I

t seems that each week there is a new restaurant being opened on the island. Bali has turned into a culinary mecca with its own food festivals — yes, there is more than one food festival on the island —, a throng of world-renowned chefs and restaurants, dedicated foodie publications, as well as an increasing number of food bloggers and instagrammers.

For an island heavily dependent on the tourist industry, this is surely good news. It means the business climate is good and visitors will surely love the freedom to choose from a wide array of available foods – from street food to gourmet, from traditional to global cuisine.

This edition’s cover story focuses on Fire, a casual grill restaurant at Seminyak’s marvelous W Retreat and Spa Bali–Seminyak. The restaurant exemplifies the efforts taken by many restaurateurs across the island to stay relevant in the increasingly crowded market: offering delectable food with a unique twist in a distinctive setting.

For us, the food connoisseurs, Bali has grown into not only a cultural destination but also an epicurean one.

—The Editor