It is a well-known fact that the coast along the Negombo stretch has some superb eateries. Of the many hotels, the Jetwing chain boasts of some of the best restaurants and among them is Jetwing Sea’s Lellama restaurant.

Negombo is famous for its Lellama, which essentially is a place where fishermen bring in their catch for the day, to be auctioned off. It is a noisy place, which is a hive of activity – the actual atmosphere of Negombo’s famous Lellama must be seen to be believed.

It is with this atmosphere in mind that the freshest catch-of-the-day seafood is brought in to be prepared for the guests to be indulged in at the Lellama restaurant. This concept is maintained right through the week and the food is prepared Grilled, Fried, Batter Fried, Crumb Fried, Steamed, Baked or even in Chinese, Sri Lankan or Thai style and if it is lobster you can opt for Grilled Lobster or Lobster Thermidor. On Saturdays however, they take a break from this and dish out a pretty awesome seafood buffet.

The buffet includes a soup as well as fresh breads while they have an array of salads and delicious dressings to go with it. The mains are more or less local fair like scrumptious Fish Egg Curry as well as creamy Kos (Jack Fruit) Curry and the most flavoursome Crab Curry as well as crumb fried fish, accompanied with Wild Red Rice or Suduru Samba. They have heaps of Chutneys and Pickles as well as crunchy pappadams and fried chillies to go with your meal.
 

The soup I tried out last Saturday was an incredibly refreshing Manioc Vichyssoise while I also tried out a delicious and spicy Seafood Laksa. Apart from the obvious manioc flavour it also had a hint of curry leaves topped with a few drops of pesto. It was one of the most amazing soups I have had – more than anything, for its unique flavour – whoever thought manioc would make a delicious soup after all! The Seafood Laksa even though spicy was actually quite cooling and was ideal on an extremely hot Saturday afternoon.

One of the loveliest aspects of the Lellama restaurant is the view - the stunning Indian Ocean decorated with the occasional catamaran or kite surfer. It really is a serene view while; the waves lapping on the shore and the bells around the neck of the cattle grazing on the wild shrubs on the beach nearby clanking away – it all adds to that real Sri Lankan feel at the restaurant.

Saturday aside, Lellama’s menu is à la carte. They prepare some amazing starters like the Lagoon Prawn and Calamari starter as well as the Tuna Tartar. The Exotic Lellama Seafood Platter is also a treat, not just on your palate but it is also visually stunning. The mains like the platter, are accompanied with either Garlic or Steamed Rice, Savoury or Sautéed Potatoes or, Buttered Vegetable or a Mixed Salad.

The seafood ranges from Seer to Red Snapper or even Tuna as well as shell fish like Crabs, Cuttlefish, Prawns and even Oysters, Clams and Mussels. Your mains come topped with Hot Garlic Butter Sauce, Lemon Butter Sauce or BBQ Sauce. As you can see, the choices are varied.

The desserts at the Saturday buffet are more or less the typical fair. However if you make your way down to the restaurant on any other day of the week they whip up some fantastic desserts like Cinnamon Coated Crispy Banana and Sri Lankan Wild Berry Omila with Mango Ice Cream or even the Fresh Fruit Tart and Devils Cream Cake with Passion Fruit Mousse and Strawberry Ice Cream. 

With the new expressway from Colombo to Katunayake, a drive down to Negombo is a far more pleasurable one and essentially much quicker than it used to be. So if you are looking for an epic seafood treat, head that way and try out the delicious fair at Jetwing Sea’s Lellama restaurant.

Ratings

Service and friendliness of staff – 4 stars
Variety of food – 4 stars
Cleanliness – 4 stars
 


Text by Natasha Fernandopulle
Pics by Kanishke Ganewatte