Ubud Writers & Readers Festival 2026: Food Events and Where to Eat

The Ubud Writers & Readers Festival runs from 21 to 25 October 2026, with its home base at Taman Baca on Jalan Raya Sanggingan and this year's theme, Samarasā: Awareness. Empathy. Action. Some of the hardest tickets to get are for meals: an opening feast at Casa Luna, dinners inside a ceramic studio and a private art collection, a market morning in Sukawati and a long-table lunch on the final day. Below are the food events in the official programme, by date, then where to eat near Taman Baca and in central Ubud between sessions.

Checked on 18 October 2026 against the official festival programme and each restaurant's own site. Some events had sold out by then, so check availability on the festival site before you plan around one.

Food events in the 2026 festival programme

Wednesday 21 October

Festival Opening Gala and Dinner

6pm to 10pm, Puri Agung Ubud, then Casa Luna. The festival opens with a show at the Ubud palace, Puri Agung Ubud, then everyone moves to Casa Luna for a Balinese feast planned by festival founder and director Janet DeNeefe, with the festival's speakers at the tables. Tickets are IDR 3,000,000 (AUD 250) and seats are limited.

Thursday 22 October

Culinary Jalan-Jalan

6am to 8.30am, starting at Casa Luna. An early walking tour of Ubud's local eateries, from babi guling at Ibu Oka to ayam betutu at Pak Sanur. It ends back at Casa Luna with a Balinese-style breakfast, and the price covers Balinese coffee, snacks and breakfast.

Dining with the Ancestors

6.30pm to 9pm, Ruang Asmat, Roemah Hanoman. A tour of the indigenous art collection of explorer and collector Leksmono Santoso, then a three-course Indonesian dinner with cocktails and wine under Asmat ancestor carvings. Leksmono is interviewed by Bloomberg investigative reporter Matthew Campbell. This one was sold out when we checked.

Candlelight on Clay

7pm to 9.30pm, Gaya Ceramic. An aperitivo and a tour of the Gaya workshop, which Marcello Massoni and Michela Fabbri founded after moving from Italy, then a four-course dinner by the Indus culinary team. Each course is paired with wine and served on Gaya's own handmade ceramics.

Friday 23 October

Bali's Herbs and Remedies

6.30am to 8.30am, starting at Casa Luna. A herbal walk through Ubud led by Made Westi, co-founder of Nadis Herbal, with Australian conservation biologist David Lindenmayer. It finishes at Casa Luna with Balinese cakes filled with coconut and palm sugar, highland coffee and fresh coconut juice.

Bahasa Bali Breakfast

8.30am to 9.30am, Dharma Kula. A light Indonesian or Western breakfast with a Balinese language lesson from a Cinta Bahasa teacher.

A Lunch Between Here and There

12pm to 2pm, DI SINI DI SANA by Rachman & Sons. Designer and author Jonathan Rachman hosts lunch at DI SINI DI SANA, his setting of antiques and heritage recipes, with fashion designer Prabal Gurung and former Vogue India editor Bandana Tewari, in a conversation hosted by Laksmi DeNeefe Suardana. Lunch is four Indonesian courses with a cocktail and two glasses of wine.

Writers in Cafes

3pm to 5pm, Powder Room by R4D. Readings and a conversation about coffee, café culture and writing, with coffee or jamu and pastries included.

Poetry Wine Workshop by Anthony Tao

5pm to 7pm, Pinstripe Bar at Viceroy Bali. Poet Anthony Tao, who owns a wine bar in Beijing, leads a tasting where you use poetry techniques to write your own wine reviews. Canapés are included.

Fire and Islands

7pm to 9pm, Nari Restaurant. A three-course dinner cooked over fire in Nari's open kitchen, with Gunung Lebah Temple beyond the trees, wines and cocktails, and readings from Afua Hirsch, Tash Aw, Patrick Freyne, Agustinus Wibowo, Ziggy Ramo, Anna Carey and Ivan Lanin. This one was sold out when we checked.

Festival Fundraising Dinner

7pm to 10.30pm, Rumah Melati Estate. A patrons' dinner for twenty guests, hosted by Janet DeNeefe and Dr I Ketut Suardana, with a three-course menu by Kieran Morland of Sangsaka and festival writers at the table.

Saturday 24 October

Sukawati Market Food Stories

8am to 12pm, meeting at Indus Restaurant. A morning in Sukawati beyond the art market: kerupuk tahu at a local market, a look at traditional tofu-making, lawar and jaja gambir, then lunch at Nasi Tahu Men Sarti and fresh coconut water at Artisan Village. Transport is included.

Sunday 25 October

Who Are We In This Complicated World?

12pm to 2pm, Casa Luna. The Casa Luna long-table lunch closes the week. Sanjoy Roy cooks an Indian feast of slow-braised dishes, flatbreads and sambals alongside Casa Luna's own dishes, and writers including Hari Kunzru and Candice Chung join the table, with Husnara Khanom moderating. The price covers a set lunch.

Where to eat near Taman Baca

Taman Baca is on Jalan Raya Sanggingan, and so are Mozaic and Room4Dessert, which makes them the easiest dinners between sessions.

Mozaic

Mozaic is chef Chris Salans's restaurant on Jalan Raya Sanggingan, with executive chef and co-owner Blake Thornley. The Dining Room serves a seasonal tasting menu daily from 6pm to 10pm, and the Tipple Room bar is open daily from 5pm to 12.30am, which suits a drink after an evening session.

Room4Dessert

Room4Dessert is chef Will Goldfarb's restaurant on Jalan Raya Sanggingan Kedewatan, where the new summer menu is a run of garden-led courses paired with natural wines. It opens from 4pm to 10pm and is closed on Mondays. The festival's Writers in Cafes session is at Powder Room by R4D.

Where to eat in central Ubud

Casa Luna

Casa Luna on Jalan Raya Ubud is the festival's second home: Ketut Suardana and Janet DeNeefe opened it in 1992 and later created the festival, and it hosts the opening dinner and the closing lunch and is the starting point for the morning food and herb walks. It is open daily from 8am to 11pm, with a Balinese menu of nasi campur and curries made with house spice pastes alongside a Mediterranean menu.

Pica South American Kitchen

Pica South American Kitchen on Jalan Dewisita was opened in 2014 by Chilean chef Cristian Encina and Monica Fernandez, with Peruvian cooking at its centre. It serves dinner every day from 6pm to 10pm.

For more places to eat in town, see our Ubud restaurants page. The full festival programme and tickets are at ubudwritersfestival.com.