FEATURES Fresh & Fabulous
I am a huge fan of Bodag Maliah, the cafe attached to Sari Organik farm which sits in the lush rice paddys of Ubud and serves up healthy nutritious ‘farm fresh food’. But Ubud is just too far to drive for lunch so I am delighted to find that a second cafe, named Sari Organik has opened at the Little Tree Green Building Centre in Kuta.
The setting is so peaceful that it’s hard to believe we are on Sunset Road, in fact it’s like a little slice of Ubud, with its ornate pond, trickling waterfall, bamboo furniture, lush ferns and wind chimes. The menu is simple, vegetarian, predominantly organic and everything is cooked from scratch.
There is a huge range of juices on offer and we try a tangy Lemon Ginger Honey, an Ice Kambucha (fermented tea), a slightly bitter Carrot Beet and Celery, but my favorite has to be the Green Cleanser a mix of broccoli, apple, celery, lemon and honey. It seems strange to have broccoli in a juice but the combination creates a really unique taste that you just know is good for you. There is also homemade wines, including Rambutan, Pineapple, or Mango.
Some people are trained to cook, while others are born to it. Nila, the dynamic founder of Sari Organic is the latter and her culinary inspiration has made her quite a legend in Ubud. She tells me that, “I have always eaten healthy food, because it makes me feel good, its instinctive.” It is late morning and she recommends one of their breakfast sets, the Bodag Omelet. The big fluffy omelet is superb and crammed with mozzarella and green vegetables, and served with tasty mashed potato, homemade brown bread, the purest sweetest orange juice and homegrown coffee.
Next we try a Tofu Tempura Salad, a mountain of fresh, springy mixed greens and cubed vegetables with slices of tempe, crispy tempura leaves and a peanut dressing. There is also the Vegetarian Kebab skewers of tofu, tempe and vegetables coated in a slightly spicy barbecue sauce, accompanied by white and red rice. The Tempura Vegetables are still crunchy, lightly battered and piled high on a plate. The parsley and basil are particularly good.
Nila joins us for a chat. She is a dynamic and fascinating woman originally from Kintamani. She tells me that when she left Bali as a young woman, there were no chemicals being used in farming, but on her return ten years ago, she saw heavy use of pesticides. Nila told the farmers “If you give the rice something to grow fast, also you will die fast.”
She soon started her own organic farm. It was never about getting rich, but about promoting natural and sustainable farming. She is also actively involved in the local community, training girls who can’t afford an education to work in her cafes, and has founded a school for handicapped children.
The food at Sari Organik is not just healthy, its imaginative, and delicious and the hefty servings make it great value. An organic market is held on Saturdays from 9am–2pm and sells a range of Sari Organik products. \AB
SARI ORGANIK Little Tree Green Building Centre, Jalan Sunset Road 112x, Kuta, Bali Open 9am – 6pm
Seat 100 Kuta Map C - 1
