Nuanu Creative City in Tabanan Launches 'Nusantara', a New Spot Exploring Food and Culture from 9 Indonesian Islands

Nuanu Creative City in Tabanan, Bali has launched a new area called 'Nusantara', dedicated to showcasing the culinary and cultural heritage of nine Indonesian islands: Java, Sumatra, Bali, Lombok, Sulawesi, Kalimantan, Sumba, Flores, and Madura.

According to Bali's statistics agency (BPS), foreign tourist arrivals to Bali reached 6,948,754 in 2025, up 9.72% from the previous year. As Bali's hospitality industry has grown to serve international visitors, many culinary concepts have leaned toward foreign styles—Mediterranean-style beach clubs, Japanese omakase, Australian-style brunch—while Indonesia's own regional cuisines have remained underrepresented, even within Bali itself. Nusantara was developed to address this gap.

The area is organized into four sections. Warung Nine Islands (capacity 70, open 12:00-22:00) serves regional dishes prepared using traditional cooking techniques without adaptation, led by James Ephraim, founder of Nusantara and Luna Beach Club, alongside Chef Wayan Mustika from Merah Putih (Bali) and Tri Restaurant (Hong Kong). Main dishes start from Rp120,000, with live music performances daily at 18:00.

Meja 36 is a fine dining space that reworks the same ingredients using contemporary techniques, offering a tasting menu at Rp499,000 per person, with a capacity of 50.

The Mangrove Café serves single-origin coffee from Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and Flores, along with traditional snacks such as pandan cakes, palm sugar treats, klepon, and dadar gulung.

The Gallery opened with 'INDONESIAN VISION,' an exhibition curated by Pascal Morabito featuring 1,000 indigenous Indonesian artifacts, priced from Rp500,000 to Rp625 million, with proceeds partly supporting the artists.

A portion of Nusantara's revenue will go toward the Nuanu Social Fund (NSF), supporting cultural, environmental, and community initiatives in Bali. The new area is part of Nuanu Creative City's broader programming across education, arts, and wellness on its 44-hectare site in Tabanan.