Savor: Benoa Fish Market

âA new destination to shop and dine on seafoodâWORDS DESY NURHAYATI PHOTOS STANNY ANGGACraving seafood? You do not need to go as far as Jimbaran if you are in Denpasar

The Jakarta Post

Thu, February 11, 2016 Published on Feb. 11, 2016 Published on 2016-02-11T14:09:38+07:00

'A new destination to shop and dine on seafood'

WORDS DESY NURHAYATI PHOTOS STANNY ANGGA

Craving seafood? You do not need to go as far as Jimbaran if you are in Denpasar. Located closer to downtown, there is an alternative spot to head to when you need to buy fresh or frozen seafood or enjoy delicious seafood dishes.

Benoa Fish Market is a seafood shop and restaurant situated immediately adjacent to Bali Wake Park's artificial lake, overlooking the island's only wakeboarding park.

If you are heading to Benoa harbor, or about to enter the toll road from the Benoa gate, you will notice a narrow road to your left that leads there.

Initially set up to become a seafood supplier, Benoa Fish Market provides a wide range of seafood products, from all kinds of cut and packaged fish to shellfish and clams.

'Our parent company has been in the fishing and fish exporting industry since the 1990s. As the years went by, we noticed a rising demand for high quality fish demonstrating a large potential market,' said Margareth, the restaurant manager.

'Looking at the potential in the local market, we finally decided to pioneer a modern fish market in Bali to accommodate local sales, and established the restaurant mid last year.'

The restaurant is a cozy dining space perfect for sharing a feast with family and friends. Able to accommodate up to 80 people, it is also available for special events, such as birthdays and office gatherings.

Diners are greeted by a large sculpture of a blue marlin at the entrance, before heading into the minimalistic dining room. The walls on one side are adorned with small framed photos depicting fishing, sailing ships and fishermen in action.

From the indoor area, diners can see the board riders performing their tricks across the lake. Seats and tables on the outdoor terrace allow diners to enjoy a more laidback setting and to see the wakeboarding action more closely.

The menu is quite complete and the meals are generously sized.

To start your culinary experience, try some of the recommended appetizers, like fish eggs, mixed crostini and baked clams. Soup, salad and seafood congee are also served here.

Onto the main course, customers can choose from a wide variety of Western, Asian and Indonesian dishes. For a sharing option, the seafood platter ' either fried, grilled or with Benoa-style spice, is the perfect choice for two.

The fried seafood platter is served on a large hot plate filled with beer-battered fish that is crisp on the outside but juicy and tender inside, together with thickly cut calamari rings, shrimps grilled with garlic butter, scallops baked with a fresh sauce, and French fries and vegetables in the middle. Meanwhile, the grilled seafood platter consists of pan-fried dory, shrimp in garlic butter, onion squid, baked scallops, vegetables and rice.

You can also ask for a selection of different dipping sauces, which include soy sauce with sliced chili, sambal (chili condiment), and shallot sambal.

Longtime favorite desserts, like banana split, choco lava cake and affogato, will refresh your palate after the delicious main course.

While waiting for orders to be served, customers can browse the frozen seafood gallery and pick up packets of sliced tuna steak, mahi-mahi, marlin, gindara, barracuda, and many other kinds of seafood.

In addition to supplying hotels, restaurants and supermarkets, the company also sells retail. As customers are buying directly from a seafood supplier, they get good quality at rock-bottom prices.