Liberty Arcade is home to Which Way West – they are essentially a Carvery (on request) but the rest of the day they are a café and pub and by evening the place transforms into a lounge. They have on offer a variety of different beverages and cuisine with their daily lunch buffet being a fantastic deal while their range of bubble teas are a must try. 

Walking in, you may find the setting a little familiar, because this is where Poppy Hana, known for their famous Conveyer Belt Sushi (or sushi train), used to be. The set up wasn’t working for them at Liberty Arcade and therefore Poppy Hana has moved to Urban Kitchen (next to Arpico, Hyde Park) and the place has been transformed into Which Way West. 

Ambience – 4 stars 

Which Way West offers a casual and relaxed experience while being clean and trendy. The atmosphere is that of pub on one end and a café type atmosphere on the other. Sitting anywhere in the pub or cafe, the view of Duplication Road is wonderful while by evening it is one cool spot to relax at. 

Taste and value for money – 4.5 stars 

We tried out their lunch buffet on Saturday which included a creamy soup, salad, freshly baked bread, a few varieties of fresh pizza, grilled vegetables, batter fried chicken, grilled fish with a creamy sauce, a few varieties of sushi, rice, noodles and three desserts.

All the items were flavoursome. What really struck me about the desserts was that they were not sickly sweet – which is always welcome. We were quite stuffed after the mains so we nibbled on the Japanese Cheesecake as well as some Coffee Jelly. For the price(Rs 999) it was definitely well worth it. I must mention the fresh bread buns which were soft and delicious – a little swipe of butter and it was really something special. 

I have been looking out for Bubble Tea everywhere and every time I come across a spot, they don’t seem to last too long, unfortunately. This cool and fun beverage however will be a staple at Which Way West (Yippy for me!) – I have been told by their owners. Little needs to be explained about Bubble Tea if you are a fan like me but if not, what it is, is tea or juice with tapioca pearls. We went for the Classic Milk Bubble Tea (Rs 400) as well as the Nelli and Orange Bubble Tea (Rs 450 each). I quite liked the Nelli one but the Orange didn’t tickle my fancy, possible because it was Sunquick based. They also have coffee based, smoothie based and a few specials in their Bubble Tea range. 

Which Way West also has an à la carte menu which has a range of soups, stews, salads, starters, burgers, shawarmas, pizzas, pastas, rice dishes, steak, peri peri dishes, fish, Japanese Bento Boxes and sushi while their fresh French style crepes (priced between Rs 400 and Rs 550) which can be enjoyed either as a sweet or savoury treat. They whip up homemade ice creams too. 

Friendly staff – 5 stars 

Kanako Sherifdeen, her husband Faizal Sherifdeen and their staff are so pleasant. 

Parking – 4 stars 

They have paid parking which can be busy at times. 

Toilets – 3 stars 

Liberty Arcade has toilets which are generally clean. 

Facebook : www.facebook.com/whichwaywestlk 
Hours of operation : 12 – 11pm 
Address : 1st Floor, Liberty Arcade, 282 R. A. De Mel Mawatha, 03 Colombo, Sri Lanka 
Tel : 011-423-2832 

By Natasha Fernandopulle 
Video and photographs by Kanishke Ganewatte