Bali Day 3 - Febri's Spa, The Samaya, Warung Eropa

Another day in Bali, another buffet breakfast. This was my favourite so far, with lots of sautéed veges, chunks of baked fish and thin noodles. I also got some bacon, some sort of potato thing with pork floss and a piece of french toast with I tasted but found dry and bland so I left most of it so that I had room for more veges and fish.

I also had a nice plate of fruit with each breakfast, enjoying such treats as mangosteen and snakefruit which I am not able to get back home in Perth (I don't think I can, anyway... please correct me if I'm wrong!).

I find it completely impossible to only have one plate of food at a buffet, and indeed have been known to go back for more food five or six times at the buffet breakfast at the Fairmont Chateau Laurier in Ottawa. I had to ask for more cutlery during this particularly impressive breakfast, as they cleared mine away while I was up on one of my trips (I assume they were thinking I couldn't possibly eat any more food). In my defence I like to try a little bit of everything, and then go back for more of the good stuff. I also like to start off with the more continental foods (yoghurts, fruits, cereals) before moving onto the hot stuff, so it's not like I'm piling my plate up with everything on every trip. Still, I do feel a bit embarrassed by the third time I'm up getting more food. It really isn't my fault though, after all I am my Father's daughter. He is a buffet maestro, and I pity anyone foolish enough to offer lashings of seafood at a buffet that my Dad might happen to be loitering near.

Breakfast Day 3

After breakfast we headed out to the lobby where our lift was waiting to take us into Kuta for 5 hours of dayspa luxury at Febri's Spa. Well, it turned out to be 5 hours of dayspa luxury for me, but C was not quite so lucky. She managed to get a therapist who was the wonderful combination of indifferent and brutal, and apparently thought that a full body exfoliation is meant to include your lips. Weird. By the end of the experience I was feeling refreshed and had some pretty flowered-up fingernails, and poor C was feeling battered and bruised with toenails that looked quite nice but ended up chipping later due to some rough emery board use. I felt terrible as I'd chosen this particular place, but I guess it goes to show that it depends entirely on which therapist you get, no matter where you go. If only I'd been the one to get the lip exfoliator! Poor C!

Lunch at Febri's - pumpkin soup, basil & cheese filled chicken with mashed potato and orange, frozen cream with strawberries

Included in our spa package was a three course lunch, which we ate out in the regular restaurant of Febri's (it's a hotel as well as a spa). It was certainly a western meal, with a first course of pumpkin soup. Exactly what you need on a stinking hot day! The heat, combined with the overly sweet and incredibly gingery tasty meant that we left most of the soup untouched.

The main course was much nicer, and I finished my plate. The crumbed chicken was nicely cooked, with a fresh basil and cheese centre, served with coarsely mashed potato rolled in banana leaves and a zesty orange sauce. Sadly this was not C's day, as she's not a fan of basil so hers remained largely uneaten.

Dessert was the opposite, with mine still staring at me at the end but C's mostly eaten. It was a massive bowl of cream, dotted with strawberries, that had been stuck in the freezer to make the strawberries frozen and kinda crunchy and the cream cold and a bit icy. It was kind of like how I imagine a child would try and make strawberry ice cream. I picked out the crunchy strawberries to eat, and C regretted eating most of hers as hot hot heat + cream-filled belly is not a winning combination.

After lunch we ambled up to the Discovery Mall for some shopping, and later in the afternoon got some sustenance in the form of chicken satay from one of the many food places in the mall. It's funny what foods become totally acceptable as snacks when you're on holiday. I'm not sure I've ever had a massive plate of fried chicken for afternoon tea on a usual day back home. I am sure this is for the best.

Afternoon tea of chicken satay

Dropping our purchases back at the villa, we then headed out for a celebratory birthday/hens champagne at the Breeze bar at The Samaya in Seminyak, then eventually headed out for a late dinner at Warung Eropa in the Petitenget area. We left Ch to order for the table, and she did a fine job choosing Ikan Gurami Bakar Special (grilled fish with special sauce) (48 000 Rp), Ayam goreng (fried chicken) (18 000 Rp), Mie Goreng Ayam (fried noodle with chicken) (27 000 Rp), Cah Kangkung (stir fried water spinach) (19 500 Rp), Nasi Putih (white rice) (7 500 Rp), Sambal Jawa (Javanese sambal) (7 000 Rp) and Telur Asin (salty egg) (7 500 Rp).

The Samaya, Seminyak

The ikan gurami bakar special was a standout dish for me. Beautifully cooked fish, with a crisp, saucy skin and soft flaky centre. I'm not sure what the "special sauce" was, and I can't remember exactly what it tasted like, but it was bloody tasty.

Ikan Gurami Bakar Special (grilled fish with special sauce) (48 000 Rp)

The ayam goreng was tasty, and had some delightfully crispy bits, but unsurprisingly was also a bit dry. Not sure about you, but I'm willing to put up with a bit of dryness for some extra crunchy goodness, although I probably wouldn't order this again given the chance.

Ayam goreng (fried chicken) (18 000 Rp)

The mie goreng ayam was a tasty table winner that everyone enjoyed.

Mie Goreng Ayam (fried noodle with chicken) (27 000 Rp)

I really enjoyed the cah kangkung and possibly ate more than my fair share! I'm a sucker for leafy greens, with the amount I eat it's a wonder I don't start photosynthesising on my own. I particularly enjoy the break these types of dishes offer from heavy or fried dishes, such as when I get the greens with oyster sauce during dim sum feasts.

Cah Kangkung (stir fried water spinach) (19 500 Rp)

One of the nasi putih plates came with this side of beans, bean sprouts and fried onion. Cold and refreshing with a good bite!

Nasi Putih (white rice) with beans and bean sprouts (7 500 Rp)

Mmmmmm chilli goodness. Well worth the sweat and runny nose. C didn't have any of the sambal, which is probably just as well given the earlier lip exfoliation experience.

Sambal Jawa (Javanese sambal) (7 000 Rp)

This was my first time eating salty egg, and it pretty much tasted like it sounds. Salty and eggy. Who'd have thought? Could this be my entry into trying strange egg products? Might I possibly be almost ready to try some century egg?

Telur Asin (salty egg) (7 500 Rp)

This tasty spread was all washed down with a Bintang or two, and after we'd stuffed ourselves to our respective brims we left to continue our night of continued hens' weekend celebration...