Upper Room Bali — Restaurant in Bali

We were really excited to try Upper Room in Bali after reading several glowing reviews and seeing it featured in a few travel vlogs highlighting top places to eat in Seminyak. Naturally, we added it to our list during our stay.

We arrived relatively early for dinner around 6 PM. Upon entry, we were greeted warmly by a lovely lady downstairs. We asked if the upstairs area was open, and she confirmed it was. However, as soon as we started heading up the stairwell, we were hit with a really unpleasant smell — not a great first impression.

When we got upstairs to the main restaurant area, there was no one to greet us. The space was completely empty, and we stood around awkwardly for a few minutes before anyone came up. Eventually, someone did appear and told us to sit wherever we liked, which was appreciated. Menus were brought out promptly, and after a few minutes of browsing, we were ready to order.

Now, it’s worth saying — the restaurant itself is beautifully styled. It has a sleek, modern aesthetic that’s visually impressive and definitely Instagram-worthy. It’s clear that a lot of thought went into the design, and it does create a nice ambiance.

Unfortunately, the experience didn’t live up to the setting. We asked for the pork ribs — one of the dishes they’re known for — and were told there were none available, including the honey-glazed ribs and the ribs from the platter. Disappointed but understanding, we asked for a few more minutes and reconsidered our choices. We then asked about the pork belly, only to be told that was unavailable as well. A few other dishes we considered were also not available.

It was incredibly frustrating to go through the menu repeatedly just to be told each time that what we wanted wasn’t on offer. If several key dishes — especially your signature items — are unavailable, it would be far more respectful to let diners know upfront when they’re seated. This would save everyone time and disappointment.

Overall, it was a poor experience that left a lot to be desired. The venue itself is sleek and stylish, but sadly, the service and availability didn’t match the vibe. The hype didn’t live up to the reality in our case, and we wouldn’t recommend Upper Room based...

Bad. You need to read. Having read the glowing reviews, my wife & I were very excited to try Upper Room. In fact, we dropped in earlier in the day to book a table (which we later realised wasn’t necessary as there was no one else there). I rarely leave a scathing review because I realise it impacts more than just the owners (& the staff were nice), however on this occasion the food was so appalling they were thought we needed to let others know how bad this place is. Either the 5 Star reviews are fake or they have had catastrophic event in the kitchen. Given that the restaurant was empty (Thursday July 18) - would indicate this is not the only bad meal they have served. This is the worse meal my wife and have ever had. We eat out a lot, and know our food. This was inedible (please see pic/s - we should have thought to take more). We ordered the platter for two, that included ribs, pork belly, satay* sticks, corn, chips. (*we could not actually tell what type of protein it was but it was chewy & inedible). The worst was the pork belly, this had clearly been frozen &/or reheated, with the bottom of the meat had been burnt into an unrecognisable, thin, black, layer of what ended up like leather/fat), not sure what they had done but not good. The only edible items were the chips & the corn. I could go on, but just do not go. Extremely...

The restaurant is right on the main road, but you would never know it, the atmosphere drowns out the majority of the the noise and we were sat outside.

The food was unbelievable, the house honey glazed baby back pork ribs were to die for, 2 of us split the 300g portion and it was the perfect size before our main course. We each got the black Angus choice T-bone and it was cooked exactly as we asked, sauces were amazing (chimichurri and black pepper) and the sides (wedges and sauteed veg) were great. Portion sizes are great if not on the larger side. Reni our waitress was brilliant, polite and friendly. Overall 10/10, fantastic experience and would...