Folie Kitchen & Patisserie borrows its name from the French word for being madly in love — in this case with none other than great food. Led under the culinary love of Chef Stephan Simond, Folie is an up-and-coming restaurant nestled in Bali’s seaside resort village Canggu.
Charming diners with its pleasantly light-hearted atmosphere and tropical design that’s far from overdone, Folie is what you would expect of a delightful restaurant that’s true to modern day Bali — classy yet casual, cosy yet island-chic.
The restaurant is peppered with nature-themed murals whose pastel colours breathe life to the earthy toned interior that’s synonymous with the island. The chairs, custom-made by a Yogyakarta-based furniture studio Woodpecker, sport blue accents that achieve the same. Select Birds of Paradise greens bring a tasteful note of the outdoors inside the restaurant, though Folie also has an equally arresting al fresco dining area.
On the patio, the baby blue booths lining the vivid pink wall make a beautiful set-up that aesthetic seekers would celebrate. Just like with its dining area inside, Folie isn’t hesitant to shower its outdoors with verdant greens. At night, the bright and airy Folie turns into a romantic spot both inside its walls and outside.
The man behind the restaurant, chef Stephan Simond brings his French haute cuisine know-how to Bali and his enchantment by Asian flavours to Folie, serving all three meals of the day plus delectable French patisseries. Stephan admits pastries aren’t his strongest suit, but tuck your napkin and take a bite of Folie’s croissant — you wouldn’t believe the chef.
Stephan is part French and part Italian, which explains the Italian fare on the menu like pasta and mushroom risotto. But the main stars include the seared French duck foie gras, ribeye with black truffle mashed potatoes and a surprising addition of Indonesian salted fish fried rice.
Each day, a new restaurant sprouts up in Bali and brings the food scene to a higher level. What does this mean to Folie? “It means that you must be there every day, checking, tasting, sharing, repeating the same gesture, to show and ensure your team that our quality standard is consistent at every bite our customer takes. That is the secret,” says Stephan.