It has been nearly a month since China Doll, one of Colombo’s favourite comfort food delivery joints opened their very first restaurant.  Walking into the restaurant situated down Alfred House Avenue, I look around at the simplistic surroundings and take it in - staring not once, twice but thrice at the huge painting on the left wall, a myriad of colours and characters with a bright yellow China Doll logo painted on top.

The place has definitely got an edge to it, the unique, sophistication written all over their signature dishes is very much present at the new dine-in outlet.   

 

 

Sitting down for a chat with Co-Director/Chef Johann Jayasekera, he tells me that the entire menu has been revamped but it still includes popular favourites such as the noodle and rice dishes. China Doll’s new menu features an extensive range of starters, soups, salads, mains (individual and share) and desserts.

Starters include Vietnamese rice paper rolls (made with glass noodles, carrot, cucumber, coriander, mint and basil leaves with a vegetable, chicken and prawn or beef filling served with lime chillie sauce on the side), Spiced Chickpea Dip (served with char grilled flatbread, fresh herbs, pickled cucumber and a lime chillie dressing) and the Hand Cut Chips, which are thick potato wedges served with wasabi mayonnaise on the side.

Other starters include the Chicken Wontons in Spiced Sichuan Red Oil, Sesame Prawn Toast Soldiers with Green Curry Paste and Lime and Chillie Sauce, Char Grilled Chicken/Beef Satay with Peanut Sauce, Thai Chillie Chicken Wings and Thai Red Curry Fish Cakes to name a few.

 

Seafood Laksa and Tom Yam Seafood are on the selection for soups while 5 new salads stand strong on the new menu namely the Green Mango, Apple and Pomelo Salad. Meat and seafood dishes are located on another section of the menu and these can be ordered to accompany the mains - rice or noodle dishes. The China Doll Cheeseburger is new and features an all beef patty, cheese, caramelized onions, green apple slaw in a toasted sesame bun and fat chips.

Johann reveals that there’s a new pastry chef at the restaurant too, to bake the sesame buns in house because he doesn’t believe in purchasing them from elsewhere. “I want the sesame bun to be firm and not turn soggy immediately upon preparation of the burger so we bake the buns everyday,” explained Johann.

 

 

Dessert is something else. Not featuring a huge selection, Johann has kept them nice and simple but deliciously comforting at the same time. He’s responsible for the Peanut Butter Crème Brulee with Salted Caramel Sauce, a delicious invention and unique twist to your average caramel pudding. Also on the dessert menu is a Fresh Fruit Salad with Lemongrass Ginger Syrup and Mango Sorbet. Every item is brand new, save for the popular favourites from before.

Even the cutlery is personalized, with the China Doll logo on each spoon, knife and fork. The restaurant is still working on the dining area upstairs, which features a neat lounge area in addition to a rooftop, perfect for relaxing evenings. The restaurant can be rented out for private events. China Doll does outdoor catering too.

 

 

“Despite it being just a month since we’ve opened, the response has been really great. We didn’t even do much advertising except for on our Facebook page. We do plan on introducing new items to the menu but for now we want to see what remains the most popular on the menu and keep those items on it.” It’s a new start for China Doll and their consistently delicious food has always satisfied hungry tummies in and around Colombo and its suburbs for quite a while now.

China Doll Noodles is on Facebook and they can be found on Twitter at @chinadollLK. They are located at No.08, Alfred House Avenue, Colombo 03.    

 

 

 

By Sarah Kellapatha