What is a warung?

The word ‘warung’ means small restaurant and for the average visitor to Bali it means a local place where you can get a cheap meal.

Warungs are all over the island but the heaviest concentration is in Kuta in the Poppies Lane area. The menu is usually very similar in these places and includes Indonesian and western food. On almost every menu you will find nasi goreng (fried rice), mie goreng (fried noodles), a selection of soups, sandwiches, pancakes (crepes), grilled fish and sometimes pizza.

There is usually a breakfast page that features western favourites too.

The drink list will include bottled water, the (tea), kopi (coffee), soft drinks, Bintang beer and fresh juices.

When ordering tea and coffee you have to specify if you want milk and its always best to tell the waiter to leave out the gula (sugar) if you don’t take it.

Most warungs have figured out that using tap water for ice isn’t a good idea and now use bottle water. When you order a fruit juice they will make it in a blender with sugar and ice. I’ve had a hundred of these without problems.

The beer will be served chilled and you might even get a chilled glass although the further you get from Kuta the less likely that becomes. Out in east Bali you might be served a beer right off the shelf, nice and warm.

Buying a large Bintang is slightly cheaper than 2 small ones and if you are travelling in a pair you might want to get a large and 2 glasses.

The dessert menu in most places in rather limited. I jokingly say that there are 7 desserts on a warung’s menu�bananas and ice cream 6 different ways and fruit salad. That isn’t far from the truth and your other option is pancakes (crepes) which come plain, with lemon, banana, pineapple, chocolate sauce.

Warungs tend to be without glass windows, A/C and table cloths, just very informal in the traditional style.

The most famous warung in Bali is Made’s Warung that has 2 locations, 1 on Jl. Pantai Kuta and the other on Jl.Legian in Seminyak. Made’s Warung was the first warung doing western food for surfers 30 years ago and had kept on growing.

My 2 favourite warungs are Warung Gossip located on Jln. Pengubengan, Kalih,
Kerobokan. and Warung Nikmat located on Jl. Bakung Sari in Kuta. These 2 places feature only Javanese style food and no western menu and fall into the padang ‘choose your items’ style of warung, where you get a portion of steamed rice (nasi puti) and pick items from various plates located in the window.

In the more traditional warungs you will get a fork and a spoon, in the more western focused ones you’ll get a knife and fork.

In a warung the way to get attention is to look for the waiter and call ask ‘permisi’. The waiter is called a ‘pelayan’ and the bill is the ‘bonn’. In Kuta the universal sign of drawing with a pen is recognised as ‘I want the bill’. To verbally ask for the bill you would say “bonnya mas” to a male waiter and “bonnya mbak (mmba)” to a female waitress.

For a budget concious traveler warungs could be just the ticket. In many warungs in the Poppies Lane area its possible to get a nasi goreng for $1. Items like pizza are sometimes available and these are probalby double or triple what nasi goreng will be.

Experimenting with different warungs is worth it as I have found some that do great nasi gorengs, others make a good banana crepe, others a good sirloin steak. You can be pleasantly surprised what comes out of some of the kitchens (just don’t go in the bathroom before you eat).

People who are visiting Bali for a short time and staying at nicer hotels may feel some apprehension at going into a warung over say a western style restaurant because of health concerns.

My experience is there’s not too much too worry about. I’ve had one upset stomach that was directly related to a meal I ate and another experience which was my body’s reaction to certain type of fish. Other than that its been all good. If you pass an interesting looking place give it a try you may be going back everyday after that.