Legian is one of Bali’s original tourist destinations, sandwiched between Kuta and Seminyak. With a maze of small streets to explore, Legian also has one of the best beaches in Bali, starting at the airport the shoreline goes all the way to Canggu, with the Legian section a hot spot for beginner and more advanced surfers.
Morning walks, coffee on the beach and sunset drinks at the local bars are part of the colours of Legian. It’s still got a great local vibe and it’s a favourite destination for both young and old. With its mix of upmarket and budget hotels, restaurants, cafes, bars and lots of shopping, Legian is fun, affordable and delicious with a taste of the real Bali is around every corner. It is pretty Australian-centric with sports bars and pubs lining the streets but don’t let that stop you.
The new walking track along the beach has attracted both new and old vendors selling cold beer, sun lounges and some damn good chat, ‘our beer is colder than your ex-wife’ kind of thing. It’s one of the things we love about Legian but there’s a lot more. Check our guide to find the best breakfasts in Legian, best Legian cafes, Legian’s best restaurants overlooking the beach and delicious steak places in Legian with lively bars and live sports.
Elegant, casual and very popular, Makan Place is open for lunch and dinner and has great street appeal.
The architecture, with soaring giant bamboo, is stunning. The menu offers iconic Indonesian dishes like curries, satays and braises, grills and family-friendly choices like burgers and pizzas. It’s a great spot to sample an excellent Beef Rendang or their signature pork knuckle served with Balinese sides. Popular with families and groups, Makan Place earns the highest score for Legian restaurants, and it’s not hard to see why.
It’s hard to go past the brilliant pork knuckle (made to share, wrapped in crisp crackling with slow-roasted meat that falls off the bone), it’s served with rice and a traditional Indonesian bean salad. Those who want to eat light won’t go wrong with fresh seafood or great salads including beetroot and orange or a delicious roasted pumpkin salad with fetta and plenty of crunch. You can have a burger anytime, right?
Makan Place is also a great spot to grab a cocktail with daily happy hour. Their refreshing Sundown Martini cocktail, the delightful Red Dragonfly mocktail, and the nutritious Popeye Greens are delicious. With live acoustic music every Wednesday and Saturday, Makan Place is a Legian favourite.
A vibrant Mexican eatery and bar, Sinaloa sings with personality and some of the best margaritas on the island. An upstairs/downstairs affair, Sinaloa sits on a corner in Jl Padma Utara. With a vibrant blue-tiled bar buzzing with blenders and shakers, it’s got great street appeal. Offering a menu of gourmet tacos and Mexican favourites, Sinaloa puts a little spice in your life all washed down with premium cocktails (yes, the booze is real!).
The Mexican-inspired breakfast selections will start the day right – popcorn topped hotcakes with a spicy syrup are a crowd favourite, turning breakfast into a culinary adventure. Sinaloa is a step up from the local cafes and a great night out. The reigning taco king, Chef Jethro Vincent, has put his stamp on Sinaloa and the results are next level.
Check out their daily deals to get more bang for your buck; Mondays are never boring with 50% off margaritas all day. On Tuesday, it’s time to top up on tacos at just 15K each – their tacos have some super creative fillings, and from 5 pm-7 pm daily, early birds get 50% off cocktails and sangria during the happiest hours. Olah!.
Located on the other side of Sunset Road, Bale Udang is a hidden gem specialising in Balinese-style seafood served in floating bales.
This celebration of seafood comes with plenty of local flavour. Seated at a bale on a giant koi pond is a novelty but we’re there for the food. Lobster, prawns, and fresh seafood are beautifully cooked and presented. Great with a crew, Bale Udang is a local favourite worth discovering. It’s a little off the well-worn tourist track but that makes it even more fun, your friends will wonder how you heard about this place. Tell them you heard it here.
Live like a local with a menu that offers fiery favourites and uber-local dishes like deep-fried carp. We suggest ordering a package to share and get a taste of everything from honey-grilled prawns to steamed lobster with garlic sauce, vegetables, sides and sambals. Non-seafood eaters can order beef, chicken or vegetable dishes, all loaded with Balinese flavour and great for sharing. The presentation alone will blow you away – phones ready folks, you will want to share this place with friends back home.
Overlooking the beach, Azul is a restaurant, bar and pool club with great food, cocktails and the occasional party.
The two-story bamboo restaurant and bar offers amazing views of the beach. A beautifully designed space with vibrant green floors and a mix of booths and tables, Azul offers a gourmet menu that includes lunch and dinner. With a good wine list and a creative cocktail menu, you can easily slip in for a sunset drink and stay for dinner. Delicious pasta dishes feature, and good grills, including a standout slow-cooked beef cheek. Eat light or choose something more substantial depending on how hungry you are.
The location is fabulous, sitting upstairs gives you a bird’s eye view of the beach but the views are pretty good from anywhere in the restaurant. Azul is a little more expensive than some of its neighbours but the quality is there. Downstairs you get a view of the open kitchen while upstairs is all about the bar and the views. The pool at the back is also a great hang-out for grown-ups ( it’s adults only!).
Nestled within the Padma Hotel, Tenkai serves up a great mix of Japanese and Peruvian Nikkei cuisine. Perfect for a date night or a celebration. Choose from the fiery teppanyaki corner and watch the chef turn fresh into fabulous, or wooden booths which beckon those who want to walk on the wild side with ingredients and sides that turn sushi into spectacular.
Highlighting ceviches, robata anticuchos, and sake misoyu, Tenkai offers an elevated dining experience with action-packed Teppanyaki counters, sake, and premium wine by the glass. With Chef Sandro Medrano at the helm, Tenkai is big on flavour and
The Lokal is exactly that, an Australian-owned cafe and bar that attracts both locals and tourists. The Lokal feels like a real neighbourhood bar and bistro. You’ll find all the top hits including burgers, salads, pizza and pasta and local favourites like nasi goreng. Settle into a street-side table or grab a bar stool and enjoy the passing parade. The beer is cold, the seafood is fresh and the vibe is casual but pretty.
The Lokal is a great place to meet people, the crowd is friendly, and so is the menu. Order a frosty cold beer, a decent glass of wine and create your own sandwich or salad. Fresh seafood is cooked the way you like it from calamari to grills. For the multi-taskers, check out their cute boutique, Queen Evil, in the adjoining space, it’s overflowing with fashionable finds and homewares.
Santorini is a family-run Greek restaurant on Double Six Road. painted blue and white throughout, the menu is as authentic as you’ll find outside of Greece.
From souvlaki to Greek salads and spinach pies, Santorini is the place to get your Greek on. On The Legian side of Double Six Road, there’s often a queue to grab a table. The restaurant is hot but the fans take some of the heat out of the experience. If you love Greek food as much as we do, you’ll manage. The service is friendly and fast, the menu is straight out of a taverna and the food tastes really authentic.
They do a mean grilled pork chop with tzatziki and a small Greek salad, just crying out for a squirt of lemon. Slow-cooked lamb and lamb chops will keep everyone happy and lunchtime crowds love their souvlaki. The wine list is limited and the beers run to Bintang but Santorini is a happy place and they’re pretty relaxed if you show up with your own.
It’s a hard name to get your mouth around but this little sidewalk gem on Double Six Road does great Italian food at a very reasonable price. The wood-fired pizzas are thin and delicious, without too much topping to give them an authentic feel. Pasta and risotto are good choices and you’ll find some imported wines on the list.
We find it hard to go past the pizza – the sauce is just right, the cheese is burnished and the base is just the right kind of crispy. A mushroom risotto under 100K is a beautiful thing. Yamma Yaa is easy and affordable and the food is good.
Kanoa is located on the Legian beach walk, directly in front of the Padma Hotel, and it’s one of the most stylish additions to the beachfront. With white sound loungers out front ( with a cover charge), and an elevated restaurant to enjoy the passing parade, there’s plenty to choose from including eggs benedict, smoothie bowls and juices for breakfast alongside burgers, tacos and poke bowls at lunch.
They do a decent cocktail and the wine list is a bonus along this strip. The Bahn-Mie style roast pork sandwich is a highlight and you can’t go wrong with a schnitzel. Kanoa’s prices are friendly and it’s owned by local surfers who add their own spin to the strip. It’s a great spot to watch the sunset with cool soundtracks, snacks and cold beer.
The pretty pink cafe has serious coffee cred, plenty of colourful smoothie bowls and fresh juices and a menu that moves effortlessly from avocado toast to eggs done perfectly to salad bowls and some great sandwiches. The owners, who first started in Petitengett, are experienced cafe owners and it shows. From sweet vases on the tables to homemade cakes, Coffee Cartel hits our sweet spot.
With great wifi and the smell of freshly roasted coffee, this air-conditioned cafe is a hot favourite for breakfast lovers and a comfortable spot to cool off for lunch.
Wandering down Jl Legian it’s hard to miss Brunch Club. The name in lights and the queues out front are a sign that something is happening here. They’re famous for their porncake stacks, a huge serving topped with fresh fruit and drizzled with syrup – and it flies across the restaurant. Blame it on Instagram perhaps but the dish has legs. This is your all-day brunch menu with a choice of cocktails or coffee. With locations now in Canggu, Pereranan and Jakarta, it’s clear there are a lot of brunch fans out there. It’s not all eggs and pancakes though, you’ll find stacked sandwiches and burgers piled high.
The cocktails are fruity and overflowing and there’s a great sweet vs savoury argument going on all day long!
Seafood lovers in the know will send you straight to Rama Garden’s streetfront restaurant if you’re craving fresh lobster, prawns or Jimbaran-style fish. The local hotel restaurant is an institution on Padma Street, with great local flavours and a selection of fresh seafood on display at the front.
You won’t need to dress up and the whole family will love the casual feel and the local charm, while the seafood is as fresh as you’ll find anywhere. Fresh catch of the day features but it’s hard to go past the lobsters, they’re a real treat. Big screens throughout the restaurant play the major sporting events.
Craving a steak or a juicy burger, Moo Moo’s specialises in Australian steaks, char-grilled burgers, sports and seriously cold beer. The cavernous sport bar and steak house also has a great bar and for those with a big appetite the tomahawk challenge is the way to go – a 1kg T-bone steak, and if you can eat the lot within 30 minutes you score a free t-shirt.
Moo Moo’s is also home to Bingo nights, pub quizzes and more, so prepare to get involved. When it comes to burgers, they have 10 to choose from. Grab a few friends or bring the family, Moo Moo’s has plenty of action and some seriously good food. Wine lovers might want to BYO as the list is small and features only local wine.
