The next 5 nights were in Seminyak - god, such a change of pace from the peace of Ubud!! I went to the Bintang Supermarket for supplies as soon as we arrived, and had to come back for a lie down as it was all a little too much :) Anyway, I do actually LOVE Seminyak and here are some notes...
Balivillini - off Jln Drupadi
This is the second time I have stayed at Balivillini. It is a little gem of a find for the price, which is about $80-$90 per night for a 2 bedroom/2 bathroom mini-villa. There is a shared pool with two other 1 bedroom villas. I love the location between Jln Dyana Pura and Jln Laksmana as it is central to everything but still feels a little removed. The owners can be a bit ad-hoc in dealings, but it is all good as long as you are happy to go with the flow. Bedrooms are large, clean and comfy with air-con. There is a little kitchenette and full-size fridge, and a large outdoor living area with the most comfortable daybed couch. Such good value!
Food/drink
Yasia (??) Beach Bar - on the beach between Jln Dyana Pura and Jln Double Six
I usually go to La Plancha, but as we were heading there we were drawn into the place next door that had the most amazing acoustic guy belting out great tunes (I did develop a bit of a crush on young Gus!). There are about 5 of these little beach bars that have bean bags to laze in while watching the sunset. Very cool.
Delicious Onion - Jln Drupadi
A longtime fave of mine, this place does a bit of quirky Asian. We had some yummy chicken dumplings, chicken rice balls, etc. It is known for it's pineapple margarita (to which we obliged!) but I think it should also be known for the amazing homemade brownie with ice cream, which was really a warm choc pudding. Delicious!! And so cheap as well.
SOS Bar @ Anantara Hotel - Jln Dhyana Pura
It amazes me that this cool bar does not attract a bigger crowd. It is located on the roof of Anantara Hotel (level 4) and is the perfect glam place to watch the sunset on a day lounge. I had a frozen berry daiquiri which was massive (90k++). This really is a great place to have even just one sunset drink if you want something similar to kudeta and potato head but without the crowds.
Corner Store -Jln Laksmana
This is my breakfast 'go-to' place as it reminds me of back home in Melbourne. Obviously very popular with the expats as they all sit there with their laptops using the free wi-fi.
Cafe Bali - Jln Laksmana
I love this place for any meal as the menu is great and it is a little oasis on Jln Laksmana. I had pumpkin gnocchi one night and it was the best I have ever had. We had a very funny experience where Miss A sneakily informed them it was my bday (it was not!!), and all of a sudden the lights are dimmed, crazy music starts playing, and all the staff come out with sparklers and present me with a choc brownie with a candle. Very embarrassing, but also very funny.
Potato Head - Jln Petitenget
This was the one place I wanted to go to this trip, as I had heard and read so many stories about the amazing architecture and atmosphere. Wow - it really is breathtaking! Arrive no later than 5pm to get a good spot. We paid a 500k minimum spend for a day lounge, but it was easily spent considering cocktails were about 100k++ and a glass of wine 120k++. Our bill of 4 x wine, 2 x water and 1 x chips came to 700k. Ouch! But worth it as a one-off splurge.
Kudeta - Jln Laksmana
As much as Potato Head has the wow factor, I think I still prefer the trusty old Kudeta as it is a bit more intimate and chilled out. A little tip is that there is now an upstairs beer garden that had very few people, so it was easier to get a good posi here. Cocktails were 110k++.
I am still yet to find anywhere that tops the Kudeta pancakes served for breakfast (70k++). Breakfast is a good way to get a reasonably priced 'kudeta experience' and you can also take advantage of using their sunlounges afterwards :)
Chandi - Jln Laksmana
This is a beautiful and romantic type of restaurant, and it feels like an oasis amongst the chaos of Jln Laksmana. It is not cheap, but the food is beautiful.
Biku - Jln Petitenget
I went to high tea at Biku on my last trip and loved it, so we decided that Miss A needed to also experience this little treasure. It is very popular now, so a booking is a good idea. It costs 85k and is such good value for a little girlie treat! I am very partial to a high tea and this is one of the best I have had.
Sea Circus - Jln Oberoi
This is a cute little bar/restaurant that could be very cool if there was a bigger crowd. The architecture is funky and they have a tapas-style menu.
Bottoms Up! - Jln Dhyana Pura
Our villa is close to the gay strip and we hear that bloody music all night, so we decided to check out what was happening one night. We arrived fairly early so there was not much action, but the lovely boys there took very good care of us and joined us for a chat and a dance :) It was a very entertaining couple of hours and we got a lot of laughs and some great photos with drag queens, etc.
Zanzibar - somewhere towards Legian
This was disappointing, but probably because we had been going to some amazing restaurants which were the same or not much more in price. It was very run-of-the-mill and my pasta was below average.
La Sal - Jln Drupadi
This is my fave restaurant in Seminyak! A beautiful white-wash open air building down the quiet Jln Drupadi. It is a little Spanish restaurant and the tapas is amazing. I always get the patatas bravas and chicken croquettes. Such a good little find and very reasonably priced for the quality. Also has those little extras like complimentary bread and a little choc treat when paying the bill.
Spas
Spa Bali - Jln Dhyana Pura
I popped in to make a booking for a shampoo and straighten. I realized it would only cost $4 more for a haircut as well, so I thought 'why not?'. Well, not the most professional job and I did have to point out a few problem areas that needed more attention but the end result is ok. The whole thing with a crisp straighten at the end was 143k. On reflection, it was probably not the smartest of things to do and I know my hairdresser back in Melbourne will have a heart attack when I next go in :)
Johnny Andrean - Discovery Mall, Kuta
This is the best place for a quick shampoo and straighten. No appointments, so you just walk in for the service. It costs 35k and is super professional.
Shopping
I shopped and shopped and shopped! Jln Laksmana and Jln Raya Seminyak are the best shopping streets. Also popped into Kuta as I don't mind a bit of a department store shop.
Kuta Leather - Poppies 2 (gang next to Kori's)
I have been visiting Rudy here for years once I discovered this shop could do a perfect replica of my all-time face leather wedges. This time I got 2 pairs of wedges and a belt for abut $100. They took 4 days to make.
Optic Melawi
I am a contact lens wearer but have recently been informed I need to cut back my usage and wear glasses occasionally. I bought over my script and ordered some glasses at Optic Melawi at Discovery Mall for 700k. They were very cheap frames, but these are for occasional wear so I didn't want to spend too much. They took 5 days to make.