Category Archives: Places

4 Great Minds come together in Negombo

When four great minds come together they create something that is simply authentic, different and a total success.

That is what happened with a new bar and restaurant named Toro (which is Spanish for bull) ideally located opposite the Jetwing Sea hotel in Palagathura which is Negombo Beach North.

The four great minds are:

  • Krishan (the owner) who has many years experience as a local caterer and a chef. He worked at Rodeo for many years.
  • Chanaka (Head Chef) who was the Head Chef at Rodeo for over 20 years.
  • Madusanka (Head Barman) who has gained experience by working at the Cricket Club in Colombo.
  • Geeth (Head Waiter) who is very well known to many Negombo residents as he previously worked at Serendib for many years.

Toro Bar & Restaurant has only been opened for about 4 months but is already established itself as one of the top venues in Negombo due to its great food, unique and imaginative menu, good value, great bar service and cocktails and friendly welcoming service.

The bar is frequented by many local families as its a safe and friendly place for women to come, many aircrew (especially the Emirates team as they stopover at the Jetwing Sea which is opposite) and foreign visitors to the area.

The atmosphere is friendly, mixed and there’s always great music and every Friday you can expect live music and feel free to dance if you want, there is plenty of room.

The décor of the place is modern with wooden pallets making up the walls and the ceiling. Modern lighting and wooden tables, some low down and some high up, spotlessly clean toilets and attractive bar area.

Feel relaxed with lots of large wall fans to cool you down. There is a vast array of drinks to choose from. From Lion beer, Apple cider, cocktails, milkshakes, Calsberg, Corona to Chilean wine by the glass.

Madusanka can serve up both the quickest and the meanest mojito in Negombo. Its great value with Lion beer just 420 rupees or Gin and tonic (with ice and lime, which is a rare thing in Sri Lanka) for just 500 rupees.

The menu is a mixed of Sri Lankan and Western and can be suitable for everyine including vegetarians and vegans. Steak Panini sandwich, (700 LKR) Prawn & Avacado wrap,(600LKR) Beer batter fish with home made chips and salad, (950 LKR), Freshly made pizzas, Seafood. Chop Suey and even delicious Traditional Sri Lankan rice and curry. The menu has been devised by Krishan and Chanaka and their joint vast experience is shown in their dishes and presentation.
If you have any questions then Geeth will be pleased to answer them.

The owner Krishan is very proud of his new venue. If you ask to see the kitchen he will be delighted to show it to you. Here you will find one of the largest and cleanest kitchens in the country. Very impressive and offers peace of mind about the food.

 

 

So if you are visiting Negombo then head North along the beach road, with the sea on your left hand side and get youself down to Toro Bar & Restaurant.

Why not stay at one of our many highly recommended guest houses in Negombo Beach North such as Anne Residence (from $18 a night) or Shannon Rest (from $20 a night), these two properties are only a short 5 minute walk to Toros.

Negombo Beach North

2b3d4ab0-2361-4989-a0f3-f12d7169f9aaPalagathura known as the New Negombo Beach North

In the last 12 months Palagathura junction has been transformed and now comprises of some of the best bars & restaurants in Negombo. However compared with the rest of Negombo, they offer you much better quality and lower prices than the established bars like Lords, Rodeo & Serendip which are situated near to Jetwing Blue.

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Sunnys Restaurant

On the land side of the road is the delightful family restaurant run by 2 twin brothers. Sunnys Restaurant with its modern setting and interesting attached art gallery. Sunny specializes in seafood and Sri Lankan rice & curry.

On the same side of the road, close to the junction is Machang (which is Sinhala for mate) which is a new bar/restaurant. This is a franchise owned by Lion beer so here you will find the cheapest beer prices on the whole strip. You can sit upstairs and watch the world go by.

Opposite Machang is Bee Beach, again newly opened and has a lovely beach setting. It’s great here for sunset watching and they have a large assortment of foods on offer – great seafood, Chinese meals, Italian style pizzas and their Sri Lankan rice & curry comes highly recommended.

Bee Beach

Bee Beach

We can also offer some lovely rooms at Bee Beach.

You simply cant get any closer to the beach than Bee Beach, new modern air conditioned rooms set just 20 feet from the beach in a resort with lovely beach bar & restaurant. Located 20-30 minutes from Colombo airport.

Click HERE for more details. AC rooms from just $30 per night.

Just to the left of Bee Beach is Coco Beach, again a delightful modern beach setting. Prices are slightly higher than its neighbours. Here they specialize in seafood where you get to choose what you want and how you want it cooked. It has an open clean kitchen which gives confidence of its high standards.

Coco Beach

Coco Beach

Palagathura Junction is now a new buzzing scene of Negombo. If you are looking for something late at night where you can drink with the local boys and its cheap. I mean cheap! Where its just 450 rupees for gin & tonic or 350 rupees for beer then it has to be Macerena which is just the other side of Bee Beach. Macerena however doesn’t get busy til after 11pm and at weekend its normally open til the early hours.

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New Coffee Bar In Ella

Vinod & Krishan 4There’s a new coffee bar in town, in Ella Town. Located opposite Passara Road junction with Welliwaya Road, you can now get your coffee fix, American style. Or perhaps that should be Italian style, as the coffee brand used is “Lavazza”.

The hot coffees on offer are Espresso, Espresso Dopio, Caffé Americano, Cappuccino, Caffé Mocha, Café Latte, Flat White, Caramel Macchiato and there is Swiss Hot Chocolate too.

The cold versions are Iced CAffé Latte, Iced CAffé Mocha,Cookies N Coffee Shake, Irish Coffee Shake and Cold Brew.

Combine this with an array of soup, breakfast, waffles, sandwiches and pasta dishes, you can make a meal of it.

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What’s also interesting is that there is a guitar there with a “Play Me” sign. And if playing a guitar isn’t your thing, you can always have a game of monopoly, chess or simply read a book. There’s also free wifi so that you can keep in tourch with your friends and family.

The coffee shop opens early morning from 6.30 am until 9 pm.

Enjoy the Seafood Stalls Along the Galle Face Colombo

Galle Face ColomboOne of the areas where people escape the hectic life of Colombo city in Sri Lanka is the Galle Face. It is a promenade along the sea front with many food stalls. These food stalls offer delicacies with prawns and crabs.

The Galle Face promenade

Noticeably absent are the trinket stalls that you would find in a normal touristic area. A few exist but they are easily outnumbered by the food stalls present.

The Galle Face promenade is flanked by the Raj Hotel on one side and the Galle Face Hotel on the other.

20160615_190631It is not safe to bathe in this area, or swim in the sea. There are various sign posts around warning you of the dangers. It is however an area where people like to stroll hand in hand, and you will aso come across the occasional jogger or walker seeking exercise.

There is also a “green area” – a lawn between the parking area and the promenade itself.

One jetty enables you to get closer to the sea as it juts out from the Galle Face promenade and extends into the sea area. Popular with photographers and those seeking a sea experience.

Closeby are the World Trade Centre and the Dutch Hospital with its restaurants and shops.

Escape the city and check it out for yourself. Especially pleasant in early evening when the sun has gone down and you are feeling peckish for some seafood.

5% of Sri Lanka is Water

AnuradhapuraAmazing I know, but 5% of Sri Lanka is made up of rivers, lakes and tanks.

“Tanks” are man-made lakes, a bit like reservoirs.

No more is this visible than the area of Anuradhapura, where the former capital resorted to protect the water source in order to use it to irrigate the surrounding fields. In this way, the population of Anuradhapura could become self-sufficient on its neighbouring crops, especially rice. At the time, this was an amazing feat of engineering.

Examples of  “tanks” in this area include Basawkkulama Tank, Tissa Wewa and Nuwara Wewa. “Wewa” is sinhala for “lake”.

To explore these tanks, we have great places to stay in Anuradhapura:

HOLIDAY RENTALS IN ANURADHAPURA