I was really excited to write this article, because this was was one of my top dining experiences in Bali. I had heard great things about this dinner a the Four Seasons Bali Resort in Sayan, and booked it way in advance since it is only offered a few nights a week at the resort. It’s pricey, but totally worth it.

Sokasi is the word for the baskets that Balinese people use to store and transport their food, mainly rice. The baskets come in all shapes and sizes, and this space is an open-air space with a large, sweeping, woven roof, resembling, you guessed it, a basket!

There is an open kitchen, and the diners are all seated at a very large stone counter. I loved the space, although my one complaint is that the chairs that you sit in are very small stools, which are not super comfortable for this two hour experience.

When you arrive, you are invited to check out the suckling pig that has been cooking over a hot open fire on a spit for the last several hours, which we would be eating by the end of the evening. You are also able to order whatever drinks you would like and we split a few bottles of wine throughout our experience.

The Chef’s Table experience is seven courses of traditional Balinese food, normally prepared for ceremonies or holidays. We ate them all in one night for a casual (although still very special) dinner!

The first course was one of my favorites – it is called Ayam Timbungan, which is chicken that was cooked with all sorts of spices stuffed in a piece of bamboo and cooked over a fire. This was easily the most delicious and tender chicken I have ever eaten.

We watched them cook the next course in the open kitchen over hot coals – Jagung Pengang was baby corn served with sambal (a traditional Balinese sauce/condiment) and nuts.

The next two courses were our seafood courses where we had prawns (again cooked over the open flames) and barramundi filets cooked in coconut husks. I need to point out here how pretty the stoneware dishes were. They really showed off the food, but also were in keeping with the natural vibe of the entire resort, including this Sokasi space. There is a lot of attention to detail here at Four Seasons Sayan.

Fifth was the Bebek Betutu, which is duck cooked in a clay pot for about 12 hours. This was an amazingly flavorful dish served with a traditional lawar, or fernshoot salad. We had some red and white rice with this dish as well. By this time, I was getting super full, but the main attraction was still to come!

The final savory course was, of course, the Celeng Guling, or roasted suckling pig. It is roasted for about 4 hours, and the skin is super crispy, but the meat is extremely tender and delicious.

Honestly, this was super delicious, but I could barely eat any of it because I was so full from the other courses – I highly recommend pacing yourself so that you can enjoy this incredible course. They did plate the food so beautifully again here. I just loved the attention to plating at this meal!

As if this all wasn’t enough, we had dessert too! Luckily, the dessert was light and fresh, and made before our very eyes! We had lime sorbet with drizzles of honey and fresh fruit. The presentation of the dessert was super cool – since the sorbet was made almost instantaneously with dry ice, they also put a little dry ice around the stone bowl to give a cool smokey effect. This was a nice, refreshing way to end our very extravagant and extremely filling experience here.

This dinner was super special, and we had loads of fun during the evening with the other couples that were enjoying the experience with us. If you’re staying at the Four Seasons Sayan, or even in the area, I would highly recommend the Chef’s Table at Sokasi for a special evening of incredible food and entertainment! Don’t forget to book in advance!