Foods

Vegetales: Dare to be a vegetarian

As a nouveau vegetarian, who decided the meat had to go from the diet, I would say that the journey to get there was no walk in the park! Since 2012, I’ve been contemplating this decision by weighing the pros and cons, posing numerous questions to vegans and vegetarians alike, prior to making one final push towards a new me!

Colombo Supper Club

In a bold move to introduce culinary diversity to discerning diners in Sri Lanka, Singaporean resident in Sri Lanka Naserah Tyebally founded the Colombo Supper Club in 2016. This former lawyer who has called Sri Lanka her home for the last 16 years is a passionate foodie at heart. She loves experimental food and in particular chef and produce driven restaurants.

For The Love of Peanut Butter!

Peanut and jam sandwiches was my go to breakfast, snack or sometimes even dessert since I was a child. It is a classic combination that will never go wrong. Also, it’s one of the easiest things to make!

Created by Sherryl

With a personal life experience pushing her to explore her creative side, Sherryl Brendon started to work on her baking skills. She developed these skills further at the Peggy Porschen Academy in London while also being a full time teacher there. Now back in Sri Lanka, Sherryl takes on orders for intricate handcrafted decorated cookies.

MOTHER

The new kid on the block with hot dogs, burgers and juices is MOTHER. Located in the premises of Divine Cakes at Queens Road, this little outlet serves the most delicious hot dogs imaginable. We dropped by to see what MOTHER has to offer. Here’s what we thought of our experience.

Sunday Brunch at the Galle Face Hotel

The Sunday Brunch at Galle Face Hotel features a varied menu to suit all ages. The buffet is laid out on the Verandah which is just about the most beautiful spot in the hotel. Overlooking the beautiful blue sea and watching the waves overlapping each other is for sure one of my favourite sit outs. Although it was really hot outside it was surprisingly rather cool and comfortable inside.

Fashion + Food by CFW

Every season HSBC Colombo Fashion Week partners with four premier restaurants in Colombo to curate unique, limited edition menus and signature dishes from the 13th to the 19th March, intended to provide attendees with an appetising gastronomical experience. This year proves to be no different.

Ginza on the Edge

Moshi moshi, fellow Japanese cuisine lovers. Ginza on the Edge is the Japanese restaurant located at Waters Edge, Battaramulla, serving you with delicacies as if straight from the land of the rising sun.

The Ethical Pantry - Chickpeas

A staple in South Asian, European and Middle Eastern cuisines, the humble chickpea is a versatile addition to your pantry. From the legume family, these nutritional little powerhouses offer a range of health benefits due to their high fibre, protein content and abundance of other vitamins and minerals such as iron, phosphate, calcium, magnesium, manganese, zinc and vitamin K.

Ankara

Adding flavour and colour to Colombo’s culinary offering the first Turkish restaurant was launched with much pomp and pageantry very recently. Located on Milagiriya Avenue in Colombo 4, diners will discover a mixture and refinement of traditional fare that draws its inspiration from Central Asian, Middle Eastern and Balkan cuisines.

Bakes by Bella Café

The success story of Bakes by Bella highlights how powerful social media is in this day and age. What started off with baking at home just for the love of it, to eventually opening a separate Instagram page titled Bakes by Bella just to post her baking success stories, Melissa Dharmadasa (a Biomedical Scientist by profession) seems to have formed an almost celebrity like following simply because she whips up some really fine baked treats.

5 Non-Sri Lankan Teas You Might Like

Sri Lankans and tea always go hand in hand. When my mother used to travel, she carried about 7-10 boxes of the assorted Dilmah fruit tea bags for her friends abroad. The milk tea was the champion for us. We never understood the huge hype about the flavoured and coloured cups of fruit and herb teas. We decided to give these ‘cuppas’ a shot and here are the shortlisted favourites.

Cat’s Super Scrambled Tofu

Following on from my article last week about the soya centre I’m going to share with you a recipe for a basic tofu scramble. This is one of the first dishes I learnt how to cook when I went vegetarian as it’s super easy and you can use household staples.

For The Love of Garlic!

Are you a big fan of garlic bread just like I am and tired of having to run to the store every time you get a craving? Sometimes you are let down by the taste even if you buy it from your favourite store! Here is a simple recipe that anyone can follow.

The Soya Centre, Kandy

Most people who have been to Kandy know of The Soya Centre. That haven for dairy free delights on Kotugodella Veediya, right in the centre of Kandy town. The two large ice cream cones that you can see from the street, beckon to locals and tourists alike.

Café Noir

We’ve been hearing good things about Café Noir, so we decided to check them out and see if they lived up to the hype.

Hangover Café

Hangover Hostels Mirissa is a cool set up which caters to backpackers who can look forward to a clean, friendly place to relax and stay over for very reasonable rates but it seems to be their café - Hangover Café, which opened in December 2016 that gives the already funky spot a whole lot of life.

Harpo’s Pizza and Pasta opens in Mount Lavinia

As part of its long term expansion plan, Harpo’s Pizza and Pasta, launched its second pizza parlour in Mount Lavinia. Conveniently located and easily accessible on Galle Road in a prime position of Mount Lavinia, Harpo’s Pizza and Pasta offers a range of woodfired, thin crust pizzas and fresh homemade pastas for customers to dine in, takeaway or have delivered to their home through their efficient delivery service.

The Startup Cook – Marinara Sauce

Pasta is one of those foods that I can eat on a regular basis. Especially on a hectic weekday, when everything has been super exhausting, there is nothing like a good bowl of pasta to liven up my spirits. To deal with the hasty pace of a working day, this Marinara Sauce is set to fulfil your dining desires.

For The Love Of Toast!

This is a recipe for cheese toast and it’s as Sri Lankan as it gets! It can be made as an appetizer for parties or something easy that you can whip up easily if you want to treat yourself.

Big Birds Delights

There’s something special about being able to find holiday treats outside of December, so when I found out that Big Birds Delights sells Eggnog throughout the year I was ecstatic! Jovanka Jayaweera works full time in the banking industry but has always loved to cook. Two years ago she made Eggnog which went down really well with family and friends when they visited for Christmas.

Review: Noodles

Located in the Cinnamon Grand Hotel, Noodles restaurant delivers Asian fusion cuisine with inspirations from Thailand and Vietnam. The staff are welcoming, the atmosphere is inviting and there’s an interesting food and drinks menu. Although at first look there’s not a huge amount of dishes marked vegetarian on the menu, the chef will quite happily amend any of their animal based dishes to suit the vegetarian or vegan diner.

Culinary delights at the Colombo Jazz Festival

The Colombo Jazz Festival is set to take place on the 18th and 19th of February 2017 at the renowned Galle Face Hotel. As the official location partner of the Festival, the Galle Face Hotel will be hosting a plethora of culinary delights for Festival goers to enjoy.

For The Love Of Mango!

Tired of making chocolate mousse every time? Why don’t you try out our simple mango mousse that will take you less than 15 minutes to make!

The Valentine’s Day Range

For the season of love, Mabroc Bubble Tea introduces a brand new and limited edition Valentine’s Day range! With new flavours and heart shaped jellies to the novel Couple’s Cup, you can’t go wrong this Valentine’s Day with Mabroc!

Tea Lounge at The Edge

The newest addition to Waters Edge, the Tea Lounge at the Edge embraces the Dilmah Tea revolution in offering the finest Ceylon tea to the tea connoisseur of Sri Lanka. The beautifully designed and tastefully decorated lounge is the ideal place to hang out, relax and have a snack.

Vegan Poya Day Buffet at MLH

With Navam Poya being held on February 10 (Friday), it’s time to reflect on the first precept of Buddhism - panatipata veramani sikkhapadam samadiyami, which roughly translates to do not harm any living creature. It’s from this precept and consumer demand for organic and healthy plant based food that Mount Lavinia Hotel has changed its Poya day buffet menu from that of vegetarian cuisine to vegan.

7 Places for Maki Rolls

Japanese cuisine has risen from relative obscurity to considerable fame over the past few years introducing us Sri Lankans to the concept of raw food based gastronomical experiences. Maki Sushi (rice, fish and other ingredients rolled up in seaweed) holds a special place in our hearts and is especially popular with those who find sashimi a little too difficult to stomach. So, here’s the roundup of our favourite spots to grab maki sushi.