BALI BITES: Warung Babi Guling Ibu Oka

Balinese-style Lechon or Roasted Pig

Living in Jakarta and being Filipinos, we were pork-starved pork-tourists in Bali. Bali is mainly Hindu so pork and dogs are acceptable there. The famous place for roasted pig is Warung Ibu Oka in Ubud. It gets very busy during lunch and you have to come early or they run out. (Or in our case we got refried lechon skin which wasn’t very crispy – better than nothing I suppose.)Warungs by definition are streetside food stalls, but Ibu Oka is a bit more established and the second branch, where we went, was in a stone house.

The simple menu

Kropek and fried pork rinds Babi Guling Special is a good order for a first timer because you basically get everything. We also got a side of pork skin. The tough refried pork skin was disappointing because I was really excited to get something crunchy.

Personally I like my pork meat less seasoned with spices. I felt like it overpowered the taste of the pork that I was looking for. However, I can tell that these spices are very popular with the locals so if you like Balinese spices and a cheap lunch, you can try this out. Go early though or you will get tough or no skin at all. I am not a fan of the rest of the items that came with the dish like the scary looking blood sausages.

I have no regrets going because I like trying out new experiences and cuisines. I can’t help being biased for Babi Guling La Filipina (Filipino style lechon – Mindanaoan to be even more specific) since I suppose it’s perfectly natural to love what you grew up with. I I was a bit sad for the dogs in the cages.

We went to Warung Babi Guling Ibu Oka 2 because the original was too crowded. Watch out for the signs:

 

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Warung Babi Guling Ibu Oka 

• Jalan Raya Mas (Ubud), Gianyar, Bali 80571
• Jl. Kingdom Teges, Peliatan-Ubud