Brunch the Italian Way at Uma Cucina
With the recent launch of the new Uma Cucina brunch at Uma by COMO, Sundays in Bali have taken an indulgent Italian turn.
Uma Cucina is the signature Italian restaurant at Uma by COMO, home to one of the newest Sunday brunches in Bali. The restaurant has always been popular amongst Ubud-ians and tourists alike for a menu that’s strong on fresh, locally sourced produce, seasonal vegetables, slow-cooked meats and the authentic flavours of Italy, but this latest brunching affair is taking the entire experience up a notch. Complete with countless glasses of Prosecco and hours to graze, at Uma Cucina, it’s brunch: the Italian way.
Opting for an a la carte-style set-up over a typical buffet spread, the menu at Uma Cucina is both fresh and separated into six key segments, ranging from the raw and cured starters and antipastos, to the brick-oven pizzas, grilled seafood and ever-tempting desserts.
This set-up gives the brunch a laid-back and more casual feel, just how Italian food is best enjoyed. Naturally, this calls for a relaxed vibe, which luckily the restaurant pulls off without a hitch. It’s perched on the second floor of an open-air terrace with bright orange sofas and squishy cushions to sprawl across. Surrounded by greenery, the dining room actually feels like a treehouse – one that’s been vamped-up to five-star standards – with dark wood furnishings and trunk-like pillars towering up to an ylang-ylang thatched roof.
Colourful plates parade through the breezy open space one after the other, namely the Yellow Fin Tuna Crudo that introduces us to the restaurant’s complex flavours, textures and ingredients. Delicate slices of tuna are piquant and light, zested up with shaved fennel, green olives and a hint of lemon and chilli, while the next course of bruschetta exceeds expectations with its bright and bursting Italian salami, piled high with grilled eggplant, peppers and a stracciatella cheese.
The burrata is another clear stand-out from the antipasti and one of the best versions we’ve tasted in Bali. The soft mound of cheese is creamy and fluffy on the inside with a more tender, firm outer layer: just as it should be. It’s colourfully cradled by a salad of red and yellow tomatoes, a few sprigs of basil and a scattering of olives and capers. Perfectly Italian!
As the menu moves away from the antipasto plates, heartier dishes come in the form of Pappardelle Meatballs with organic free-range pork and the Penne Ricci with broccoli, cauliflower, anchovies and a sprinkling of pangrattato for a light crunch in each bite.
From the brick oven comes heartwarming pizzas – thinly crusted, of course – and a rustic oven-baked Eggplant Parmigiana that’s so rich and cheesy we have to order seconds. The same goes for the Frutti Di Mare: a grilled platter of seafood featuring a stunning selection of snapper, grilled prawns, octopus and tuna, drizzled with a garlicky lemon and parsley sauce.
With such an impressive selection of Italian brunching dishes, each one more scrumptious than the next, it’s no surprise that Uma Cucina wows with its desserts too. The Lemon Tart is both tangy and sweet, whilst the toothsome Semifreddo is creamy and cool and a perfect accompaniment to a freshly roasted espresso that ends a perfect Italian brunch in the most perfectly Italian way.
