Since the Dutch Hospital opened up in 2011, it’s always been a center for shopping, dining and conversing. Over the course of 6 years, the Dutch Hospital has changed up a little and the complex is now a buzzing spot for food enthusiasts.
We dropped by recently to see what are the top 10 places worth dining at in Dutch Hospital.
1. MINISTRY OF CRAB
Ministry of Crab (MoC) really doesn’t need an introduction. The creation of the trio Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara and Dharshan Munidase, MoC has built a reputation for quality seafood since its inception and it is a reputation that has sustained itself over the years.
Since reservations are a must we made an early lunch reservation and popped in for a quick visit. Since we were reviewing the restaurant’s signature dishes we started off with the Oyster Sixers (Rs. 1520) which are a set of six shot glasses of fresh oysters served with an aged soy sauce and homemade hot sauce and half a lime. Drop a few drops of the sauces into each glass and shoot it back you’ll get an explosive range of flavours in your mouth. The oysters are so fresh that you can almost taste the sea in your mouth! We then tried their famous Baked Crab (Rs. 1600) as another starter. The baked crab was packed with crab meat mixed with a small amount of rice and onions along with a few spices.
The highlight of the meal was the king prawns that they’ve recently started to serve. Starting from 150g of prawn meat to 500g these prawns are so massive that it’s almost unbelievable! We tried their OMG Prawn (Rs. 3,200) in Garlic Chili sauce which is 400g and upwards with a side of their kade paan and butter. The prawn had chunks of succulent meat marinated in the garlic chilli sauce and combined together with the soft bread, the meal was utterly satisfying.
Besides their quality food and service, we thought they had excellent service throughout the meal and found their staff courteous and friendly which contributed a lot to the overall experience at MoC.
2. IKOI TEI
The only restaurant serving Japanese cuisine at the Dutch Hospital Complex, Ikoi Tei has an ambience unique to itself with its intimate spacing and Japanese interior décor. They have their own private tepanyaki grill and their own private bar.
For drinks, we ordered their Peach Iced Tea and Flame of Seduction. The Peach Iced Tea had the right balance of sweetness and flavour. Their Flame of Seduction is quite a theatrical drink; as you open the lid covering the glass smoke escapes but the taste remains embedded in the drink throughout. It was personally a little too smoky for us but it’s understandable how many would love that hint of smoke in their drink.
To start off we ordered their Spicy Tuna Maki (Rs.950) which is one of Ikoi Tei’s fast-moving dishes. The Maki was clean cut and the spicy tuna was fiery and we polished our plates in a matter of minutes. For mains, we decided to try their Bento Box and opted for their Chicken and Sashimi (Rs.1350) which comes with Tuna sashimi, chicken teriyaki, karage deep fry chicken, along with a cold mash, garlic rice and miso soup. The teriyaki chicken was saucy and sweet and the garlic rice was flavourful and the freshness of the sashimi really came through.
To end our meal on a sweeter note we ordered their Sake Souffle (Rs.950). Served with ice cream, the soufflé was soft and fluffy and had the right consistency of sweetness to end your meal as a happy customer.
3. COLOMBO FORT CAFÉ
The Colombo Fort Café is the newly opened bistro-style restaurant serving Mediterranean cuisine. They’ve got quirky interior décor and an extensive menu. We started off with a Shrimp Ceviche (Rs.800) which is a simple dish of steamed shrimps marinated in garlic and lime juice. Though the dish is simple, the marination of the shrimp is what made it stand out. Zesty and sharp; we loved the tangy taste on our tongue. We also enjoyed the tortilla chips that came with it as it added a real crunch to the dish.
We then tried their lunch special Chicken Macho House Burrito (Rs.1150) packed with Spanish rice, salsa and cheese and served with a fresh salad. The thin homemade tortilla ensured that the burrito was soft and the ingredients inside all tied well together.
To finish off we tried their local dishes and opted for the Really Simple Prawn Curry (Rs.1950). Served with fried egg, coconut sambal and freshly baked bread this dish does its own take on prawn curry and excels at it. The thick curry was swimming in spice and flavour and the prawns were generous and plentiful.
If you can’t decide what kind of cuisine you want to indulge in; the Colombo Fort Café has a little bit of everything!
4. Heladiv Tea Club
Heladiv Tea Club has an impressive range of tea based drinks but also their own menu with snacks and dessert. We decided to try their signature tea mocktails from their wide menu and opted for The Revolution (Rs.350). The Revolution is a mix of the Heladiv strawberry ice tea, lime, passion fruit and grenadine. We personally found the drink to be too sweet for our liking and didn’t enjoy it as much as we thought we would but the range offers a few great options such as the Nectarine and the Original Sin which are likely to be less sweet.
Since we were quite stuffed we opted for a dessert and tried their signature Blueberry Cheese Cake (Rs.550). The no bake cheese cake was creamy and light with a soft biscuit crumble at the bottom and blueberry compote on top.
The Heladiv Tea Club has a space that’s great for hanging out. With comfortable plush couches and chairs, this is a place at the Dutch Hospital that’s easily the best when it comes to relaxing and lounging.
5. & Co (The Steuart)
& Co by The Steuart is just behind the Dutch Hospital building at The Steuart Hotel. The restaurant adopts the atmosphere and the interior of a Scottish bar with red and green plaid hues dominating the room.
Though they have a big menu, & Co is known to be a great pub for people to drink and relax so we thought we would try something off their Bar Menu. We tried their Sticky Finger BBQ Chicken Wings (Rs.575) and Creamy Chilli Cheese Toast (Rs.525). The sticky finger BBQ wings were just as they sound-sticky. The BBQ sauce marinated in the chicken is excellent and we had a hard time not devouring the wings in a matter of seconds. The cheese toast was covered in a thick layer of cheese with a dash of cut green chilli on top.
What we really loved about & Co is how absolutely worth for money their food is. Both dishes had 6 of each and having paid a lot more for a lot less of the very same dishes in Colombo I was pleased to finally have something worthy of the money I’m paying. The food is excellently prepared and it’s worth every penny so we are quite happy to recommend the pub next time you want to get a drink and a quick bite!
6. Re.Pub.LK
This swanky little bar is a behind the Dutch Hospital road on Hospital road but it’s easily within walking distance. A popular Friday night spot, the Re.Pub.LK opened up last year and has really created a name for themselves with their signature drinks like the Arrack Sour and their cool interior.
While their cocktails looked absolutely tempting (really, you must try them out!), we opted to try something from their Mocktail menu. Their Shirley Temple (Rs. 450) is a mix of ginger ale and grenadine. The balance of sweetness in this drink was perfect. It was not too sweet and had plenty of fizz to give it a bubbly sensation.
They also have small bites and sliders and we opted to try a classic; Hot Butter Cuttlefish (Rs. 650). Served in a small thachchiya, the HBC was soft and crunchy and we loved it!
Re.Pub.LK has the nicest ambience with a downstairs bar, an upstairs lounge and a rooftop setting. Their staff and service are pretty great too.
7. Black Pepper
Black Pepper behind the Dutch Hospital complex is a fine dining seafood restaurant offering a variety of seafood dishes on their menu. Owned and managed by the Earl’s Court Group, Black Pepper offers a little bit of everything from every part of the island.
For appetizers, we tried their Green Avocado and Tiger Prawns with Wasabi Mayo (Rs. 630) and their Southern Silver Ray Baby Hendella (Rs.690). The tiger prawns arrived on a bed of avocado with wasabi mayo on the side. The avocado and mayo were the perfect marriage of flavours to the steamed prawns. The fried hendella was crispy and it was easy to see why it was a popular appetizer.
Though their mains range from prawns, crabs and fish; we opted to try something from the North side of the menu and opted for crabs. The lagoon mud crabs are offered in 4 ways; Jaffna curry, chilli crab, hot garlic crab and black pepper crab. We got their Hot Garlic Crab which was massive in size with plenty of crab meat. The Hot Garlic sauce was soaked up by the wood fire roasted bread and the flavours had us wanting more. It’s definitely a messy meal so don’t be shy to take the bib and go crazy!
To give a little bit of sweetness to the palette, we tried their Wattalapaan which was exactly what we needed to wrap up our meal.
8. Semondu
One of the original restaurants at the Dutch Hospital, Semondu serves continental fusion cuisine. Their menu has a variety of dishes ranging from local cuisine to seafood and continental. Feeling a little local (and stuffed!) we ordered their Mutton Curry. Served with steamed rice and salad, the mutton curry was thick and spicy with a generous amount of meat in the curry.
It’s a long restaurant with ample seating and privacy and the service was extremely fast as we got our order in under 15 minutes.
9. Taphouse
Taphouse by R’n’R is no stranger to all of us. Perhaps the most popular place within the Dutch Hospital for Friday nights – the only thing Taphouse is good for is not just their drinks. They’ve got their own food menu with small bites, salads, mains, rice and grills.
We started off with their Tap Pakora (Rs. 400) which is an array of vegetables, chicken, cuttlefish and prawns batterfried in chickpea batter. Crispy on the outside and soft on the inside we loved this little dish and thought it’s a good dish to have with a drink.
We also tried their Kalupol Chicken Sausages (Rs. 625) which is their spiced grilled sausages served with mashed potatoes. The Kalupol sausages were great with a touch of spice making its way through as you munch on it and while the mashed potatoes weren’t all that great it’s a good meal overall.
10. City Rest Fort Ice Cream
The City Rest Fort Hotel just opposite Re.Pub.LK down Hospital street has recently opened a 24/7 ice cream joint and its happening! They offer a small range of ice cream flavours at Rs. 170 a scoop and we thought it was a worthy spot on our list simply because it gave us such a great refuge from the scorching sun and heat.
We bought two flavours; Passion Fruit and Chocolate Chip. While I was expecting more of a passion fruit sorbet this was more of a cream with the passion fruit flavour barley peeking through but the chocolate chip was excellent and we enjoyed it thoroughly. They have a range of flavours (including Duriyan!) that are worth checking out.
If you’ve been shopping at the Dutch Hospital and waltzing in the little byroads there’s no doubt you would be a little sweaty and tired so the City Rest Fort Ice Cream is a perfect spot to cool down a little!
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