Say hello to the newest member of Motel Mexicola family which came after Da Maria, TROPICOLA! First time receiving the mail of its opening in my inbox, I couldn’t get more excited especially because I knew I would be going to Bali real soon so it meant the news wasn’t only nice to know, but would be a real-life experience.
As I would be coming in quite big group, I earlier had the thought of making reservation. Nonetheless, doing a little research on the venue, seemed like it’s spacious enough and anyway the schedule my friends and I went there would be early afternoon so I didn’t think it would be that packed there. Moreover, the day bed wouldn’t be available for reservation as they kept it for first-come-first-serve basis. If you’re worried about entrance fee, just shoo that away as you could come in for free, and only the day bed required minimum spend of IDR 800k.
Located at Canggu, it’s not that hard to find the spot, just that the road access to the venue was pretty bumpy. Great thing they provided quite huge parking space so you wouldn’t face trouble to place your vehicle (yep, I found this important to mention remembering that parking space was such an issue in Bali).
The colorful tone, the square tiles, and the white-red combination for the servants uniforms; all seemed to bring you back to the hype 80’s style. Bali’s indeed the champion for landing amusing out-of-the-box concept, having different stuffs to offer on every single new opening. Yeah, compared to the recently opened ones in J-town at least, many of which were pretty much similar. Oh and anyway, this was from Motel Mexicola’s group so no doubt it’s as enchanting as the predecessors!
Having no sleep yet in the last 30 hours combined with the pretty sunny day, I preferred to be the chillin’ gang who just spent the time lazily sitting on the couch while sipping my drink and munching my light bites. Some of my friends hit the pool enjoying some splash to refresh themselves.
Huevos Rancheros (IDR 85k)
Being the most uncommon among the tapas list, this Mexican dish basically served slow cooked egg, refried beans, pico de gallo, avocado, and sour cream on top of round-shaped crispy tortilla. Kinda similar to nachos in my view, just that the tortilla came in single piece instead of plenty small cuts. Despite the presentation wasn’t as stunning as my earlier imagination, I might say it was okay-ish both in look and taste. However, if I might suggest, I would prefer to mix all the ingredients and enjoying them altogether in a single bite, or otherwise it seemed like enjoying different components served in a single plate ;)
Hot Dog (IDR 90k)
WOW! Perhaps that word with a jaw-break could best represent my expression first time spotting the dish landed on the table. The huge size kinda surprised me, particularly the pork sausage which did look very fulfilling, coming in gigantic portion and topped with extra happiness from mix of raw and fried onion, mustard, ketchup, and organic pickles. Although it might not deserve the title of best hotdog ever, it’s absolutely not bad; having tasty sausage, fluffy bun, and extra flavors coming from the toppings.
Hot Chocolate + Guajillo Mousse (IDR 75k)
Shifting to the sweet polar, first one apparently turned out not suiting the palate of everyone’s on the table. Yeah it’s my fault missing to browse what Guajillo actually was. It’s actually dried chili that’s commonly used in Mexican dish. So you could imagine the good-looking thick chocolate mousse gave surprising spicy explosion in the mouth. Finally I ended up picking the dark chocolate pearls, chocolate cake, and vanilla ice cream only; trying as much as possible to get rid of the hot mousse. If you’re into such unique dessert, you might find your treasure here.
Caramelized French Toast (IDR 70k)
I wasn't sure if you had the same thought as mine, but looking at the presentation, my first impression on this french toast was 'OK, it's expensive'. Infused with coffee honey and paired with roasted pineapple and yoghurt sorbet, I did agree it tasted quite good, but not really a sophisticated one that's too complex to craft at home ;)
Banana Split (IDR 60k)
The one that I put as last choice when placing the order simply because I perceived it’s too mainstream. Nevertheless, it finally became the sweet that suited my palate quite well compared to the earlier ones. Yes, bluntly speaking it’s simple mix of caramelized banana, milk chocolate ice cream, toasted peanut praline, whipped cream, and toffee sauce; but perhaps because of that reason it won this time. All those classic elements just went well combined together mixing creamy and crunchy ingredients whose taste balanced one another. Wouldn't deny that I might get same thing elsewhere, but at least I pretty much enjoyed Tropicola's version.
Tropicola (IDR 40k)
Merely speaking about presentation and the idea behind, I guessed this drink was quite enticing. Well, mentioned as 'secret house cola recipe', it kind of tickled the curiosity to give it a try as you must be questioning what the secret recipe was. Having a sip, I might only be able to say that it was dominated by the cola taste ;)
Porn Star Martini (IDR 120k)
Coming in picturesque look, this cocktail belonged to my friend, who seemed to be more hitched by the drink's presentation than the taste. The glass featured vanilla vodka, passionfruit, and banana; yeah peculiar combination having the two last elements came together. Unfortunately, the flavor mix seemed to be not my friend's kind of cocktail.
Elixir 3 (IDR 50k)
Looking at the description only, this last drink sounded to be the healthiest among the rest, as it brought the trio of coconut water, honey, and spirulina. When you saw the real one, you might not be able to recognize it since it came in blue-green-combined color. It was a great choice to quench the thirst, but I would love it more if it could be slightly less sweet.
All in all, bluntly said I enjoyed the place more than what I had on my dining table. The ambiance was pretty nice, especially if you're not demanding for a real beach, and a pool would do great for you. Besides, if you're just trying to be in tune with the latest trend, paying a visit and giving it a try would definitely not hurt ;)
Taste: 6.5/10
Place: 7/10Service: 7/10
Price: 6.5/10
Thanks for reading! :)
TROPICOLA
Address: Jl. Pantai Batu Belig No. 5, Seminyak, Bali
Phone: (+62 361) 934 3636
Operating Hours: Mon - Sun 11am - 1am
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