Kami Maki is arguably the most underrated Japanese fusion diner in the country with its exemplarily unique menu offering Japanese-inspired cuisine. Located on De Vos Avenue, off R.A. De Mel Mawatha in Bambalapitiya, the cosy location makes great for food-focused dining. The ambience and the quiet set-up do lend the place the ability to double as a host for good conversation, but if you ask me, Kami Maki is one of those places where the food should be the focus. 

Naturally, the dishes themselves take centre-stage - both in presentation and in terms of taste. On a less-frequented week night, Kami Maki even makes for a great dinner experience with someone special. 

1. The charming interior of the diner is characterised by the light shades and the easy-on the-eyes lighting with an air of quiet that stands out from the somewhat gimmicky oriental music played out in similar fusion diners. 

2. The seating is cosy and comfortable, makes for undisturbed dining and ensures that nothing really steals the limelight from the food. 

3.  Outside of the standard range of juices and soft drinks, Kami Maki also offers a limited number of signature beverages with a herbal base. The mint variety of the signature certainly complements the cuisine and acts as a palate cleansing alternative to the standard ginger.

4. The Crunchy Chicken Roll is a great example of the tastefully picked fusion items on the Kami Maki menu that land squarely on being delicious. A great pick-out from the menu in personal opinion, the sushi roll scores high both on being a greatly executed sushi roll and for its flawless fusion factor. 

5. Fusion just does not get better than the Pol Sambol and Cheese Maki served up at Kami Maki for a number of reasons. At its outset, the dish really catches you in your curiosity, and is a must-try for anyone with a taste for culinary adventure. Beyond the initial bite of curiosity, the pol sambol and cheese combination really is a no-brainer sort of delicacy. Think about it, what constitutes the thing? Sticky rice, pol sambol, cheese and seaweed. How could this possibly go wrong?

6. I’m no fan of anything vegetable, but if you must serve me veggies, how else would you do it than to dab it in tempura batter first? Something of a vegetarian’s culinary dream come true, the Tempura Vegetables make for a great variant on the standard Japanese maki-esque dinner table. 

7. Nope, not KFC, Panko Crumbed Chicken. Personally, the dish felt like a cop-out at a Japanese fusion restaurant, but the dip and panko crumbing really steers the dish out of fried chicken territory and places it on the Japanese Fusion map. Panko crumbs are bread crumbs made from crust-less bread, something of a supreme crumb type with Japanese roots. There’s no arguing the Panko Crumbed Chicken is more fusion than Japanese, but for those with reserved taste buds and those with a genuine love for fried chicken, the dish really is the answer. 

8. The Shitake Mushroom Salad is the perfect closing remark for the Kami Maki experience that has come as something of a pleasant surprise in all things dining. Immaculately presented, this is the sort of dish you take home to your family, or bring your family out dining to. Adding the fancy and flight of the Japanese fusion dining experience, the Mushroom Salad does a great job of propping up the finesse of dining with Kami Maki, something you should try sometime soon!