Bali Day 4 Visit - Tanah Lot, Bu-OKA - Babi Guling Ibu Oka, Bebek Bengil Dirtyy Duck Diner and Flying back to Malaysia
On our way to visit Tanah Lot
Jukung As Balinese Traditional Fishing Boats in Tanah Lot
The colourful traditional fishing boats that line the coastal shores of Tanah Lot are known as jukung. These graceful vessels use only one main cloth sail and in favourable winds can skim them ocean’s surface at a fairly rapid pace. The Balinese generally use jukung for fishing. These boats will venture out into the coastal waters in the evening and return with their catch before sunrise to sell at local seafood markets. However, the impact of tourism has meant that many of the island’s traditional fishermen can now supplement their limited incomes by taking paying passengers to surf and snorkel at offshore reefs and neighbouring islands.
Most jukung are fairly small and this enables them to be hauled out of the water and parked on the sandy beachfront with relative ease. With an average length of approximately 5-metres and width of just 1½ -metres, a jukung can safely carry only two or three passengers. Larger models built using the same traditional design methods, utilize outboard motors and can carry divers and heavy scuba equipment to coral reef dive sites. Some entrepreneurial owners have even modified their jukung into glass bottom boats for visitors to view Bali’s amazing underwater marine life.
Although jukung may appear simple enough to the international travellers’ eye, like most things in Bali there is an underlying symbolism associated with these craft and they are constructed following a strict set of religious guidelines. When a fisherman decides to build a new boat he must first carefully choose the tree that will be used for its timber. The Balinese prefer to use the wood from the indigenous Belalu or Camplung tree, which is light, strong and ideal for boat building. Such a tree can only be cut down on an auspicious date in accordance to the ancient Balinese calendar and a special day is also sought for construction to commence. All members of the local fishing community offer their carpentry skills to construct a new jukung and this social interaction is a vital element of the Balinese Hindu culture.
The majority of jukung are built using a set of dimensions that are closely related to the owner’s personal body measurements. The Balinese strongly believe in harmonizing with the physical environment and spiritual world, thus human measurements are used in an effort to balance these invisible forces. Just like a human body, a jukung is not symmetrical. In fact, the bamboo floats that are attached to both sides and run from the bow to the stern are not even parallel. Yet this basic, but ingenious design gives the jukung a heightened degree of stability when out on the open seas.
Once the jukung has been fully constructed and brightened up with a bold coat of paint, it then undergoes a complex blessing ceremony. Offerings of rice, flowers and fruit are presented to appease the Gods and the jukung is sprinkled with holy water by a priest before it is considered seaworthy. The jutting bow is decorated with an image of the mythical Gajah Mina (elephant fish) with its fierce bulging eyes to ward off evil. The spirit of Gajah Mina is also though to bear the power of night vision and guide the jukung through all sorts of weather conditions.
The price of a trip in a traditional Balinese jukung is negotiable and some of the older fishermen have some fascinating tales about the superstitions and the spirit of the sea.
Squeezed in between Ubud’s central banjar and Jl. Suweta’s upmarket shops and restaurants stands the legendary Ibu Oka’s Warung Babi Guling. The food stall has stood here for the past 20 years, serving up what many say is some of the best roast suckling pig on Bali.
Search any Bali tourist Internet site and there is a good chance you’ll read rave reviews on Ibu Oka’s warung, at least according to a group from Shanghai sitting at a nearby table.
“We read about the suckling pig here (Ibu Oka’s warung) on the Internet and we had to give it a try,” said Lily Feng, a finance manager from Shanghai, adding that word-of-mouth reviews from friends also insisted on the trip to Ubud for an Ibu Oka roast suckling pig lunch.
Lily’s words are reflected in the warung’s tables, which are glutted with people from around the world along with local Balinese, filling the warung to overflowing.
And they are all digging in to Ibu Oka’s classic Balinese tucker: melt-in-the-mouth suckling pig that was spit-roasted for five hours before being carted on foot from Ibu Oka’s home kitchen and served hot and fresh to the waiting hordes.
Discovering just what makes Ibu Oka’s suckling pig so good demands a visit to that kitchen, and while a trip to her family compound just around the corner may be one short step in distance, its a 100 years in time.
And therein lies Ibu Oka’s secret: Her suckling pig is prepared and cooked as it has been for decades and, as the saying goes, “practice makes perfect”.
Stacks of timber line the walls of the compound, cubic meters of the wood delivered daily to heat fires that will cook up to 10 suckling pigs a day.
Half a dozen live pigs are housed at the back of the compound, snuffling, eating, sleeping and generally enjoying life before the pre-dawn kill that will have them cleaned, gutted, stuffed and spitted by 4 a.m., ready for the warung’s 11 a.m. opening.
Roast suckling pig doesn’t get fresher than this.
Prior to spit roasting, the pigs are packed full of Balinese herbs and spices, such as shallots, garlic, chili, ginger, galangal, turmeric and bay leaves, then roasted over an open fire for at least five hours. This is five hours of hot, heavy work for the cooks who rotate, non-stop, the wooden spit by hand, regularly dousing the flames with water to maintain the perfect cooking temperature.
Getting the temperature right is an art that has been handed down from generation to generation, the suckling pigs slowly developing that warm golden sheen that makes for the best crackling, the inner meat cooking slowly until it is utterly succulent.
Ibu Oka learned this art — along with the business — from her parents-in-law 25 years ago. She adds that her in-laws had been preparing babi guling for 33 years before she took on the business.
“The family has been making babi guling for almost 60 years. Two generations of us. Originally, the business started at the market. I ran it there for the first five years after my parents-in-law died, and then moved the warung to Jl. Suweta 20 years ago,” she said of the business that now involves her whole family.
As well as satisfying the appetites of her warung customers, orders for the famous babi guling come from far and wide, with hotels along Bali’s main tourist strips in Legian, Kuta and Seminyak ordering up big for special events, said Ibu Oka.
“We sometimes get orders from the big hotels. On those occasions we will prepare around 10 suckling pigs. It’s a lot of work,” she said. “Then we do many weddings where people order the babi guling and all the side dishes such as the vegetables and the blood sausages.”
She added that the warung on Jl. Suweta required four suckling pigs each morning to satisfy the hungry customers that come in droves.
Within minutes after it opens its doors, the restaurant is full to overflowing. Every table refills as soon as the early bird diners lick their lips is satisfaction before heading back to work, shopping or wandering Ubud’s central market.
Tasting the legend that is Ibu Oka’s babi guling will cost you around Rp 20,000, which includes roast suckling pig and the crackling, blood sausages, Balinese vegetables and rice. A small price to pay for this simple and delicious pleasure.
Warung Babi Guling is open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. Phone: (0361) 976345.
The Menu
Don't it looks yummy to you
I'm so hungry, faster...take photo, I want to eat now
Yummm...the pork skin was good..crunchy
Pork Meat
Enjoying our lunch
On our way to try up the Dirty Duck, famous restaurant..must try before we leave Bali!
Yeah! Here we are
Bebek Bengil Restaurant
(Dirty Duck Diner)Address: Padang Tegal, Ubud.
Phone: (62-361) 975.489
Fax: (62-361) 975.546
Cuisine: Indonesian, European
Hours: Daily, 10:30am-11pm
Prices: Main courses Rp12,500-Rp35,000
The Dirty Duck is the best place to try Ubud's famous dish. First stewed in local spices, then deep fried, the duck here is finger-lickin' good, but not quite as oily as in other restaurants. Another way to go is the stuffed chicken with shiitake, sprouts, and spinach. The menu also features salads, overstuffed crunchy sandwiches, and good veggie options. The atmosphere is romantic; book a table towards the back of the open-air restaurant, which looks out onto the paddy fields.
Hands down one of the BEST dining experience we had while we were in Bali, was at Bebek Bengil, or more commonly known as Dirty Duck Diner in Ubud town of Bali. Tourists from all over the globe have stepped into, cracked some duck’s bones, and subsequently sworn allegiance to the 19 years old restaurant, situated in Padang Tegal, in the heart of Ubud town.
The restaurant is very spacious, and can easily fits an admirable crowd of hundreds.
If you’re wondering what’s up with the unsavoury name of ‘Dirty Duck’, for a restaurant, the origin of the moniker actually dated back in 1990, when the place was being built. While squeezing out some ideas, brain-storming and all, a flock of ducks (no prize for guessing how hygienic they were!) walked nonchalantly from the paddy fields surrounding the restaurant, squawking their way and leaving their webbed footprints all over the floor! Since the ducks were unofficially the first ‘customers’ waltzing into the still yet to be ready restaurant, the name Dirty Duck Diner has stuck since then, and has graced various travel magazines, forums, and tourist guides.
Do come early for dinner, preferably before 6pm (before sunset) for a chance to savour the magnificient views of the paddy fields, the charming ambience of the restaurant, and of course, avoid being a target of mosquito bites!
If you’re planning to dine here anytime during the peak season (when tourists come in throngs), do remember to make a reservation. Especially if you’re going in a big group (like the ten of us), it’s highly advisable to call and book the best seats, such as the straw hut with blinds, a long wooden table and cushions on the floor for you to sit cross-legged on. Just like the olden days when farmers rejuvenate themselves after some serious ploughing on the rice fields.
Balinese Smoked Duck (IDR185,000 / RM67.50 / USD19.30)
There are a few dishes that need to be ordered a day in advance. The famous smoked duck is one, a set for two that came in a rather large portion of half a duck, with side dishes of vegetables (crunchy long beans and bean sprouts), skewers of delicious satay with peanut sauce, and white rice, as well as a bowl of zesty mixed salad. The smoked duck was executed admirably well, with the meat so tender they fell off the bones. The marinade may be slightly underwhelming, for we expected the dish to be of stronger flavours. But nevertheless, the smoked duck was one of the best dish of the evening, and can easily feed 3 persons.
Bebek Bengil – Crispy Duck (IDR 67,000 / RM24.50 /USD7.00) – Their signature dish, a must-order
And the dish that represents Dirty Duck Diner’s, the Crispy Duck came in a surprisingly small portion, only half a duck marinated in spices and deep-fried to crispy perfection. Very crispy indeed, to the point of edible bones. But take note only the small bones are to be relished. Don’t go for the bigger ones, for you might just paving your way to the dental clinic. Served with sauteed potatoes, a plate of mixed chopped shallots, bird eye chillies, and vinegar, and a slice of watermelon, as well as a wedge of lemon for taste.
Nasi Campur Bali (IDR35,000 / RM12.80 / USD3.65)
Steamed white rice with an assortment of Balinese specialties made up the platter of ‘Nasi Campur Bali’ literally translated to Balinese style Mixed Rice. Comparatively, I found the Nasi Campur here to be better than Made’s Warung’s, with more ingredients such as slices of marinated beef and half an egg with sambal, as well as a skewer of Sate Lilit, or fish satay with a strong hint of lemongrass and spices.
Fresh Creamy Fettucine with Marlin (fish) – IDR47,000 / RM17.20 / USD4.90
Bebek Bengil not only serves Balinese specialties, but also various Western-influenced delights, such as fish & chips, sandwiches, pastas and even pork ribs. The fettucine with cream sauce was a tad disappointing, with the creaminess being nothing but empty promises. The sauce was diluted, and the chunks of marlin (a type of trout) provided much briny flavour to the pasta, which might be misintepreted as salty to some.Chicken Kebab (IDR 53,000 / RM19.40 / USD5.50)
The most juicy skewers of grilled meats (satay), the Gado-gado (Indonesian salad), the Bebek bengil Fried Chicken with Yellow Rice, and the beverages to down them all
The avocado juice with chocolate syrup at Bebek Bengil remained our top pick throughout the trip. Fresh, creamy and refreshing, accentuated with the slight sweetness of the swirls of chocolate syrup, the drink was a most relished one, at only IDR23,000 / RM8.40 /USD2.40 per glass.
The meal came to IDR 977,130 / RM356.60 / USD 101.90 for the 10 of us, inclusive of 10% tax, and 5% service charge. No doubt one of the more expensive meal we’ve had in Bali, but worth every cent paid, in my opinion. For the food, for the service, and for the ambience. And given the fact that Ubud’s literally asleep come sundown, we really sat back, relaxed, and soaked in the serene atmosphere of Ubud …
Food here were completely different from Malaysia, meat wasn't juicy, a bit dry, but still good in it own way
Then we took some photos and have to make a move to the airport to catch out
On the plane, stomach already full and satisfied, now ready to sleep
Goodbye Bali...sweet memory!
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