Eating in Sri Lanka

Eating is one of the highlights of any trip to Sri Lanka. Fresh fruit to piping hot curries there is enough variety and flavour to satisfy the foodies fo this world.

As is noted in many guidebooks and travel articles, eating out is not as common in Sri Lanka as it is in other parts of Asia. As a result it is not uncommon for homestays, a common form of accommodation in Sri Lanka to provide delicious home cooked meals. However if you fancy eating out restaurants are easy enough to find. Especially in popular places.

Breakfast

The vast majority of accommodation options in Sri Lanka include breakfast or offer it at a very reasonable price. Breakfast usually consists of a wide variety of dishes, this can be a lot of food. Usually breakfast will consist of a variety of the following: eggs, coconut roti, hoppers (a type of Sri Lankan pancake), pancakes with coconut and honey, curd and honey, toast and fresh fruit. A very satisfying way to start the day.

String Hoppers

This quintessential Sri Lankan dish  is eaten at all times of the day. A crude way to describe it would be curry noodles. Noodles made from rice flour are steamed, not boiled as this helps them soak up the curry flavours. The noodles are into shaped into biscuit sized discs. Grab a couple and then generously add the curry on top. Usually there will be 2 or 3 of different curries to add. In our experience the majority of the time is was various forms of vegetarian curry. Cheap, nutritious and filling, you can’t go wrong.

Curry and Rice

Probably the most common food in Sri Lanka, this is found everywhere. Usually it will be a variety of vegetable curry with one meat curry on the side. The staple curries are usually a dhal (lentil) curry, pumpkin curry and green bean curry. This is all served with rice and popadoms. The number of curries that come will differ from restaurant to restaurant, but you can be pretty confident the food will be fantastic.

Lamprais

We had this fantastic dish in Ella. It consists of a meat curry and aubergine curry along with seen sambal, an egg, various other curried vegetables and rice all wrapped in a banana leaf. This is a must have!

Kottu

This extremely filling dish is found everywhere. It consists of finely chopped roti cooked on a skillet with pieces of meat and vegetables. This can be a spicy dish, so if you don’t want it to be spicy just let them know.

Dosas

This may be my favourite. A dosa is just a lentil pancake served with a variety of dips. There is a huge amount of variety in terms of the type of dosa you order. You can have it plain, spicy, with masala, cooked with ghee or my personal favourite with cheese holding 2 huge pancakes together. Don’t even think about using a knife and fork here, just get stuck in with your hands. 

Deviled Anything

We found this wonderful style of cooking in almost every restaurant we visited in Sri Lanka. This is fried pieces of marinated fish, chicken, beef, prawns, vegetables etc combined with a tangy, spicy sauce that is just mouth watering. Be warned this dish can sometimes be a little spicy. So if you’re not a fan of spicy food, check with the restaurant first.

Samosas

Samosas in Sri Lanka come in a variety of shapes and sizes. Usually they are filled with potato curry. Some are more heavily deep fried than others and if you order them in a restaurant they usually come with sweet chili sauce that is pretty tasty.

Tea

It would be a crime to come to Sri Lanka and not enjoy a few cups of tea. Freshest up in the hill country, it goes perfectly with those misty peaks.

Lassis

Yoghurty, fruity concoctions that go perfectly with Sri Lanka’s sweltering weather.

Seafood

Sri Lanka has some phenomenal seafood on offer. Both Miranda and I are big fans of seafood so this was a bit of a no-brainer in Sri Lanka. There are a few particularly excellent dishes that we had:

Kalpitiya: We stayed at Nethu Villa right on the beach and had two amazing home cooked meals of deviled fish and curried grilled fish. All home cooked by the owner Jagath.

Colombo: Fat Crab, located in Colombo 5 is an absolute must for anyone who is a fan of good food. We had mud crab and prawns wrapped in bacon, smothered in cheese and then deep fried. Phenomenal.

South Coast: The south coast of Sri Lanka is loaded with fresh seafood options. So dig in an enjoy!