Search for steak in Bali and you will mostly find beach club grills and Australian-import steakhouses charging Australian-import prices. That is a fine option if a grilled ribeye and an ocean view is exactly what you are after. But if you want steak done properly, without the beach club markup or the queue, Seminyak has a quieter option worth knowing about.
A menu built around British comfort food, not just steak
Jemme’s mains lean heavily British, and that context matters when you are choosing where to eat steak in Bali. The Classic Steak comes with a creamy black pepper sauce and homemade French fries, straightforward and well executed rather than over-styled. The Beef Wellington, coated in pâté and duxelles, wrapped in puff pastry and served with a Madeira jus, is the kind of dish that takes real kitchen discipline to get right, the pastry has to be crisp, the beef has to stay pink, and the timing has to be exact. It is not a dish many restaurants in Seminyak attempt, which is precisely why it is worth seeking out if you have a taste for it.
Around those two anchors sits a full spread of British classics: fish and chips breaded in Jemme’s own crumb and served with mushy peas, a banger and mash built on one extra-large Irish sausage and Port onion gravy, and Cumberland pie layering lean beef and vegetables under mashed potato and cheese. If you grew up on this kind of food, or simply miss it after weeks of nasi goreng and satay, this is the menu that scratches that itch.
Why the pairing with Indonesian food matters
What makes Jemme different from a dedicated steakhouse is that the same kitchen also runs Dapur Ibu, its Indonesian menu, in full alongside the British and Western dishes. Beef rendang, braised tenderloin in caramelised coconut milk, sits on the same menu as the Beef Wellington. Pork belly fried rice, Bali’s own take on babi guling reworked as a house speciality, sits alongside the Classic Steak.
This is a genuinely useful thing for a table where not everyone wants the same kind of meal. One person can order steak and mash, another can order rendang and rice, and both leave the table satisfied rather than one person compromising because the “steak place” only does steak and the “Indonesian place” only does Indonesian.
What to order if you are new to the menu
For a first visit built around the meatier end of the menu, a reasonable order looks like this: start with the crispy duck spring roll or the pork belly starter, both rich enough to set the tone without filling you up. Move to the Beef Wellington if you want to see the kitchen’s best technical work, or the Classic Steak if you want something more familiar and forgiving. Add a side of the potato gratin or the crunchy creamy leeks with bacon, and if there is room left, the sticky toffee pudding is the dessert most people order twice.
Pair it with something from the red wine list. Jemme carries options like the Norton Barrel Select Cabernet Sauvignon from Argentina or the Stonefish Shiraz from Margaret River, both built for exactly this kind of meal, full-bodied enough to stand up to steak and pastry without overpowering the more delicate rendang if you are sharing plates.
Where to find it
Jemme is at Jl. Petitenget 28, Seminyak, fully air-conditioned, open from 11am until late with last orders at 10pm. It is an easy stop for lunch or dinner if you are already in the Petitenget or Seminyak area, and reservations are recommended for evenings and weekends, especially if you are coming as a group and want to try more than one dish family-style. Book via WhatsApp at +62 811 3954 00 or by phone at +62 (0) 361 4732392.
If your idea of a good night out in Bali still involves a proper cut of beef and a plate of mash, Jemme is one of the few places in Seminyak still doing it seriously, and doing it next to a menu that covers everything else you might be craving too.