Creating One of Bali’s Best Restaurants Turned into The Adventure of a Lifetime

A post by Alison Bone featuring business tips by Virginia and Kevin. 

For entrepreneurs Virginia Entizne and Kevin Cherkas, no obstacle was too great in their journey to create Cuca, which regularly tops the lists of Bali’s best restaurants.

One of Bali’s most successful and best-loved restaurants, Cuca draws foodies and gourmet travellers from around the world. Here, amidst the coconut palms, just meters from the glistening white sand of Jimbaran Bay, guests are treated to a casual yet extraordinarily unique dining experience. Cuca cuisine is described by chef and co-founder, Kevin Cherkas, as “Inventive comfort food inspired by the best things you have ever eaten,” but while the inspiration is global, all ingredients are locally sourced. “There is nothing that didn’t grow, walk or swim in Indonesia,” he says.

More than a restaurant, Cuca is the inspiring journey of Business Director, Virginia Entizne from Spain, and her husband, Canadian-born Kevin, who faced complex challenges in their quest to turn vision into reality, and against the odds, achieved enduring success. The story starts in Singapore in 2011, where Virginia, who has a master’s degree in Business Administration, was excelling in her role as the Director of a premiere international language school. Kevin, a renowned chef who had worked in Michelin starred restaurants around the world was Executive Sous Chef at Shangri-La. It was a prestigious position, but he yearned to open his own restaurant, and to spend more time with Virginia. They decided it was time to combine forces, using her extraordinary business acumen and his vast culinary talent to create their own venture.

“We chose Bali because it has magic, and then we just went for it,” says Kevin. “We were also drawn to the huge bounty of amazing produce, the warmth and friendliness of the Balinese people, the intriguing Hindu culture, and the international clientele,” adds Virginia. Arriving on the island in 2012, the couple were armed with two bulging suitcases, a big dream, and an unwavering determination to succeed. “At the time Bali only had simple, inexpensive local warung food and huge luxury restaurants with extravagant clifftop settings that offered fine dining, using imported ingredients,” says Virginia. “Our vision was to build a restaurant where amazing food was affordable and served in a casual environment. We were determined to add food to the list of reasons people come to visit this beautiful island paradise.”

They were yet to decide on a location or a concept and set out to explore the island in search of inspiration. Late one afternoon they came across a picturesque coconut grove. “We knew in our hearts that this was the perfect spot,” says Virginia. Better still, it was in the fishing village of Jimbaran Bay, so they could source the freshest daily catch direct from local fishermen. Venturing up the coast and into the lush volcanic hinterland, they discovered incredible ingredients packed with flavour; from organic sea salt to fragrant herbs and spices, exotic tropical fruit, and rich coffee and cacao. From this, their ‘local only’ concept was born. “We knew our customers would come from all over the world, so we really wanted to showcase the freshest local ingredients, which could be harvested in the morning and served in Cuca in the evening,” says Virginia. “We are also obsessed with green practices, supporting the local community and minimising the transportation of food, so going absolutely local was a no brainer.”

Gleeful about his new discoveries, Kevin got busy in the kitchen creating dishes that blended novelty with nostalgia. Born of heartfelt influences, each dish had a story and was, “Unlike anything you have ever tried before or would find anywhere else.”  That meant dishes like the Fish Tartare, inspired by their love of a traditional French-style steak tartare. “We decided to reimagine it – asking what if it was the Balinese who created this dish, what would that be like?” explains Virginia. Meanwhile, the Lobster Roll is a take on the classic American dish. In the Cuca version, it’s made with the freshest local lobster combined with Roti Boy – a local style Portuguese coffee bun, popular throughout Indonesia.

“People always think that a restaurant is about the chef, but actually the chef’s role is just about 10%. More than anything, a restaurant is a business,” says Kevin. So, while he experimented in the kitchen, Virginia set up the business side of things, from developing the Cuca concept, through to design, branding, human resources, and arranging permits. She also blogged enthusiastically to share their journey. “We wanted Cuca to be a place to share a great dining experience, and in keeping with that decided on serving tapas, cocktails and desserts,” explains Virginia. “Tapas – because its perfect for sharing with friends, cocktails because they offer endless scope for creativity and are great in this tropical weather, and desserts because we were determined to celebrate life, food and good company – and what kind of celebration is one without dessert? Plus, people tend to forget about diets while on holidays.”

The Challenges

 “We faced more challenges than we could ever have imagined,” admits Virginia. “From building, to sourcing ingredients, to learning a new language and understanding a new culture. We had employees from all over Indonesia, each with different backgrounds, beliefs and expectations. But each night we went to bed having ticked off one more task from our ever growing ‘to-do’ list, and slowly things came together.”

One year after their arrival, Cuca opened its doors. “Nobody came,” says Kevin. “Our food was super opinionated, quirky and different and people didn’t understand. They asked me, why don’t you do pizza or pasta or steak? But I would prefer to fail miserably doing something we believe in, then succeed in doing something that everyone else is already doing.” With no money for advertising, they decided to embrace old school hospitality. As Virginia tells it, “Kevin would head down to the beach in his chef whites and invite tourists to the restaurant.” And when they came, they were welcomed with open arms and dazzled by the food. Many would return the following night and bring their friends, and slowly but surely Cuca’s reputation grew via word of mouth. Over the next few years, the restaurant became a favoured destination for those in the know. Accolades flowed, awards were won, and tables were filled every night with happy diners enchanted by the experience and the setting.

Having faced the challenges of opening a restaurant on a foreign island, and succeeded where so many others have failed, Cuca’s future was looking brighter than ever at the start of 2020. “Then COVID came and destroyed us,” says Kevin. As the world descended into lockdowns and Bali closed to visitors, Kevin and Virginia switched to survival mode. “We thought about closing and sending everybody home, but the team is so important to us and has been with us so long, that we decided to keep paying everyone’s salaries and hum along until the tourists came back,” says Kevin. As hard as it was to keep going, they faced the pandemic with the same determination and stamina that had driven them to create Cuca in the first place. “Our attitude was, let’s just keep doing this with integrity and giving 100%, and if the money runs out at least we can say we tried,” he adds.

Cooking brought Kevin immense comfort in the chaos that surrounded him, and he developed some fantastic new dishes, mindful that he might never get to serve them. There were many dark days filled with fear, “but I thought COVID has to fade out eventually, so until then I will find the energy to keep going, and take this time to look at everything we do, and simply become better,” he says. Eight long months later they managed to reopen, and as visitors trickled back to the island, first from Indonesia and then from the world, Cuca came back to life.  “We are busier than ever now,” says Virginia. “The risk we took and the endless effort we put into the business during the COVID years has totally paid off.”

So, what’s next for Virginia and Kevin? “Unlike 99% of restaurateurs, we do not want to open any other Cucas,” says Virginia. “The magic of our business is the love and dedication we put into it, and this would not be possible if we had to split our attention. We also understand that in the hospitality business you need to stay relevant if you want to stay successful, so with only one Cuca to focus on, we, the venue, the team, the menu are always able to evolve, improve and stay with the times.”

Advice for people starting a new business

“Commit to what you are doing and do it with integrity,” says Kevin. “Our early days at Cuca were fuelled by adrenalin and coffee, we really put in the time and energy needed to give guests the best possible dining experience they could imagine. Ten years on we are still giving 100%. Things can get tough, there were days during COVID that we could barely face getting out of bed, but it’s important to never give up. Remind yourself that there’s always something worth fighting for whether it’s your integrity or your beliefs.”

“Concept clarity is imperative,” adds Virginia. “Decide on your concept and roll with it. Our concept for Cuca was inspired by our travels around the world and the incredible ingredients we discovered in Bali. This fresh nutritional produce is the foundation of everything we do, and gives us a strong point of difference, as well as truly unique cuisine that you could never find anywhere else.” And when it comes to working with your partner, she adds “It’s important to support each other, but also to clearly define your roles. In our case, Kevin does the food, I run the businesses. He is competitive while I am organised. He will jump first and I will make sure that if we fall, we get up together.”

“Be ethical and sustainable in whatever you do. At Cuca we hire local unskilled youngsters and train them so they have a strong future in hospitality. We buy direct from local farmers and do everything we can to support the local community. We cook from scratch, say no to plastic, and have installed a waste water management system that irrigates our herb garden,” says Virginia.

Lessons learned

“While taking shortcuts might be tempting, it’s not worth it,” says Virginia. “Focus on creating fans for your brand rather than simply getting customers. You need to believe deeply in what you do, do it from your heart and win customers one by one, the numbers will come later. It is the scenic long road, but it’s the one that will get you there, and let you enjoy the journey as well.” And finally, “Don’t get distracted by the competition, use that time and energy to become better at what you are doing. It is so much more rewarding and fun to find your own way of doing things!”

The Wizard

Chefs get way too much credit!

I mean 20 years ago nobody cared about the people making their food. But today with the success of Master Chef and kitchen television, the title of "chef" is glamorous and important. When I told my parents 25 years ago that I wanted to be a chef it was cause for deep concern. The irony is that that same title of “chef” today is added before a cook’s name giving them the recognition of professions like a doctor. A doctor… someone who saves people’s lives whereas everything I work with is already dead. 

Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate the newfound prestige the job holds, but I can promise you a restaurant is not about the chef. A chef is actually a very small percentage of what makes a restaurant great. The customer does come primarily for food, but the food takes a journey and an army of talented and well-trained people to get it to them.  Products need to be hooked, harvested or farmed by professionals, found by purchasing, received, stored and served and all of this needs to be managed, paid for, marketed and organized by someone and it ain’t the chef. 

Making sure people can find the restaurant, update websites, organize events, reply emails, pay staff, sort out crises, repair all that is broken and make decisions that keep the lights on is not done by the chef. There is one secret every restaurant has, and it is the difference between open and closed. A person who makes decisions based on logic, education and understanding as opposed to chefs whose decisions are based on passion and emotion. It is the person everyone including the chef goes to when there is a problem, and no one credits for the solution. This person is rarely seen much, like the wizard of Oz making decisions from behind a curtain, and without them, no one would care about Dorothy, the Tin Man, the Scarecrow or the Lion. 

So, the next time you go to a restaurant and enjoy a meal, look around at the cast of characters and try to spot The Wizard. In our restaurant, her official title is Director, we call her "boss", her name is Virginia and her mother calls her "Cuca", thus the name on the door.

By Chef Kevin

The Covid Perspective

When covid whacked the world last year, everyone was affected and everyone saw things curiously different. It is difficult to judge those who locked themselves in a bunker or criticize those wandering around mask-free desperately clinging to life as normal. Everybody had a perspective, and it is only when you understand someone’s beliefs, lifestyle and culture that you begin to see a new point of view. While hysteria and misery ooze from TV and social media, the world’s cities have lost their buzz and those picture-perfect holiday towns are left deserted and no longer scooping ice creams on cones. As far as how to react in this new fanatical, germ-free, hand washing obsessed ultra-sanitized world, well…perspective is everything.

Covid hits everyone dramatically and very differently. With lockdowns, school closures and physical distancing, kids are growing up missing the opportunity to develop social skills. Students in their final years lose the gatherings and celebrations that cement the year’s academic successes. Athletes no longer have competition and must train from home with no medals to be gained. Those in hospitality like us are simply left scratching their heads waiting for guests to return and meanwhile pivot to home delivery, which barely covers costs but somehow gives comfort within its mindless repetition. Those in the later years of life are retired and avoid the drama of frozen income with pensions flush, but sit dishearteningly within the category of high risk as their homes become confinement. Everyone has their story to tell and everyone is affected, although it is when we noticed the unusual way the Balinese dealt with Covid that we understood exactly what makes them so remarkably special.

As the material world shows its cracks and people everywhere look to find strength in timeless core values like family, friendship and compassion, we all see now how we have prioritized financial gain over happiness, success over health and career over family, but not the Balinese. This pandemic has taken away, as it has for many, their income, their jobs, their careers and their fancy mobile phone plans, and left them with nothing but themselves. Now…there lies the big difference: the Balinese are intrinsically joyful people, they only need themselves, their family and friends for happiness and it has always been like this. Covid has only had a material impact in their lives, but their core values and support system have not been affected. They look at us with pity and a sympathetic smile as we stress out trying to find meaning in our now empty days. The basic pleasures of life are easily found and somehow globally so easily misplaced for the rest of us mere mortals...

So as the world is still figuring out what to do, the Balinese have long ago started to heal! Hopefully the rest of us will eventually also learn to appreciate those special little magical moments every single day has to offer but we miss while being too busy looking the other way.

Cooking without recipes (by Chef Kevin Cherkas)

Cooking is tough. Not because transforming ingredients into food is difficult but getting them to taste delicious… is. Any idiot can put a piece of meat on a BBQ and burn it on both sides, but what the hell to serve it with? There lies the challenge. That’s where the skill of cooking begins, in the delicate balancing of flavours and contrasting of textures. That’s where delicious hides, and it's always tough to find. 

The solution to many has either been to stick to what you have always made or be guided by the classic cookbooks that always deliver. The results unfortunately always end with eating the same old thing until, eventually, you end up in a restaurant where flavours explode….but why? What do restaurants know that you don’t? How do they take the exact same ingredients and make wonderful what at home you make worrying?

The solution is more simple than you may think. It’s like, as a child, the training wheels you use to learn to ride a bike or the lines you stay between in a colouring book to end up with a picture. No one is giving a child a blank piece of paper and expecting good results, but that’s what we are doing with cooking, giving you ingredients without the lines and, as you can see, we are not ending up with a picture but a fricken mess.

The good news is I can teach you those tools. I can show you how to create rather than copy, how to craft the tastiest dishes without being dependent on recipes, a valuable skill and one you can use for every meal, for the rest of your life. One hour to begin to understand the mistakes you are making and the solution to delicious. It is free and just a click away!

Turn up the heat

Arguably, there is one ingredient that separates the flavours of South East Asia from those of the western world: chilli. Being located in tropical Bali and well known for our passion of local produce, chili is indeed very close to Cuca’s heart, and to our kitchen! The challenge of working with chilli is getting the spice level just right, when, as anyone who has ever eaten a really hot chilli will testify, it can cause a lot of pain.

Chillies come in many shapes, colours, sizes and strengths, but one thing they all have in common is the burning sensation they cause in your mouth, eyes and any other part of your body they happen to get a hold of. Although most people think that the hottest part of a chilli is its seeds, in fact it is the white spongy layer you find inside, called the “placenta”. Bite into this and you will really feel the burn! That sensation is mainly caused by a chemical called “capsaicin”. When you eat a chilli, the capsaicin in its placenta is released into your saliva and reaches the heat receptors in your mouth and tongue, which in turn send a signal to your brain, fooling it into thinking that your mouth is literally burning.

Producing capsaicin was originally the ideal way for wild chilli plants to deter mammals (who have heat receptors in their mouths) from eating them while encouraging birds to do so (as they lack those receptors that detect capsaicin). But then along came the first chilli aficionado… someone who realized that beyond the pain, eating chillis triggered the release of endorphins, otherwise known as “happy” chemicals, that give you an instant head-to-toe feeling of pleasure.

And as you know, your happiness is our main concern so we in Cuca felt that it was our duty to satisfy the many spicy food enthusiasts that come our way, and with that mission in mind and after many months of failure, pain, disaster and uncertainty, this is what we came up with. 

We proudly present to you Cuca’s latest and most delicious adventure: Cuca Hot Sauce. 

Handcrafted in small batches, it combines a masterful blend of fresh home-grown chillies and carefully selected spices that definitely pack a punch while still delivering on vibrant and intense taste. Distinctively, Cuca’s Hot Sauce is slowly fermented for weeks, just like in the good old days, rich in probiotic bacteria and ideal to improve the health of the digestive and immune systems. The final step of blending it smooth and charcoal-smoking it results in a mouth-watering BBQ perfume and a bold, flavourful and opinionated recipe not for the weak. 

Cuca Hot Sauce pairs well with just about everything. It can be used to add depth during cooking or to splash a little, or a lot, on any dish. 

IDR 75,000/bottle. WhatsApp orders: bit.ly/WA_Cuca. 

Dancing in the rain

You may be wondering with the restaurant closed how we are spending this challenging time on an island isolated from the world…

Well, we are #WeatheringTheStorm as best as we can. There are those who have returned to their villages to be with their families and those who are still hanging around working a few hours on new ideas, new dishes and a new menu. One thing is for sure, we are all taking this time to learn how to be better and dance in the rain!

Stay safe and keep dancing, dear friends. We miss you lots and look forward to when we meet again!

Weathering the storm

After spending the last few days taking care of those stranded in Bali on their way back home and carefully deciding with our beloved team the best next steps to take for all, we are temporarily closing Cuca's doors.

Reflecting on these past wonderful 7 years, we are more grateful than ever to those who sat at our tables and kept us doing what we love the most. We are thinking of each of you, wherever you are in this fragile world, and we send to you and your loved ones our warmest and most positive best wishes.

Cuca may be pressing pause today, but our minds will continue working on evaluating who we are and redefining who we want to be. And, rest assured, we are determined to see you all on the other side, in a wiser, healthier and more caring world where, when you get hungry, you will still know exactly where to find us.

Om Shanti, Shanti, Shanti, Om 🙏

Photo taken during Cuca's opening ceremony back in 2013

The Kalimantan Journey

As you may remember, months ago, heavyweight Chefs Will Meyrick from Sarong Group and Kevin Cherkas from Cuca landed in southern Kalimantan, Indonesia, to discover the stories behind all its delicious traditional dishes.

They immersed themselves in the history, recipes, culture and nature of the region and put together their lifetime knowledge and passion for food to proudly bring a few lucky guests their very own Kalimantan inspired creations at a dinner held in Som Chai, one of Will's famed restaurants.

A true collaboration built on hours and hours of day long discoveries, late-night discussions and early morning trials, where guests experienced a jungle-inspired soiree full of sensorial surprises including, among many more, the premiere of a short documentary depicting the chefs’ exciting journey and their behind-the-scenes kitchen sessions to jointly create the dishes for the event.

But the highlight of the evening, of course, was the food: a story-like menu divided into chapters that conveyed the soul, flavors, and identity of south Kalimantan through the trained taste buds and fearless creativity of the two chefs.

Follow their journey and this delicious story in this video series!

Our Picks: Kuala Lumpur

As we mentioned a few months ago, we are always sharing our favorite restaurants from every city we know with the hundreds of customers we meet in Cuca every week in search of the tastiest food around the world. People seem to trust chefs’ favorites when choosing food and since everyone asks our humble opinion, we decided some time ago to start a proper “Our Picks” section where we give you our recommendations on where and what to eat.

We have covered Bali, Madrid, Singapore and Vancouver already and today’s blog entry is about Kuala Lumpur.

Kuala Lumpur has some of the best street food on the planet, period. The food is so good that we go at least once a year just to eat. No one is very friendly or cares about your feelings, but they do care about the dishes they put in your mouth and that is fine by me. So, go hungry and get ready to eat some of the best food you have ever tasted.

Wong Ah Wah

We go back to KL every year for this iconic institution. Open forever and packing in the tourist crowd this place serves brilliant Chinese style street food that is seafood-heavy. The menu is all with pictures and dishes are as shown. Dishes are available in 3 sizes, order everything small and try more. A must in KL!

Price: **

What to order: BBQ chicken wings

Shanghai

This place serves the best dim sum we have ever had, seriously! Go for lunch and get ready to be impressed. Stick to the dim sum menu as everything else gets very pricey and unusual.

Price: ****

What to order: Xiao long bao

Yut Kee

This place has been around forever serving classic hearty dishes. The menu is a mix of Chinese and western comfort food and the taste is like eating at Grandma’s house. Portions are big so go easy. Go for lunch.

Price: *

What to order: Crispy roast pork

Pizzeria Dihyang

This place serves traditional wood-fired classic Italian pizza and it is very good. Great ingredients, perfect cooking and astonishing quality for Pizza in Asia. A simple menu does the trick with great German draft beer on tap.

Price: ***

What to order: Mortadella e pomodoracio pizza.

Pinchos

This place serves perfect classic Spanish comfort food in Tapas form. Wine selection is solid and drinks come quick so you won’t get thirsty. A busy bustling restaurant so do book ahead.

Price: ***

What to order: Coca (a classic Catalan style pizza) 

Woo Pin 45 Kamunting

This place is famous for its fish head noodle soup. It does sound a little daunting but believe you me, it is not. The soup is a light fragrant broth full of clean flavors and a deep delicious roasted smoky taste. Think Chinese style fish Ramen. We think this place is a must eat!

Price:*

What to order: Get help from a neighboring table by asking what is best. The menu can be a bit challenging. Rest assured it works out very well.

Babe

This place serves well-crafted cheeky Japanese influenced upmarket tasting menus. The chef Jeff Ramsey gained a Michelin star in Tokyo with his previous restaurant and the view of KL from the dining room of Babe is the best in town.

Price: *****

What to order: Tasting menu

Help us help for Cuca’s 12 days of Christmas!

This year in Cuca, Christmas is not only about feasting, celebrating and spending time with loved ones in beautiful Bali. We want to make these 12 days, in the true spirit of Christmas, about giving, helping and caring, so we have handpicked 2 non-profit programs that are doing exactly that to combat some of the biggest challenges our community faces. How exactly? - you might ask. By donating 10% of our sales from Cuca’s best-selling signature Chef Tasting Menus!

From 21 to 26 December, profits will go to the “Bali Wise” program, a project aiming at empowering marginalized women through skill-based education. It has been Cuca’s philosophy from day one to train from zero young underprivileged Indonesians to become competent, qualified and self-confident hospitality professionals. Therefore, this program is definitely something that hits close to home.

From December 27 to January 1, earnings will be given to the “Zero Waste to Oceans” program, which is stopping land-based waste from getting into our oceans by teaching Bali’s youth green practices to create a sustainable environment. In Cuca, we educate our team in how crucial is to reduce, reuse and recycle and as a company strive to become zero waste, but since time is ticking, extending our efforts beyond our boundaries must be a top priority.

For all this we chose ROLE, a non-governmental foundation based in Bali, as encouraging and supporting their values and determination to make a difference is one of the best things we could all do this Christmas, don’t you think?

We all, residents and tourists alike, owe a lot to Bali, this paradise island that keeps on giving, so gather your loved ones, come to Cuca and help us help to create a better future and a happier, tastier today!