Best of Sri Lanka
Its cuisine is marked by the clever use of spices, writes Tan Bee Hong
A Li Yaa Island Restaurant & Bar (no pork served)
48 Plaza Damansara
Jalan Medan Setia 2
Bukit Damansara, Kuala Lumpur
03-2092 5378
aliyaa.com
Daily. Lunch 11am to 3pm. Dinner 6pm to 11pm Sri Lankan specialties Crab curry and Sweet Appam
About RM50 per person Casual dining
Impeccable
Must try
Longbean curry
Jaffna crab curry. nut, dried chilli, onion, lime juice and curry leaves and goes very well with the range of roti.
Then we nibble on Rotti Rolls (RM23), wraps stuffed with spicy marinated lamb and onions. The rolls are panfried to brown lightly. There are also cutlets such as potato, fish and lamb. Each is unique in itself and equally scrumptious.
The lamb cutlets rather like the filling in the Rotti Rolls but I like the fish cutlets best. The combination of flaked fish with onion and chilli just hits the right spot.
While rice is a good foil for all the spicy dishes, A Li Yaa also offers roti, appam, puttu and string hoppers, all of which make fabulous accompaniments to the curries.
String hoppers are particularly lovely with Mutton Paal Poriyal (RM35). The mutton, slow cooked in a well-balanced combination of spices, is tender and scrumptious.
Mutton is served in other forms, such as Mutton Curry, Mutton Masala and Mutton Poriyal.
Try some roti with the mild but delicious Fish Sothi (RM38) and savour the aroma of the spices. The fish is cooked in coconut milk with lemongrass, garlic, shallots and curry leaves.
GET CRABBY
Sri Lanka is famous for its crabs. On A Li Yaa’s menu, Colombo Crab Curry and Jaffna Crab Curry are top sellers. “We import all our crabs (RM18/100g) from Sri Lanka,” says Shiva, who blends his own spices in the kitchen. Bottles of various blends of spices are now on sale at the restaurant.
We pick Jaffna Crab Curry, in a sauce as exciting as it is dark, is finger-licking good. It’s not as “pedas” (spicy) as the Colombo Crab Curry though. The meaty crabs are sweet and match perfectly with the dry, dark sauce scented with curry leaves.
Jaffna-Style Eggplant Sambal is a real treat. The eggplant is cut into thin slivers,
Papadum with four types of sambal.
deepfried and tossed with caramelised onion, chilli, tomato and curry leaves.
OH MY APPAM
I am partial to the Sweet Appam (RM8) from A Li Yaa. Unlike the appam meant to be eaten with curries and savoury dishes, the sweet appam has a fluffy, moist heart from a lashing of coconut cream. When it’s done with perfectly crispy edges, the appam is dotted with generous sprinkles of brown sugar. I fold the soft centre over the crisp edge and pop this into the mouth, relishing the contrast in textures.