HOLY GUACAMOLE BAR AND GRILL BALI (MATTYB RECOMMENDS)

So at the beginning of this month I was very lucky to go for two weeks holiday exploring Bali and Singapore. I love Asian food in all its forms so I couldn't wait to try all the delights of these two regions. You might be surprised to see then that for our first meal away we actually ended up in Holy Guacamole, a Mexican bar and grill near our hotel in Legian. Well, when you're still adjusting to a country's time zone, temperature and culture sometimes it's best to stick a little too what you know.

We love to eat Mexican food at home so when we spotted Holy Guacamole as we took a very slow stroll down Jl. Melasti we couldn't help be drawn in by the cheery Balinese staff beckoning us in from the street. We stumbled in to the beach bar style seating area and ordered some ice cold Bintang Radler (which soon became our beer of choice in Bali!) to help us cool down. I'm still wishing that I bought some of branded beer stubbies that the beer bottles sat in to take home. They were too cute! Time to take a look at the menu and see what was on offer whilst the hustle and bustle of the street outside acted as our soundtrack for the evening.

All the classic Mexican favorites are present and correct. Tacos, nachos, quesadillas and even a Man Vs Food style 1kg burrito eating challenge. Yes, that's incredibly cheesy and touristy but you're on holiday and you're here to have fun remember! To get us in the mood we ordered some tortilla chips and guacamole. Yeah, the chips are clearly not made on site and the guacamole was pretty bog standard (and talk about the stingy portion size! Ask for a large one!) but as with most of the restaurants away from the hotels along the strip they were dirt cheap and the perfect way to get those taste buds moving.

We decided to go with some of the tostadas and the first portion we chose were the veggie versions. Sat on a trio of crispy fried corn tortilla bases were piled up a delightful mix of spiced black beans, fresh "Pico De Gallo" tomato salsa, fried onions and crisp green lettuce all covered with a generous sprinkling of grated soft cheese. Wash them down along a good old swig of your lemon Bintang and you have the perfect holiday style finger food. You know, something you can just pick up and shove in your mouth and get messy with because there is no one around who knows you! Proper dirty but proper delicious.

Having watched Masterchef Australia from the UK for many years I've always loved learning about all the different types of seafood and fish they have over there that isn't quite so readily available on this side of the globe. This is why I had to get the snapper (which they use on the show all the time!) tostadas when I saw them on the menu which has clearly been designed to entice in the many Aussie tourists on the island. These little firm chunks of fishy meaty goodness work beautifully as an added layer of flavor when added to all the other components that are featured on the veggie tostadas. My first experience of snapper was all I had ever hoped for!

We didn't want to over indulge on the first night so we finished off our beers, passed on dessert and headed off to enjoy the rest of our evening. If you find yourself in Legian and your looking for some proper tasty scran that isn't going to challenge you too much on the first night you won't go wrong with a bit of Holy Guacamole. The staff are eager to please, the food is great and we got two plates of food , the extra chips and two beers for just under the equivalent of £15. What is there to complain about? Nothing I think you'll find. It may not be biblical in its level of refinement but Holy Guacamole certainly was a blessing on our first night in Bali!

To find out more about Holy Guacamole, glance at the menu or for instructions on how to find it then head over to their website by clicking here or take a look at their Instagram page for a glimpse at the food by clicking here.