Porutota Rd, Negombo, Sri Lanka 

I stumbled across this restaurant when I was looking at where to have my evening meal in Negombo. It had excellent reviews and to be fair I chose it as it seemed the closest to my guesthouse, but I was so impressed and I highly recommend you must eat here during your stay in Negombo.

Firstly, I had contacted the owner to say I was coming along which I like to do out of respect as I will be writing about it on my blog, so I just make them aware. Well, the hospitality I received was outstanding. Martin Fullerton the owner who also works in the kitchen is so proud of his venture and it is easy to see why.

The restaurant is on the main strip in Negombo and when my tuktuk pulled up outside I was surprised at how busy it was even though it was only 6pm as people tend to eat later in Sri Lanka. The front of the restaurant is quite open plan with lots of tables, most of which were full.

I was taken to the back of the restaurant where it opens up into a more spacious area and has outside seating. There is a cool bar out the back to try some of the yummy cocktails. I decided to have a redhead since I have red hair I thought it was quite fitting but there were so many others to choose from and the best thing is they have happy hour so get there and try as many as you can.

Redhead Cocktail : Ginger Beer, Fresh Ginger and Elderflower Syrup

If you are going to eat later then I would recommend booking otherwise you could always have a drink whilst you wait or a fish foot spa. Yes you read that right they have a free fish foot spa for people who are eating at this wonderful restaurant so the fishes get to dine on your dead skin before you eat your dinner lol. This is the first time I have ever seen a fish spa in a restaurant. Have you ever tried one?, it is such a strange feeling.

The bar is a great place to sit and have a drink even if you are not eating as they had music playing and it had a cool atmosphere. Even the bar itself had a special feature with real fish in the reservoir built into the bar, again something I have never seen before.

I didn’t realise how big the restaurant was, but at the back there were plenty of tables, I would recommend asking for a table at the back as it seemed more chilled listening to the music and listening to the rain but if it wasn’t raining there is also great outside seating.

Hope Foundation

Not only do they provide amazing food which I will get to in a minute, but Lords Restaurant also puts a lot back into the communities of Sri Lanka. The profits go into the Hope foundation which is to help street dogs and cat’s welfare and give them a better life. Martin told me he has even taken in 43 dogs into his home which I just can’t imagine how they can all fit.

They have their own Hope magazine which explains all the wonderful things the restaurant is doing to help the local communities in Sri Lanka.

The restaurant also works on other Social Responsible projects including investing in people by training staff to help them improve their English and culinary skills. Martin has trained over 2000 staff who have then moved onto full employments elsewhere with the skills that they have learnt.

The menu at Lords Restaurant

The menu was absolutely amazing, so many choices and I could not decide what to eat. You can see their full menu on their website so you could pick what you want before you get there to hurry things along as its going to be a hard decision. I had been in Asia now for 5 weeks and was a bit fed up of spice in fact my tummy was starting to hurt so I just wanted something a little less Asian. I know this sounds so annoying the typical British tourist wants something plain, but I did. However, there were so many menu options and some items that I recognised from the western world with an Asian flair.

They even cater for so many different tastes with a vegan menu and a gluten free menu. I met someone on my GAdventures tour who was vegan and she had so much difficulty ordering food when we were travelling around Sri Lanka so it is great that this restaurant caters for different dietary requirements.

I ended up ordering Southern Fried Chicken in Breadcrumbs but it wasn’t like anything I have tasted before. It came with sweet potato curried fries that had a bit of a kick to them and a beetroot and pineapple coleslaw. It was actually the coleslaw that made me order this dish as it sounded so refreshing.

The chef/owner Martin was so passionate about his menu and cooking that he ended up bringing me out some sample dishes which were out of this world. I wish I had more time in the restaurant or had a bigger appetite as I wanted to eat everything that was put in front of me as it was all so flavoursome but there was just so much of it.

I tried 6 different curries including Thai, Chicken and Coconut and Tikka Masala, 2 rice’s and Bombay potatoes and WOW it all blew my mind. Considering I didn’t want spice all of these dishes were amazing I had explained I wasn’t a huge spice fan and they were not overly hot. Extra spices are put n the table so you can make your dishes hotter if you want but I would also mention it to the waiter as the food is cooked fresh so they can help cater to your hotness preference.

It was great to try dishes that I would not normally order, and it gave me such a taste of the food that was on offer I Sri Lanka. However nowhere I visited on the rest of my trip in Sri Lanka lived up to this place. It was amazing and if I was ever in Negombo again this would be at the top of my list of places to visit. You could literally have a week in Negombo just working your way through his wonderful menu as there were so many choices.

Dessert I am still dreaming about

The best thing was the Baileys and White Chocolate Cheesecake this was the best cheesecake I have ever had and that is no exaggeration. In fact, I went back to Lords Restaurant later in my trip when I returned to Negombo to join my GAdventures tour to get some more cheesecake as I had been dreaming about it for 5 days but unfortunately the restaurant doesn’t open until 3pm and it was only lunch time and I was meeting my group at 4pm so I couldn’t go back which nearly made me cry as it really is that good.

So if you are looking for somewhere to eat in Negombo then this is the place that you have to try.

Thank you to owner Martin for making me feel so welcome and taking the time to explain the dishes you love cooking and I certainly loved eating them.

 

Quoted From : http://traveltorecovery.com/lords-restaurant