In Washington, DC there are a bunch of places to find products from Big Tree Farms. There is only one place in Bali, however, where you can get their products. A little challenge makes everything more fun though! I had a free afternoon so I got a car and headed 45 minutes north to the Bali Spirit Kafe in Ubud. Ubud takes pride in their arts scene and is sort of Earthy crunchy and funky…and so is the Kafe. The Kafe also seems to be a bit of an ex-pat hang out, catering to travelers looking for a little inner renewal and other zen improvements.

Bali is a very tropical place and the heat coupled with the humidity can be a little draining. Once I made it to Ubud, I got a seat outside on the porch at the Kafe and ordered a Vanilla Lime Soda, which is vanilla bean syrup & Bali lime with soda. The soda hit the spot and helped refresh.

After being on travel for a week, I was looking for a bit of comfort food; food which didn’t make you think. The Kafe has lots of healthy, whole grain salads and organic foods, but sometimes you just need a burger. Luckily the Kafe came through in a big way. Their burger is made from local free range beef and I got mine topped with sauteed mushrooms and onions. I don’t know if it was my craving for a burger, but this is one of the best burgers I have had.

Of course I needed to order some desert, so I got a banana spice smoothie which is a banana smoothie topped with nutmeg and hazelnut. In order to make sure I left totally full, I also ordered Bubur Injin, a traditional Balinese dish of black rice topped with sweet coconut milk.

The truth is that I wasn’t there for eating food, no matter how good it was, I was there to buy some Big Tree Farm products and some Jam which they served at my hotel. The Kafe has a small shop which sells local products and donates the profits to local charities. Luckily they had everything I was looking for and more. I had a great meal and left with some great souvenirs!

The Kafe’s website has directions, in case you are in the neighborhood, and menus.