Day Out at Mal Bali Galeria

This post is part of our travels from Singapore to Brisbane (via Bali with Jetstar – $425 per person) and returning via a stopover in Bali (Brisbane to Bali via Jetstar – $300 per person). The last leg from Bali to Singapore was via KLM at a surprisingly affordable price of $79. This made the return flight from Singapore to Brisbane a rather affordable total of $800 SGD.

On Day 10 of our Brisbane/Bali travels, we decided to check out another huge mall in Bali – Mal Bali Galeria. In our opinion, it feels a little bigger than Beachwalk Shopping Center in terms of space but because some areas (i.e. near the cinema) are not open – this made Beachwalk Shopping Center a little more engaging with its many shops as well as nooks and crannies to explore. The plus point for Mal Bali Galeria is that it has a hypermart – Matahari that Beachwalk Shopping Center doesn’t (currently) have.

Watching the surfers catching the waves at Kuta Beach Bali in the morning

Last night, Tom started to have the runs which extended to this morning. As usual, we headed out to Circle K to grab an Iced Americano (15K IDR – $1.5 SGD) before strolling and chilling at Kuta beach for about an hour. The morning breeze by the sea was nice and cool. We lied down by the beach staring at the sky and out to the endless sea in the horizon – admiring the beautiful creations by God. As the sun had not yet come out, surfers used this opportunity to catch the waves without being too burnt if they were to do so in the heat of the afternoon sun. This morning, we also witnessed a husband learning surfing for the first time, while the wife did some videos by the shore. Surprisingly, he was able to catch the waves in his first few attempts. Pretty good sense of balance in Tom’s opinion. Or that he probably was just clumsy as he barely rode any waves during his attempts in Hawaii…

Mercure Kuta Bali Lotus Lobby Bar - Welcome Drinks with Accor — Mercure Kuta Bali Lotus Lobby Bar – Welcome Drinks with Accor

As the sun came up (and our shade dwindled), we headed back to our hotel – Mercure Kuta Bali, for our welcome drink. As mentioned in our earlier post, the welcome drink at Mercure Kuta Bali doesn’t include alcoholic options for Gold members. Only Platinum members and above had alcoholic options. Nonetheless, we had a very delicious glass of Iced Hazelnut Latte this morning before setting off for Mal Bali Galeria…

Mal Bali Galeria is arguably the biggest mall in Bali in terms of floor space. There are a few major outlets for electrical appliances, home accessories as well as a brand names for the masses such as Uniqlo and H&M. Unlike Beachwalk Bali Shopping Mall, there is a hypermart here – Matahari. You can consider visiting Mal Bali Galeria’s Matahari for last minute shopping of snacks and souvenirs before heading back. At Matahari, we also bought a pair of Coles sandals at 130K (~$11 SGD) at a discounted price.

Lunch at Es Teler 77

For lunch, we decided to visit Es Teler 77 because of the excellent tauhu telur that we had in Bandung years back. Es Teler 77 is actually a fast-food chain that specialises in Indonesian cuisine such as Bakso, Batagor and more. As visitors to Indonesia, a visit to Es Teler can be an entry point to Indonesian food…

Es Teler 77 Mal Galeria Bali Review - Ikan Nila Goreng (50K IDR) and Mie Ayam Pangsit Rebus (42K IDR) — Es Teler 77 Mal Galeria Bali Review – Ikan Nila Goreng (50K IDR) and Mie Ayam Pangsit Rebus (42K IDR)

Es Teler 77 Mal Galeria Bali Review - Tahu Telur (38K IDR) — Es Teler 77 Mal Galeria Bali Review – Tahu Telur (38K IDR)

Es Teler 77 Mal Galeria Bali Review - Batagor (35K IDR) — Es Teler 77 Mal Galeria Bali Review – Batagor (35K IDR)

Es Teler 77 Mal Galeria Bali Review - Estel 77 Dessert (40K) — Es Teler 77 Mal Galeria Bali Review – Estel 77 Dessert (40K)

This afternoon, we returned to Es Teler 77 with a vengeance, ordering quite alot for just the 2 of us! 😅 We had the Ikan Nila Goreng (Fried Fish – 50K IDR), Tahu Telur (38K IDR), Batagor (fried fish dumplings – 35K IDR) and Mie Ayam Pangsit Rebus (42K IDR). All of our orders were actually quite delicious – especially the fish. Although the ikan goreng (fish fried) had some small bones and remnant scales on the skin, the meat was really fresh and sweet. As for the Tahu Telur, it does still stand out for us. The fried eggs at the top? Deep fried goodness! 🤣 We also noticed that the tahu had a twist to it this time. Instead of only having the tofu, there’s also bits of steamed egg mixed into it. For dessert, we had the namesake – Estel 77, which is the mixed fruit version that came with jackfruit, coconut and avocado (40K IDR). A really satisfying meal!

Kate then saw Wakai – any Indonesian lifestyle shoe brand where she bought a Disney Collab pair of shoes on discount for 199K IDR ($18 SGD).

During our visit, we saw the movie Laura being featured on movie posters at cinemas. So when we popped by Galeria Cinema XXI at Mal Bali Galeria that the movie (and timing) was available, we bought a pair of tickets for 100K IDR (~$9 SGD for 2 tickets). While waiting for the movie, we bought a 1.5l Aqua which was 5800 IDR instead of 8000 IDR along the Kuta stretch. We also visited J.Co for 2 donuts (Bella Donna, Avocado) as well as a large green tea for 47K IDR ($5 SGD). We were not able to use our credit card because of a minimum expenditure of 50K IDR. The iced green tea also came with a glazed donut – so in all, we had 3 donuts prior to our movie! Definitely helped kept us awake during the movie! 😅

Day Out at Mal Bali Galeria — Galeria Cinema XXI at Mal Bali Galeria

Galeria Cinema XXI at Mal Bali Galeria - where your belongings can be kept during the movie — Galeria Cinema XXI at Mal Bali Galeria – where your belongings can be kept during the movie

Galeria Cinema XXI at Mal Bali Galeria - Seatings inside — Galeria Cinema XXI at Mal Bali Galeria – Seatings inside

The movie, Laura, was based on a true story about an up an coming influencer (Laura) who met an accident because her then boyfriend drove her home while under the influence of alcohol. As a result, we was paralysed with only limited movement of her arms. The movie then went on to show Laura’s courage in overcoming her disability, continuing with videos about her recovery and eventually bringing her ex-boyfriend to justice for driving her while under the influence of alcohol. The cinematics and development of the movie were actually quite good. No draggy parts.

@2bearbeartravel Passed by #Chikuro at #MallBaliGalleria several times during this visit and the cheesy chicken caught our eye. We tried the chicken and fish cake combo for 64k IDR. The chicken was really crunchy with the cheese oozing on each bite and we really enjoyed the tasty and chewy fishcakes as well! 😋👍 #food #foodie #kuta #bali #indonesia #2bearbear #japanese #japanesefood #sgfoodie ♬ Enjoy the Moment – Zeca Zilocchi

We had a snack at Chikuro before heading back. The Cheese Chicken and Fried Fish Cake Tempura (Chikuwa) for 64K IDR – enjoyed the taste and the chewy texture of the tempura. The Gojek ride back was 37K IDR. One of the drivers asked for 100K in cash which we declined via message – so the driver cancelled) – just so you know that some of these conversations can take place on the Gojek app. Left Mal Bali Galeria at 5pm and reached back Mercure Kuta Bali at 5:15pm.

Sunset as seen from Mercure Kuta Bali Rooftop Infinity Swimming Pool

We chilled by the infinity swimming pool at Mercure Kuta Bali this evening while enjoying our other welcome drink – a rather sweet orange mango passion fruit mocktail. We were supposed to have our massage this evening at Ginger Spa (in-house spa of Mercure Kuta Bali) but there was a mistake made by the staff – where we realised that they couldn’t differentiate quickly between “today” and “tomorrow”, “Saturday” and “Sunday” which led to the confusion about the reservation we made on the first day at the pool. Nonetheless, we re-arranged for our massage on our last day before heading out for dinner.

Dinner at Sushi Hiro Beachwalk Bali Shopping Center

Sushi Hiro Bali Beachwalk Shopping Center Review

Sushi Hiro Bali Beachwalk Shopping Center - Salmon Mentai Roll (120k IDR) — Sushi Hiro Bali Beachwalk Shopping Center – Salmon Mentai Roll (120k IDR)

Sushi Hiro Bali Beachwalk Shopping Center - Kake Soba (50K IDR) — Sushi Hiro Bali Beachwalk Shopping Center – Kake Soba (50K IDR)

Sushi Hiro Bali Beachwalk Shopping Center - Beef Hobayaki (90k IDR) — Sushi Hiro Bali Beachwalk Shopping Center – Beef Hobayaki (90k IDR)

As Tom had a craving for a hot soupy dish, we decided to head to Sushi Hiro at Beachwalk Bali, in hopes of trying out their ramen. Turns out only soba was available this time.

So we had the Kake Soba (50k IDR). There was actually nothing unique about it. The soup was slightly salty while the soba was a tad overcooked which made it a more on the soggy side. As for the Beef Hobayaki (90k IDR), it actually looked very beautiful and appetising, revealing the fatty bits when the beef slices were presented. It was also presented on the hoba leaf (Japanese magnolia tree) which infused a little more fragrance, especially when the leaf began to char a little under the flames beneath. However, in terms of taste, it lacked the taste of beef. Almost too bland in our opinion. This turned out to be a dish that looked good but didn’t meet the mark.

Lastly, for the Sushi Mentai Roll (120K IDR), it was probably the only dish that we enjoyed this evening. We should have known. As “Sushi” Hiro, sushi must be good, if not better than its other offerings. It was true in our opinion. The Sushi Mentai Roll was beautifully presented and when cut into the 8 portions, you could see the rice and ingredients such as kani (crab), kyuri (cucumber) and tamago (egg) within. The mentai and sauce that were layed over, made the dish more palatable – though we think the renditions in Singapore were definitely better.

@2bearbeartravel Tom had some cravings for hot noodles soup and we decided to hop over to #sushihiro . However, as most of their #ramen were not available, we had the #soba, #sushiroll as well as the #beef . The beef and soba were so so but the #sushi was good. Love the #ambience too! ☺️ #japanese #japanesefood #food #foodie #sgfoodie #foodtok #foodtiktok #2bearbear ♬ suara asli – 𝓹𝓲𝓴𝓪𝓹𝓲𝓴 – 𝐴𝑓𝑖𝑘𝑎 & 𝐾𝑒𝑟𝑖

After dinner, we went to the beach and caught some fireworks. Most of these fireworks were probably put up by the locals cause the patterns of the fireworks looked exactly the same. However, there was one particular one that we saw in the distance which had a very different pattern and we thought it was probably someone’s wedding – like the one we saw at the boardwalk earlier. As it was a cool and breezy evening, it was nice to just lie down on the beach to see the stars and listen to the waves while catching the fireworks when they appeared.

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@2bearbeartravel Our 6D5N in #Bali where we stayed at #Mercure #Kuta, shopped at #Beachwalkshoppingcenter, chilled at #afterglow, caught the sunset at #discoverybali , walked to #seminyakvillage, chilled by the #beach , did #spa and #massage ♬ Vibes – ZHRMusic