Honesty is the Key, Ketumbar

Kuta is still the same slow-paced and relaxed beach town during the daytime as it was a decade ago, in contrast to the evenings, when a sudden influx of tourists engulfs the area and chaos ensues. At the end of Kuta Beach though, right past the Legian Art Market is a spacious and brightly lit restaurant that serves honest food for an honest price in a setting quieter than most in the Legian area. Ketumbar’s menu mainly includes Italian and Indonesian food. Serving international dishes alongside Indonesian food is typical of early-day Kuta, when most local restaurants weren’t characterised by one particular cuisine but would embrace the highlights of various kitchens from all corners of the globe in order to serve a traveller whatever may have enticed his appetite. Ketumbar embodies this devotion to serve the passer-by, dishing up a variety of pastas, Indonesian food, and even pizzas from their own wood-fire oven.

We started off with the Mediterranean Appetisers Plate, a platter of baba ganoush, humus, feta cheese, tzatziki dressing, each served in their own individual sauce bowls in typical Greek fashion, using all fresh and rich-tasting ingredients. Fried Duck is a must-try in Indonesia and we were compelled by the confidence of the manager, Made Wahyu, to try the Ketumbar Fried Duck, which was accompanied accordingly with white rice, vegetables, sambal and krupuk. “Segar”, my colleague tells me, meaning “fresh” in Indonesian, and Indeed it was! One of the many delights of living in Bali is that we can enjoy fresh unprocessed ingredients, and this was evident in the Ketumbar Fried Duck. The next meal was proof that they could deliver the full promise of an international kitchen. The Linguine Al Nero Di Seppia is made of assorted seafood, fresh basil and tomato sauce. This dish, typical of the southern regions of Italy, boasted a tangy and rich taste, was skillfully prepared and was discerningly Mediterranean, a feat signature of Ketumbar. Fresh basil, garlic, Parmesan and nuts are brought together to make the fantastic Linguine Pesto, probably our favourite of the menu. For those with a sweet tooth, Ketumbar offers some very nice desserts that range from ice cream, to cakes, to banana crepes, to creme brulee, all made in-house.

It’s five o’clock somewhere! We decided it would only be appropriate to conclude our meal with a tropicalstyle cocktail. We were urged to try the Fantastic Passion Cocktail, a refreshing blue-colored beverage containing vodka, Triple sec, Midori, Blue Curacao, passion fruit and pineapple juice. All in all, it was a good day at the office! Pizza happy hours are 1pm-6pm daily. Saturday Pasta Special offers 45k on all dishes.

Ketumbar | Jl. Melasti, Legian | P +62 361 754 452 | Open 8am - 11pm