makes the valley haven look and feel even more precious.

Murni’s serves a wide variety of homemade dishes with plenty of external influences from travellers that Murni has met over the years. Daily specials ensure that you never get bored of the menu – no matter how many times you go back!

The best thing? You can order as many desserts as you want and be guilt-free as a good workout is available via the steep stairs down to the river.

If you love Murni’s Warung, make sure to check out her guesthouse and craft shop for a truly authentic Balinese experience.

We love Ubud and we definitely love Murni’s!

By Kim Wilson, Trip Canvas

10 delicious Ubud restaurants with stunning views

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Ask for Murni’s when you arrive in Bali and your driver will know right where to take you. Murni opened her little Warung with just one table and two chairs back in 1975, but today, this legendary restaurant sprawls over four open-air levels down the side of a steep valley. Choose to dine by the roadside or by the river – either way you won’t be disappointed as the homemade dishes are on another level, with different specials everyday. Murni’s has attracted a number of high profile clientele over the years, drawing in the celebs with her sweet & sour shrimp, Balinese duck and chicken curry.

Louise, Honeycombers

12 December 2022

The 50 best restaurants in Ubud

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Think that Ubud is only yoga studios, rice paddies and Balinese temples? Think again.

Busy by day, peaceful by night, Ubud isn’t really known for it’s raging nightlife – but know where to look and you’ll find a growing number of trendy watering holes (and a few old favourites) dotted around town for the after hours crew. Here’s 9 of the very best for you to whet your whistle at.

The Bar at Murni’s

One of Ubud’s true hidden gems, this atmospheric cocktail bar is hidden down a few flights of stairs below Murni’s restaurant – one of the first ever to open in the area over 30 years ago. Its magical ambiance harks back to a forgotten era of Bali, and a tried and tested cocktail list ensures you’ll end up staying way longer than you expect.

Honeycombers

28 February 2018

Ubud’s 9 Best Bars

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“The countryside is all around Ubud if you just know where to look: get out there with the Bali Bird Walk (US$37). Curious travellers will find the tour worth every dollar: as you stroll through the rice fields you’ll spot egrets, herons, kingfishers and amphibians, and learn about the traditions that have shaped these ancient landscapes. The tour includes an Indonesian lunch at Murni’s Warung (Jalan Raya Campuhan), Ubud’s first real restaurant, dating all the way back to 1974; the nasi campur (rice with a range of vegetables and curries) is a classic choice. ”

Murni’s Warung, Ubud – Smile inflight magazine for Cebu Pacific Airways,  November 2017

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