OUT WITH ARLO — DENPASAR, BY MAHESA.
For the first edition of Out With Arlo, we’re going into the city with Mahesa — who moved to Denpasar for college in 2008 and has spent almost twenty years watching the city change, while some things have
stayed exactly where they were.
Denpasar is easy to pass through, but harder to really know.
These are the places he still returns to. The food that hasn’t changed. The coffee shop that feels like a real third place. The markets, public spaces and overlooked corners that tell you a little more about the city if you take the time to look.
EAT HERE
Warung Nasi Pojok
Warung Beten Saba
Nasi Goreng Pak Yoyok
“I’m giving you all three because the reason is the same for each.
They were already there before I moved to Denpasar in 2008 for college. Almost twenty years and they still cook the same way.
Walking in feels like walking into a house where nobody asks you to explain yourself.
If you want to eat the way people here eat, start with any of these.
None of them are a discovery.
That’s the point.”
COFFEE
Here with Buksel
“Only a year old and it already works the way a coffee shop should.
People come to trade information, to sit with a book, or to have one quick coffee before going further into the city. Nobody watches what you order or how long you stay.
A real third place, and there aren’t many in Denpasar.”
HANG OUT
Koja Kitchen & Space
For the small circle. The people Mahesa actually talks to.
Rumah Tanjung Bungkak
When there’s an event on, or when he wants a good night out.
GO LOCAL
Pasar Kreneng — at night
“The morning market is a different place with a different crowd, so make sure you go after dark.
At night everyone in Denpasar ends up there, from every background.
I used to eat nasi jinggo and soto ayam after long days on campus, sometimes staying until morning when we had an event.
It still works the same way.”
START HERE
Taman Puputan Badung
One of Denpasar’s most important public spaces and the site associated with the Puputan Badung battle.
This is where 0 KM Denpasar is, and according to Mahesa, where your Bali adventure should begin.
THE ONES PEOPLE SKIP
Monumen Bajra Sandhi
“Everyone drives around it on the way through Renon and almost nobody walks in.
The museum is inside. On a weekday it’s empty.
People use the building as a photo stop from the outside and never find out what’s in it.”
Go inside.
Jalan Imam Bonjol to Thamrin, Pemecutan
The biggest setra, or graveyard, in Denpasar is here.
“Most people see a cemetery and keep driving.
That area used to be the centre of Denpasar. The city moved, the ground didn’t.
If you go, go quiet.
It’s a working ritual ground, not a viewpoint.”
