What started out as a home experiment of making homemade peanut butter inspired Kavindi Emmanuel to start her own business along the same lines. “I’m a huge fan of peanut butter but store-bought ones are pretty expensive in Sri Lanka and they contain preservatives. During the 1st Covid lockdown period while I was working from home, I wanted to do something related to cooking because I enjoy cooking’’.
Brew 1867 by Dilmah is one of my favourite cafes ever! They already have three outlets at Nawam Mawatha, Flower Road and WTC. They just opened up their fourth outlet in Fort, inside the Hatch Building. I’m an almost daily customer at Brew WTC and have been longing for an opportunity to do a review.
One of the long-standing restaurants in the Galle Face area, Navratna - Taj Samudra’s traditional Indian restaurant serves up traditional Mughal cuisine and is possibly one of the very few places which pride itself on the authenticity of it all.
As someone who loves meat, I have never actively sought vegan food. But glancing through the PowerCrunch Granola website tempted me into giving it a try. A venture that resulted from a bet with her husband, Sabira Deen started off with granola before gradually expanding her products as more and more requests came in.
Fresh out of school, Poojani Rathnayke knew nothing about cakes or baking but a work opportunity with a talented home baker only grew her passion for it. She learnt the basics and the techniques from scratch and began her business Sugar Blossoms in 2019. “My first work experience allowed me to have a growing passion for baking that is what started my journey as a home baker.’’
Galadari’s official bakery/pastry shop Cafe 64 needs no introduction. It’s already an immensely popular spot among food lovers in Colombo. The quality of the food, the service and better still the setting is one of the best you will find. Their latest promotion, however, is a tad different from what they usually offer and it came as quite a pleasant surprise.
A cure for every Friday night out that makes you just want to laze around the next morning, the folks down at Graze Kitchen - a name synonymous with the Hilton Colombo itself, have come up with a great way of spending your Saturday: All. Day. Breakfast. This weekly event aims to feed the hungry stomachs that go out for a very hectic Friday night and just want some wholesome food without having to wake up before 10 AM.
Located down Chitra Lane Colombo 05 “Mongolian Street” by Shevon is an innovative street food restaurant that allows you to experience the wonders of authentic Asian Fusion Cuisine. With a vast selection of Mongolian street food and a touch of magical Sri Lankan flavour, Mongolian Street is the ideal place to satisfy your fusion food cravings.
How do our food experts cook and eat? Dheeshana of Sri Lanka’s first meat-free boutique hotel Theva Residency takes our Q&A!
Dinushka Jayawickreme started Bola’s Bakeshop back in 2018 and successfully manoeuvred her home business during the turbulent times of lockdown last year. “Bola’s Bakeshop takes after my nickname – Bola. Most people don’t even know my actual name so it seemed like a good way to own it by naming my home business after it!”.
Run by mom and daughter duo, Ramani and Shavindri Attygalla, The Ceylon Baker is a brand created to highlight the synergy between the two.
Catering to our perennial love for chicken is Burning Bird, the newest entrant into Sri Lanka’s burgeoning food culture. A cloud kitchen - meaning that they only operate via deliveries and have no sit-down service - BB has wings, starters, sides, and even family platters for you to pick from!
Filling up the time baking during the lockdown, Senali Dioni Pathirane started her home business towards the very end of the quarantine period. “I have been incredibly passionate about baking since the start, I was always in the kitchen whipping something up, of course - there were many trial and error moments and unfortunately it was my family who got caught to taste all the cooking fails as well as the ones that were successful’’.
Cinnamon Grand’s newest 24-hour gourmet dining restaurant ‘PLATES’ stepped up to the task by offering a dining venue with an unparalleled collection of flavours from around the world. The restaurant offers both buffet and a la carte dining.
A bouquet of flowers is a quintessential component of Valentine’s gifting, but what if you could gift a bouquet of red roses that don’t wither away? And most importantly, one that tastes delicious? Introducing a new range of edible floral bouquets curated especially for Valentine’s Day is Blooming Cupcakes and Bouquets, a venture by Surani Jayaweera Jayamaha.
In this series, we talk to people who turned their passion for food and baking into a business idea amidst lockdown and COVID-19 fears. Some have been in the market for years and others saw the new opportunity and took it!
It’s our third visit to David’s Dangerously Delicious Char Siu (DDD as it has come to be known over the years) and we were happy to see that the only thing that’s changed since our last visit in December 2019 is a bigger menu.
Stepping into the most romantic day of the year, The Bake Out is introducing their Valentine’s Day boxes curated and customised to those who want to express their love in the sweetest way one can.
Table by Taru at Lake Lodge Villa in Colombo 03 is just shy of a month since its opening and our initial thoughts were that there are bound to be a few kinks and mistakes to be worked out here and there that can be forgiven. But Taru’s sharp-eyed observations and the staff’s ready willingness to correct and perfect allows for none and we realized that it is this strict ethic that would set Table by Taru apart from the rest.
In this series, we talk to people who turned their passion for food and baking into a business idea amidst lockdown and COVID-19 fears. Some have been in the market for years and others saw the new opportunity and took it! These home businesses are changing the game and have overcome the odds of running a business during the quarantine.
If you asked Hasanthi Gunatilake whether she knew she’d one day be an up-and-coming home-based chef – she’d probably answer in the negative. She’s a pre-school teacher by profession – has been one since 2005 after finishing her Advanced Level and she continues to teach full time even today.
How do our food experts cook and eat? @lankanfoodjournal’s Nuzrath Nazimudeen takes our Q&A!
In this series, we talk to people who turned their passion for food and baking into a business idea amidst lockdown and COVID-19 fears. Some have been in the market for years and others saw the new opportunity and took it! These home businesses are changing the game and have overcome the odds of running a business during the quarantine.
Setting yourself apart in the very competitive home-based food business in Colombo is a commendable feat for anyone, but Dish Functional by Zainab Nalir easily manages to rise above the rest with her mouthwateringly delicious, hearty fare - both savoury and sweet - while most importantly, ensuring that the taste and quality of her food are always consistent with a generous sprinkling of heart and soul.
Having initially started off curating customized cheese boards, Natasha Wickremasinghe soon realized the demand for her home-made cheese dips. Utilizing the same brand name which means ‘Gourmet Platters’, Natasha kicked off her own brand of cheese dips that are now party favourites.
How do our food experts cook and eat? This week, Sri Lankan Masterchef Australia contestant Dee takes our Q&A!
For best friends Piyum and Yeheli, the initial lockdown sparked a business idea for a passion they both shared. The Kitchenette, providing custom-order savoury and sweet cuisine, was a quarantine project that grew over the months. “The Kitchenette is based on the fact that we are a small home-based start-up, as a kitchenette is smaller and more intimate than a regular kitchen.”
Passionate about baking from a very young age, Aathikah Emseen Shazran started Sugar Spot as a business in 2016. “I have been greatly inspired by the women in my family. I started making cakes in my teens for birthdays, for my family. Years later it started off as a business when I made an entire dessert table for a friend’s wedding and that’s where my journey began as a home-baker.”
Butlers Pub is right next to Park Street Mews and it brings you a new experience in dining with their picturesque walls and beautiful lighting; you truly do get transformed into another world. It can accommodate up to 50 people, but they do not currently operate at full capacity due to the current situation of the country.
Having always found comfort in baking, Ceylon Muffins by Jaish Parathalingam Jayesingha was a lockdown project that came to life. “I wanted to do something unique as most homemakers are focused on cakes, cupcakes and the like. My speciality is muffins, which is why I decided to name my venture Ceylon Muffins!”.
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