Bali : Food Tasting : Cuca

I always wanna visit Cuca after I got an email from Kevin and Virginia, the owner/chef, before they're about to open last year. I kind of fascinated with their passion and concept, and it's clearly reflected when I had my first visit couple days ago.

This sign made with Nails !!

The first time when I stepped in to Cuca, I'm immediately fell in love. They had spacious and beautiful garden which makes us feels really peaceful and relaxing. They had 3 different areas here, first is the Food Bar, then the Dining Room and then, Cocktail Bar and Garden Lounge. 

 Each areas are made according to what you liking, in example, if you are a 'foodie' and wanna see the 'kitchen theater', the Food Bar area is the perfect one for you. You can see how the chefs works and you can also get an  one-on-one conversation with Kevin, the executive chef/owner.

If you're looking for intimate moment, the dining area definitely suits you. Kevin explain to me that instead having many tables stuffed in the room, he wants the customers having their privacy and intimate space when dining in Cuca. So that's why, there are some distance between each tables, and there's curtains to make a private space. Nice right!

Cuca serving Tapas-style dishes, so you can order and sharing the food. I always love the idea of tapas, because it's more homey and casual. Sharing is caring right? Cuca also using ingredients from the locals, and some of their dishes are inspired with Indonesian cuisine.

To start, they serve some complimentary dish so the guest could understand Cuca better. This is Cotton Candy Betutu. Oh yeah! Soft cotton candy that coated with Betutu's flavor powder. Betutu is a signature Balinese dish, packed with Indonesian spices. The cotton candy just melts in your mouth, and you can taste the a hint of 'heat' at the back. Nice.

For starter, we tried Cuban Corn - IDR 50.000,-. This new menu was an interpretation of classic Cuban Grilled Corn. But instead of using a corn, they use a baby corn. Love how sweet the baby corn was ! The parmesan on top also makes it even savory and delish !

Then we tried Smoked Butterfish - IDR 85.000,-. Love how they present the fish that shaped like a rose. The fish was really smokey! Love it! Then the first also served with Beetroot Yoghurt, Avocado, Breadcrumbs and wild fennel. Love the textures and the playful flavors!

A signature dish that you won't miss from Cuca is this, Crispy Fried Chicken - IDR 75.000,-. Love the sesame crust of the chicken, and yes, the meat was still juicy. I love how coleslaw and asian basil adds the flavor and textures to this dish. Yum!

Then, Marinated Pulled Pork - IDR 75.000,-. I always love the soft boiled egg! The gooey egg yolk adds the creaminess and the potato strings adds a nice crunch. Too bad the sauce was a bit salty to my palate, but overall I kind of love it.

In Cuca, you definitely have to save room for dessert! They had nice desserts that you won't miss! Especially this, Bali Breakfast - IDR 90.000,-. You'll be amazed with the presentation! The one that looks like an egg yolk was actually mango ! It tasted amazing with frozen passion fruit, whipped coconut, and crumbles on the bottom. Sweet and sour combo, refreshing! A perfect dessert for Bali's weather.

The next one is Cocoa 99 - IDR 90.000,-. Omg, I also love this so much! They use a 99% of Balinese Chocolate and they made it into a mousse. Really love it when mixed with the mint ice cream and the cocoa croutons. Cleansed your palate and definitely a great ending to your meals. 

In Cuca, they also served great cocktails. As you can see, instead of serving a small portions of liquids, they serve it in tall glass, so you can enjoy the drinks longer. Especially in Bali though, with the sunny weather, you definitely need more liquids, and you tends to be more relax and enjoying the atmosphere, so you definitely need a lot of drinks. For the cocktails, I tried Ginger Tonic - IDR 90.000,-. It was made with lime soda, gin and the rare ginger blossom nectar! This drinks was sooooo good! Very refreshing and a bit floral because of the ginger blossom I guess.

Another interesting cocktail was Sun-gria - IDR 95.000,-. It was interesting how they present it with tropical fruits ice cubes, so you can taste more depth flavor as the cubes melts away. Nice !

 

It's definitely a memorable experience dining at Cuca. I could say Cuca is a must visit restaurant in Bali right now ! Even the famous chef Raymond Blanc already pay a visit and give a great review for them. I always love a restaurant that builds with passion, because it's just simply....  inspiring. Even with the simplest thing, you can inspire people with your passion. 
Once again, thanks Kevin and Virginia for having me, I'll definitely back everytime I visit Bali again!

You can bought some of their Salts too!

Cuca Flavor
Jl Yoga Perkhanti, Jimbaran, 
Bali, Indonesia.
Phone : +62 361708066
Opening Hours : 12pm -12am
Facebook : Cuca Flavor
Instagram : @Cucaflavor
Twitter : @cucaflavor