Kedonganan Fish Market

Buy the Fish, Stay for the Afternoon

I was first introduced to Kedonganan Fish Market by my friend Heri, a local chef who clearly understood that one of the quickest ways to make me happy was to put me in front of several hundred kilos of seafood and let me decide what happened next. Since then, the market has become one of those places I return to regularly, usually with a friend, an empty stomach and absolutely no intention of making lunch a short affair.

Also commonly called Jimbaran Fish Market, Kedonganan sits at the northern end of Jimbaran Bay and remains one of Bali’s most important centres for fresh seafood. Fishermen bring in their catches, traders sell to restaurants and private customers, and beneath the covered market an extraordinary marine inventory unfolds across rows of stalls. Red snapper, tuna, mahi-mahi, squid, octopus, prawns, crabs, lobster, shellfish and whatever else the sea has decided to provide that morning sit on ice waiting to be weighed, negotiated over and taken away. The fish auction at Kedonganan dates back to 1979, and the area remains deeply tied to the local fishing economy.

If you want to see the market at its most intense, come early. The fishermen begin returning around dawn and the busiest buying period is generally in the morning, when restaurant buyers and traders are looking for the freshest catch. I personally prefer arriving closer to noon. There is still plenty to choose from, but my purpose is less anthropological than gastronomic. I walk through the stalls, see what looks particularly good that day and buy lunch directly from the people selling it. Prices fluctuate with the catch and your ability to negotiate, but this can still be an astonishingly economical way to eat seafood in Bali. Four squid for around IDR 90K, a handful of oysters, prawns, perhaps a fish to share, and suddenly you are carrying a feast in a plastic bag for remarkably little money.

That bag is where the second part of the experience begins. Around the market and along the road leading towards it are numerous jasa bakar, literally grilling services, and seafood restaurants happy to cook whatever you have just bought. Take your fish inside, choose how you want it prepared and pay the cooking charge rather than buying the seafood again from the restaurant. Grill is my default choice, preferably accompanied by far too much garlic butter sauce. Steam, sambal and other preparations are usually possible as well. Buying directly from the market is generally the more interesting and economical approach, particularly compared with ordering seafood from a restaurant display once the evening crowds arrive.

I have never found it particularly important which restaurant I choose. They tend to follow much the same formula, sometimes to an almost touching degree: plastic or wooden tables, beach terraces, seafood grills and a change of tablecloth colour providing most of the visual differentiation. Choose whichever feels pleasant, hand over your catch and concentrate on more important matters. The food will arrive, the beer will remain cold and the fishing boats will continue moving gently across Jimbaran Bay.

This is where Kedonganan becomes something more than a market for me. Lunch rarely ends when the plates are cleared. A beer becomes another beer, somebody starts telling a story, another subject replaces the previous one and suddenly an entire afternoon has disappeared into the sea breeze. The beach is surprisingly relaxed during the day, and with fewer visitors around there is space to talk, watch the boats and wait for the light over the bay to begin changing. I once recorded Episode 0 of VRO & Friends here with my friend Cédric, simply sitting over lunch and talking about his life in Bali. Listening back to it, the background noise of the market and beach is almost part of the conversation itself.

By evening, Kedonganan becomes a rather different creature. Coaches and cars arrive, tables fill rapidly and the long beach turns into one of Bali’s great seafood dining machines. Some restaurants add Balinese dance performances, music or fireworks, and the atmosphere becomes considerably more exuberant. It is undeniably part of the experience, and I occasionally submit to it happily when accompanying someone who wants the full Jimbaran seafood spectacle. But if you want the version I love, come earlier.

Buy the fish yourself. Let someone grill it. Order a beer and sit facing the boats with somebody whose conversation you enjoy. Then forget whatever you had planned for the afternoon.

Address

 

Kedonganan Fish Market

Jl. Pantai Kedonganan
Kedonganan, Kuta
Badung, Bali
Indonesia Kedonganan Fish Market

Price

$ · Affordable. Seafood is sold by weight and prices change according to species, size, season and the day’s catch. Add a separate cooking fee at one of the surrounding grill restaurants. Buying directly from the market before having it cooked is generally considerably better value than ordering seafood directly from a beachfront restaurant.

Go for

The extraordinary seafood market, choosing your own catch, having it grilled nearby and turning lunch into a long afternoon overlooking Jimbaran Bay.

Buy

Whatever looks freshest rather than arriving with a rigid shopping list. Squid, prawns, snapper, crab and shellfish are regular possibilities, but part of the pleasure is seeing what has actually arrived that day.

Eat

Take your purchases to one of the nearby jasa bakar restaurants and have them cooked for you. My preference is straightforward: grill, garlic butter sauce and cold beer.

Recommendation

For the version of Kedonganan I prefer, arrive around noon, buy your seafood at the market and settle into one of the beachfront restaurants for the afternoon. If you want to see fishermen unloading catches and experience the market at its busiest, come much earlier, around 7 to 9 a.m. The evening is lively and worth experiencing once, but expect considerably larger crowds and a more overtly tourist-oriented atmosphere.