Colombo food adventures
Culinary hot spots serve curried sea bass and faluda dessert amongst Sri Lankan city’s beautiful temples and mosques
COLOMBO, SRI LANKA— It’s 6 a.m. and I’ve just been side-swiped by a swordfish. The fish in question is dead, but that doesn’t make it less dangerous. You need your wits about you in Colombo’s fish market, which opens at 2 a.m. and is over by 6 a.m.
It’s not a place to visit with a hangover, either. It’s smelly, although not as smelly as I imagined, and the floor’s shiny and wet. Several times, I grab onto innocent bystanders to stop myself falling.
I stoically resist the urge to glance at my flip-flops, not because I don’t need another reminder of my poor footwear choice, but because I know the floor’s slick with fish guts and blood. However, it’s a great place to learn about Colombo.
Sri Lanka’s brutal civil war ended just a few years ago — in 2009. When I first visited the country, its wartorn capital was still very much recovering, and certain parts were still no-go areas. Tourists are now flocking to the island, although the city is still seen by most as merely an entry point.
But a growing number of visitors are taking the time to explore Colombo, a city filled with temples, beautiful parks and colonial buildings, such as the Grand Oriental Hotel, which dates back to the1800s and was the first hotel in Sri Lanka to have electric lighting.
I’m on the three-day, Bite-size Break tour with Intrepid Travelwalking and driving the city with guide Kieshokanth Krishnasamy, a local foodie who knows the Colombo’s culinary hot spots like the back of his hand.
Many of the city’s most beautiful buildings have been hidden away until now. Large parts of the centre were closed to the public until 2010. These areas are now a hive of activity, with teams of workers restoring fantastically ornate buildings to their former glory. But Colombo’s food scene is equally responsible for the city’s sudden popularity, and its diversity is a huge part of its appeal.
Take Pettah, a neighbourhood famous for its enormous market. At times, I feel like I’ve wandered into a Moroccan souk. Muslims first arrived in Sri Lanka as Arab traders, and many still work here. However, this area remains largely Tamil (Pettah comes from the Tamil word pettai, meaning village). It’s colourful and chaotic, and getting around requires dodging various obstacles — traders balancing huge loads on their heads or pushing barrows piled high with fruit. The fruit and vegetable market is the most colourful area, although I fail to recognize most of the produce.
Krishnasamy points out pyramids of wood apples, with their hard shells and soft, fleshy interiors, enormous jackfruit and piles of rambutans, identifiable by their spiky exteriors.
Pettah is also home to what might just be the world’s most beautiful mosque. Built with painted red and white bricks, the Jami-Ul-Alfar Mosque can accommodate 3,000 faithful, who come to worship beneath its colourful domes. Its pillars remind me of the candy-striped poles outside barbershops.
It’s time to refuel, so we head to a café for faluda — a sickly sweet concoction that is part dessert, part drink. It’s made with ice cream, syrup and jelly. It’s refreshing and delicious — although I can almost feel my teeth rotting with every mouthful. I also discover a soft spot for string hoppers, a popular snack that resembles fragrant balls of string. They’re small bundles of rice flour, pressed into noodle form and then steamed.
Sri Lanka has some of the world’s most beautiful temples, but my favourite is the Gangaramaya Temple. This beautiful, sprawling Buddhist temple complex has several rooms set aside to house the hundreds of thousands of donations people have left. And I don’t just mean cold, hard cash. One cabinet contains the hundreds of cameras people have donated, while another contains thousands of pairs of spectacles. I also spot vintage telephones, typewriters and Barbie dolls. One of the most obscure donations is a brass logo from HSBC bank.
But food is never far away here, and I’ve signed up for a cookery class with Miss Daisy, a local woman who loves inviting tourists into her home for some Sri Lankan delicacies.
I’m making a curry with the sea bass I picked up at the fish market. The lesson provides a fascinating insight into Sri Lankan cuisine, although I quickly lose track of the ingredients as Miss Daisy lays out dish after dish of colourful spices. My clumsiness when adding the seasoning requires huge glugs of coconut milk to reduce the saltiness.
When that doesn’t work, Miss Daisy takes a piece of paper and lays it on top of the simmering pan, informing me that doing so reduces the salt. And to my surprise, it works, and the result is a delicious fish curry, albeit one that leaves my eyes streaming as a result of its spicy, fragrant heat.
On my final night, I stroll along the seafront.
On the sand, street food vendors feed Colombo’s hungry masses. One of the most popular dishes is isso vadai — lentil cakes topped with whole prawns. They’re delicious, although those prone to squeamishness might want to eat with their eyes closed.
I finish the night by toasting Colombo at the rooftop bar at the Movenpick, one of many new hotels springing up along the seafront. It’s a Saturday night and next to the spectacular (and empty) rooftop pool there’s a DJ hard at work behind the decks. Amazingly, the place is half full. Sadly, I don’t think that will be the case for much longer. Tamara Hinson’s trip was sponsored by Urban Adventures, who didn’t sreview or approve this story.