Wondering what to eat while you’re in Bali? Especially where to find cheap food in Bali that will keep you on budget while on your trip? Luckily, like with most things in Bali, you can get by without spending much at all on food! I’ve put together a list of all the cheap eats in Bali, lots of amazingly delicious cafes, and a few bakeries that we frequented when we lived in Bali!
The Best Cheap Eats in Bali You Can Find All Over the Island
Aside from all the great Bali restaurant deals, you will find in this post, there are a few places (and Bali foods) all around Bali that will definitely help you stay on budget. Here are my best cheap eats recommendations:
Nasi Goreng at the Local Warungs – The Best & Cheapest Local Indonesian Food in Bali
Nasi Goreng & little fried Indonesian treats can be found all over Bali. Just look for little stalls with brown paper bags or banana leaves forming a triangle and order away!
I don’t have a specific location since we always just buy whenever we see it, but if you’re struggling to find one make sure to look inside locally run convenience stores (not like Circle K, but ones that are local).
Nasi Goreng translates to fried rice although it rarely ever has fried rice. Most stalls sell Nasi Ayam or “chicken and rice” which is pictured below and the bag usually comes with a small plastic bag filled with spices.
They sometimes include a little piece of fried tempeh (or tempe) as well, which is always my favorite part.
These are definitely as cheap as it gets as far as meals go in Bali.
In fact, if you’re looking to save a ton of money on your trip, keep an eye out for these stalls, buy a few and then take it to the beach or whatever your plans are for that day.
You can also get Nasi Campur (mixed rice) which comes with rice and an assortment of other types of food on the side like tofu, egg, satay, etc. It’ll be a bit of a surprise when you open it up since you won’t know what will be inside! lol
They cost usually about 5,000 rupiahs (IDR) to 8,000 rupiahs (about 75 cents). It’s some of the best food in Bali and can bring your “Bali food” prices way down.
They come with a spicy sauce called “Sambal”, so beware if you don’t like spicy foods!
Also, some of these foods might be made with peanut sauce or peanuts so skip this one if you have an allergy.
McDonald’s
McDonald’s can be found all around Kuta, Seminyak, and Denpasar. Although I have never been a fan of their food, you can’t beat their dessert menu prices anywhere!
It is especially easy to find near Kuta Beach. Each dessert costs about a dollar.
Pizza
Another thing you can eat for cheap all over Bali is PIZZA! I actually had so much to say about that that I wrote a whole post just dedicated to finding the best pizza in Bali.
Go check out where to eat pizza in Bali here!
Cheap Eats in Ubud, Bali – Where to Eat in Ubud
Watercress Cafe
This cafe is one of the best in Ubud and although their service was a bit slow, the food was all great!
Out of all the things that we tried, the favorites were the smoothie bowls, macaroni and cheese, and the grilled fish (one of the side dishes).
The main dishes were a little expensive, but you can order plenty from the side dish menu or the kid’s menu to save money!
Quick tip: Don’t get the milkshake, it was very icy and just not very good.
Mozzarella Restaurant
The aglio e olio pasta and Margherita pizza were very good here. I include this Ubud restaurant here and not on my best pizza list because I thought the pasta was much better than the pizza!
I’ve tried so many pizza places in Ubud and they never “wow” me, but the pasta here was definitely delicious. Each plate costs about 6 USD.
Acai Queen
Although this place is definitely not as cheap as the others, you can make it cheaper by sharing a smoothie bowl with someone else. The large acai bowl costs 95k rupiah or about $7.
Cheap Eats in Canggu, Bali
Seaweedresto
The best smoothie bowl we had on the whole trip was at this restaurant perfectly placed on the beach!
We didn’t even look it up, we just walked straight up the steps to the restaurants from playing in the ocean and had one of the best views you could ask for while eating in Bali.
The prices for the meals were a little more expensive and the portions were small, but the smoothie bowl was only $5 and was the perfect size for lunch.
Cheap Eats in Kuta
Mojo’s Burritos
This Mexican food place is definitely off-the-beaten-path and although it doesn’t have the best reviews, it’s one of the best “interpretations” of Mexican food that we’ve found in Bali.
It doesn’t taste like traditional Mexican food, but every time we’ve gone (we used to go once a week in 2017 and then went again on this last trip in 2019) the food quality and ingredients were really good.
The shrimp quesadilla, nachos, and steak burrito are the best items on the menu. Each item costs about $5-$6.
Yoshinoya
Yoshinoya is one of the cheap places to eat in Bali that originated in Japan and we found it to be just as cheap here in Bali!
Basically, just thin beef strips, grilled onions, and rice in a bowl for less than $5, and there are multiple locations around Kuta Beach.
Cheap Eats in Seminyak
The Fat Turtle
If you’re feeling a little fancy, you should check out this adorable cafe in Seminyak which is perfect for brunch. I went there 2 years ago and didn’t get the chance to go back, but I remember loving it!
It’s some of the best cheap food in Seminyak.
Cheap Eats in Uluwatu, Bali
Suka Espresso
Easily my favorite restaurant in Bali and the best lunch in Bali according to my in-laws. This place basically does it all but does it well, which is very rare!
There wasn’t one thing that we tried on the menu that we didn’t like (and we basically tried the whole menu and went back multiple times during our trip).
Bingin Bagus Seafood BBQ – Seafood Restaurant in Bali
Ever dreamed of eating fresh fish caught that day on the beach? At this place, you can even watch them prepare the fish and grill it for you! They sell the fish whole here and all the prices are by 100 grams.
For example, if you want to try the tuna, it would cost 15k rupiah per 100 grams. So if the tuna weighs 400 grams then you would owe 60k.
When we went, we ordered one of each thing on the menu, except for the squid, and it came out to be about $40. Plus this place has some of the best “chips” (french fries) I’ve ever had.
Eating cheap seafood in Bali (still high quality!) is definitely something you should experience at least once, especially because I can’t even imagine how much something like this would cost in the USA!
The Best Cheap Bakeries in Bali
Papaya
Papaya is half grocery store half bakery. The items change often, but sometimes you can catch them on a day that they are serving cronuts and they are soo good (no pictures, I ate them too fast).
The grocery side of the store is slightly more expensive, so if you’re looking for a good grocery store head across the road to TESCO.
Purimas 3
It is very difficult to find good banana bread anywhere in the world, but at this bakery, WITHOUT FAIL they always have some of the best I’ve ever had. We even went back this year and had Jake’s family try it and they couldn’t believe how good it was.
Definitely check this place out and buy a few loaves to eat on Kuta Beach. (:
Dough Darlings
Do you like raised donuts or cake donuts? Unfortunately, this place doesn’t serve cake donuts (my favorite thing in the whole world, I even had a cake donut tower as a wedding cake).
However, these donuts were pretty dang good and helped fill the craving! And they look super fancy, too.
Right now, their website is under construction, but you can check out their Instagram @doughdarlings. There may be another location opening at the Beachwalk on Kuta Beach, but since there are no reviews yet I’m not sure if it’s open yet.
Cost of Eating Out in Bali
Overall, the average cost of a meal in Bali is about $5-$6 per person, unless you head to a food stall and get Nasi Ayam or satay for 50 cents. It is very easy to stay on budget in Bali when it comes to food!
Hope you enjoyed this Bali food blog post! (:
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- Private Car Hire Bali
Dayna Brockbank is a travel and language-learning blogger who has lived around the world but has now settled in Nice, France. She speaks 3 languages at varying levels of fluency: Spanish, Italian, and French, and graduated with a Bachelor’s in Spanish Education. She and her husband focus on making travel part of life by living cheaply and traveling on a budget.