Apurva Kempinski Bali restaurants: Koral, Reef and more

The Apurva Kempinski Bali is a five-star resort on the cliffs of Nusa Dua, facing the Indian Ocean, and you do not need to stay there to eat there. Its restaurants take reservations, among them Koral, which the hotel presents as Bali's first aquarium restaurant, and Reef Beach Club on the sand below. Around them: Japanese at Izakaya by OKU and NAMI Teppanyaki, Cantonese hot pot at Bai Yun, and an ocean-view lounge at L'Atelier by Cyril Kongo. FirstBali books them through the concierge.

The Apurva Kempinski

Restaurants · Nusa Dua

The Apurva Kempinski Bali is a five-star resort on the cliffs of Nusa Dua, facing the Indian Ocean, and its dining spreads across several venues. Koral, which the hotel presents as Bali's first aquarium restaurant, serves set and tasting menus beside the tanks, adults only at dinner. Izakaya by OKU is a sister to OKU in Jakarta; Reef Beach Club sits on the sand beside a 42-metre infinity pool; Bai Yun serves hot pot and dim sum; L'Atelier by Cyril Kongo is a lounge with ocean views and Mediterranean tapas.

The resort in a few words

The hotel calls itself "a majestic open-air theatre": it stands on the cliff of Nusa Dua above tropical gardens and the ocean, in the south of the island. Its restaurants run from the beach up to the highest floor. The hotel describes Pala as a choice "for both hotel guests and outside visitors", and each restaurant's page invites you to reserve a table, whether or not you are staying.

Koral: dinner beside the aquarium

Koral is the resort's signature table: a fine-dining room set beside aquarium tanks, which Kempinski presents as the first aquarium restaurant in Bali. The kitchen serves artisanal set menus and a signature tasting menu, built on fresh, seasonal, local ingredients and inspired by Indonesian coastal flavours. The hotel calls the style "bistronomic": refined food in a relaxed room.

Koral has the most detailed rules of the resort's restaurants, and the hotel publishes them:

• Reservation required. Seats are limited; the hotel sets any deposit and passes on its terms when the table is requested.
• Adults only at dinner. Children twelve and under are welcome at lunch, seated at all times.
• Tunnel tables are for couples, both aged seventeen or over.
• Seating requests cannot be promised: tables are allocated on arrival, and a table is held only briefly if you are late.
• Smart casual. No sportswear, sleepwear or flip-flops; men may not wear sleeveless tops and, at dinner, only trousers are allowed.
• Photos with a phone only, from your seat or the bar lounge; no professional cameras, Polaroids or pocket cameras.
• No outside food or drink, and no visits outside dining hours.

Reef Beach Club: the beach and the grill

Reef Beach Club sits on Nusa Dua's beachfront among tropical gardens, beside the resort's infinity pool, with cabanas, sun-loungers, watersports and an indoor restaurant. The kitchen is a charcoal grill for meat and seafood, with Asian and international dishes, wines and cocktails. The hotel describes it as relaxed and family-friendly by day; in the evening there is a bonfire and live music under the stars.

Reef is casual dress, reservations are required, and specific seating requests are not accepted. For other places like it, see family-friendly beach clubs in Bali.

Japanese: Izakaya by OKU and NAMI Teppanyaki

Izakaya by OKU is inspired by OKU, the Japanese restaurant in Jakarta. It is a bistro-chic izakaya with an open kitchen where guests talk to the chefs, over sake and small plates at the counter or a dinner with friends. Casual dress.

NAMI Teppanyaki is what the hotel calls its newest restaurant; "nami" means wave in Japanese. The concept is built on five, a lucky number in Japan. At the private table, the Namikase is a surprise set menu; the main dining room serves a set selection, with a children's menu. Drinks are handled by a sake sommelier and a tea master who creates cocktails and mocktails, and there is a traditional matcha ceremony. Dinner only, casual dress.

Bai Yun: hot pot and dim sum

Bai Yun — "white cloud" in Mandarin, after the steam rising from the pots — is a Cantonese hot pot restaurant. You choose your broth from house bases such as chicken herbal, pork ribs and vegetarian, or several at once, then cook fresh meats and locally grown organic vegetables at the table. Dim sum is made fresh every day, and the hotel lists an unlimited-to-order dim sum brunch on Saturdays and Sundays. Casual dress, made for families and groups.

Drinks with a view: L'Atelier and Pala

L'Atelier by Cyril Kongo is a lounge and bar on the resort's highest floor, transformed by the graffiti artist whose name it carries, with his original artworks on the walls. It looks over the Indian Ocean — the hotel says it is best enjoyed at sundown — and serves Mediterranean tapas and crafted cocktails, with resident pianists, a band, DJs and saxophonists. Casual dress.

Pala Restaurant & Rooftop Bar sits beside a long pool in the main gardens. Downstairs, live cooking stations serve local and international dishes with a speciality in Indian cooking; upstairs, a rooftop bar does sundowners and dinner under the stars. Every Sunday, Pala hosts a brunch with free-flowing drinks and live cooking.

A coffee or afternoon tea: Selasar Deli

Selasar Deli, beside the Pendopo Lobby with a view of the ocean, serves Indonesian light bites, all-day breakfast, the herbal drink jamu and coffees from across the archipelago, including luwak coffee. The hotel lists an unlimited afternoon tea on Fridays and Saturdays.

Which one for what

• A date or an anniversary: Koral at dinner, a tunnel table if you can get one.
• A family day: Reef Beach Club, then hot pot at Bai Yun; Koral welcomes children at lunch.
• A sunset drink: L'Atelier or the rooftop at Pala.
• A Sunday: brunch at Pala. A weekend lunch: dim sum at Bai Yun.

Getting there

The resort is on Jalan Raya Nusa Dua Selatan, in Sawangan, at the southern end of Nusa Dua. A driver who waits is the simplest way to come and go — add one when you book, or see our cars. Nusa Dua pairs well with a day on the beach: Le Bleu is on Nusa Dua Beach, and Rock Bar in Jimbaran is a sunset not far away.

Le Bleu

Beach clubs · Nusa Dua

Le Bleu by K Club is a beachfront restaurant and beach club on Nusa Dua Beach, in the ITDC resort area, run by the K-Club Group. The look is French Riviera by way of Bali, all blue and white, with sunbeds, cabanas, terraces and an indoor dining room. The kitchen leans on seafood, from lobster linguine to yellowfin tuna tataki, with vegetarian and vegan options. The weekly programme mixes yoga, cocktail workshops, beach games and festive Sunday gatherings with a DJ.

Rock Bar

Bars · Jimbaran

Rock Bar is AYANA Bali's cliffside bar in Jimbaran, stretching some 270 metres along the rocks above the ocean, with 880 seats spread over 22 areas. Guests reach it by inclinator, watch the sun set over the sea, then stay as the DJs play on. The bar pours cocktails inspired by the colours of the sea alongside Mediterranean tapas built on Jimbaran Bay seafood. Non-resident visitors can reserve; the Round Deck is kept for villa guests and the Top Bar for hotel guests. Payment by card or QR only.

How FirstBali books it

Tell the concierge which restaurant, your date, how many you are, lunch or dinner, and whether there are children in the group — at Koral that decides between lunch and dinner. We ask the resort on your behalf and pass on its answer, including any deposit it asks for. The table is yours once the hotel confirms it.

Read next: the Nusa Dua guide, Le Bleu in Nusa Dua, a romantic dinner in Bali, family-friendly beach clubs and where to stay in Bali.