Five years ago this week...

... we had just finished construction, unpacked customized tables and chairs still smelling of freshly cut polished wood, opened boxes of beautiful handmade ceramics, washed new uniforms just in time to wrap around our team, worked for days to make the kitchen sparkle and complete the mountains of food preparation… And after months of panic, dread and fear, we finally opened our doors to guests and began serving our first meals.

Our anniversary celebration every year is a bit like remembering a battle that you won victoriously but where many were wounded and lost on that fateful day. Some survived and lead the way while others wilted under the pressure of battle and struggled to continue the fight. We look back at that moment and thank God we lacked the full understanding of what we were about to do by opening a restaurant in the middle of nowhere, down a road with no lights, in the sleepy quiet fishing village of Jimbaran, Bali.

With new restaurants popping up every single day and their level of food always on the rise, we are now more determined than ever to make Cuca the very best. It’s what our guests expect and what we strive to deliver.

We celebrate this 5th anniversary as a team who have gone through it all together and who will continue doing so for as long as you continue choosing us.

Cheers to 5 years!

Cuca Team

Celebrities in Cuca

Everybody eats and having a restaurant in Bali (a worldwide top destination) you never really know who will come through the door. From young to old, rich to poor, big to small, it really doesn’t matter to us. We are here to give you our very best and that has always been our promise. We have since day one treated every single guest as a VIP and been genuinely happy they keep on finding us tucked away in our secluded coconut grove.

Having said that, every now and then our dining room fills up with whispers and murmurs. Guests jump from their seats and our team loses their focus. For a second or two, our cooks stop cooking and our hostess lets the phone ring. A new guest has walked in and although it may be their first time in Cuca, we recognize them as a person we love, admire, respect, idolize or cheer for.

Here are just a few of the celebrity visits that have got the most shots, likes and wows.

See any favorites?

What chefs eat… (by Chef Kevin)

I started cooking because I absolutely love food. Since little, I have been obsessed with eating. My holidays are planned around breakfast, lunch and dinner and they would suck without great food. The success or failure of any trip has everything to do with delicious.

Having said that, the truth is that when it comes to what chefs eat day to day, you may be surprised. Given our profession, the assumption is that we eat better than anyone on earth, mouthful after mouthful of the most magical bites of goodness… but ironically, this is just not reality.

Chefs cooking at the highest level tend to be skinny, tasting often but eating rarely. Sitting down for a proper meal is almost unheard of and most meals are taken in seconds, not minutes, by packing as much as possible into your mouth in the shortest amount of time. You can always spot a chef at a dinner when he has finished before everyone else has picked up their fork. We chefs are always behind in our work, always facing new problems sprouting up like mushrooms in our pursuit to be ready for “dinner service”. The best things to eat are logically set aside for guests so trimmings, leftovers and scraps are our fuel. Food is our obsession but the actual consumption of it has its challenges, as most chefs just don’t have the time, the money or the appetite.

So, what do chefs eat then? It is after work that the true caveman comes out. After midnight, like a vampire, we feast giving our malnourished bodies the nutrition to keep us alive for the next day of battle. We are looking for the most fulfilling comfort food possible, nothing challenging, no experimentation, honest old school classics that never disappoint: macaroni and cheese, meatballs, roast chicken, scalloped potatoes… anything that grandma would make and the food that makes you feel loved; the dishes that hold your hand before bed and put you to sleep.

So, the next time you ask a chef for his recommendations on what to eat, keep in mind it may be like asking a four year old what he wants for his birthday.

However, if now you want to find out Where Chefs Eat… don’t miss this great little book. And yes, you guessed it, Cuca is on their list!