Little sightseeing and big eating

Today was much like yesterday with yoga and not much else.  Except that I wanted to re-sample Babi Guling and try Bebek Bengil’s crispy fried duck.

The former, we were able to do lunch-time at Ibu Oka.  It was delicious: the pork was tender, the crackling crispy and the floured deep-fried pork nice and salty.  But I was surprise the skin was deep-fried unlike the flat pieces as shown in the menu, and also the way Chinese suckling pig is done.  It was very reasonable by our standards but probably a little pricey by local standards … but at least the portions were big and generous.  At least it was authentic I think.

Ibu Oka was very near the palace and also Saraswati Temple which we visited briefly.  In the noon heat, we didn’t want to walk back.  No Grab cars were around and the few taxis wanted double what we had paid coming over.  So we cleverly jumped on the free Monkey Forest shuttle which took us to their reception where it was only a short ride home.

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For dinner, we went to Bebek Bengil (Dirty Duck) near the hotel.  Once we entered the premises, we were led into different areas and pavilions and at the final pavilion, the place opened up into padi fields.  What an amazing restaurant!  From the front, I would never have known … but I should have, since many shops and houses have forested and green areas behind … and that is why the block is so big.

Kim found the meal delcious (as it was deep-fried).  I enjoyed it but despite having been marinated for 36 hours in spices, I wouldn’t rate it “up there” on the fragrance and taste scale.  I think it is meant to be a subtle dish.  The pricing was approaching overseas pricing at IDR130K for the duck including sauces, but again it was a big satisfying meal.

Bebek Dengil’s crispy fried duck.