Cycle 3 – Item 284
15 (Mon) October 2012
Mouth Watering Lamprais
2.5
at Sri Lankan
(Crescat Shopping Centre)
-Colombo, Sri Lanka-
44th Conference of the Asia-Pacific Academic Consortium on Public Health: Day 3 of 5
- Day 1 (3.282 Murgh Dum Biryani)
- Day 2 (3.283 Seerfish White Curry Meal)
- Day 3 (3.284 Mouth Watering Lamprais)
- Day 4 (3.285 Thali)
- Day 5 (3.286 Lobster Tempered in Spices)
In Colombo. Here to attend and present at APACPH44. Heading back on Wednesday night.
LUNCH
I had lunch in the hotel lobby restaurant.
It was chicken in a distinctly nonblack “black” curry, so-called because of the black pepper, another example of the hot and spicy nature of Sri Lankan cuisine.
SHOPPING
DINNER
On my own for dinner, I walked down the road from the hotel in search of eats and came upon a residential/commercial complex comprising the Cinnamon Grand Hotel, the Crescat Residences, and the Crescat Shopping Centre, which has a food court in the basement. With the other meals during my stay already scheduled at fancier venues, I figured the food court would be the closest that I could get to what the locals eat on a daily basis, even if a poor representative thereof.
The stall Sri Lankan was the only one that appeared ostensibly local.
Despite the range of choices, I fell for the sign promoting the lamprais – always a sucker for point-of-sale marketing.
Lamprais is a Sri Lankan dish. It consists of variously seasoned rice/meats/vegetables that are wrapped/baked/served in a banana leaf.
My first impression of lamprais, alas, wasn’t so great. For starters, the form was foreign to me, so I didn’t know whether I was supposed to eat everything individually or mixed together. The flavors were also foreign – at once spicy and sweet and fragrant and funky – totally unlike anything that I’ve ever encountered anywhere. Overall, I didn’t find it very pleasant. Most likely, the lamprais here had simply failed to realize the dish’s true potential. But fun nonetheless. At least it was just 400 rupees (about US$3).
(See also GLOBAL FOOD GLOSSARY)
(See also RESTAURANTS IN SRI LANKA)
