CHEF
COLD COMFORT? “Funny you should ask that because I am very focused on this kind of thing. I try to put my feet into our guests’ shoes and wonder what they would like to eat. Which is why we have a kick-ass burger on the menu. A good Caesar Salad and our nasi goreng (as I said) is a big hit. We do a wonderful Salade Niçoise with fresh tuna and a Greek salad. It is so important these simple dishes be outstanding because people will judge you most of them –not on the complicated ones.” “I also take a great interest in our spa restaurant,” Townsend adds. “I think I have developed a great menu there that is fresh, healthy and organic. Which is pretty easy because the Balinese don’t have to use fertiliser, the soil is so fecund. The lettuce is really crunchy.
And remember Ubud is a place of wellness; people come here to detox from everyday life. So all my menus have what I call ‘healthy options.’” “I have to say that I become addicted to the local cuisine wherever I am working – and this is especially true of Sri Lanka, the Maldives and Vietnam and now Bali. Although there is a little too much ‘goreng’ here for me, I have become so health conscious in Ubud,” she says. “Off duty? I love Italian. But I can’t say I’m blown away by the Italian food in Bali. But I can still taste dishes from holidays in Northern Italy. In white truffle season – even with just homemade pasta and olive oil.” “When you are chef you have to get used to working longer hours than most other people, so, I still like to
make myself dinner when I get home, which is usually late. Something simple.” “And I am delighted to tell you I am a founding member of the Bali Slow Food Convivium. (There are only two here; the other is in Java). I went to Turin last year to the Slow Food Convention; there were half a million people there – so they must know something!” “There is a surprising number of people in Ubud who are keen to maintain the integrity and taste of fresh produce – and slow cooking is the way to go for that. So, I am bound to have something in the refrigerator I can just heat up. Probably something Italian – maybe the perfect example of Balinese slow cooking, bebek betutu!” www.mayaubud.com
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