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Pool Infinity and the endless sea…

As you walk into The Leela Kempinski,Kovalam, the first thing that strikes you is the Sri Lankan live food counter. Chef Chamila, who is behind the counter, offers you hot-from-the-stove Sri Lankan parathas and lunumiris. Luminiris remind you of traditional molagu chutney of Kerala. Chef Chamila is part of the three-member chef team from 200-year-old Hotel Mount Lavinia in Sri Lanka. The Ceylon chick pea soup is yummy. The salad counter sports a special Ceylon roasted beef salad and a vegetarian cucumber and yogurt salad.

The food might taste familiar to Malayali palates. Chicken curry tastes and resembles the Kerala chicken curry with its strong coconut base. The Necombu tuna fish stew, named after a famous harbour in Sri Lanka, is simply delicious. Vegetarian dishes are exotic cousins of the traditional South Indian dishes like ladies finger mizhukkuvarathy and brinjal fry.

The chefs have brought with them all the way from Sri Lanka, three mouth watering desserts – Mun Karum made of green gram, coconut honey and spices, Kalu Dhool, which brings to mind our Kozhikodan Halwa, and Asmi made chiefly of rice flour and cinnamon.

As Chief Chef Upul Premathilake, part of the Sri Lankan team, explains, “The Sinhalese and the Tamil way of life are closely linked and so are the cuisines.”

Chef Dinesh from Leela Kempinski adds, “Ingredients used in South Indian cuisine and Sri Lankan cuisine are very similar. The only difference lies in the style of cooking.”

The buffet is priced at an all-inclusive Rs. 800 for each person.

Also available is an a la carte elaborate Sri Lankan menu. Available are several exotic dishes such as the Dello Saladaya, pickled baby squids in curry sauce, priced at Rs. 310, and Danthel Bath, spiced yellow rice with mutton black pepper curry, priced at Rs. 490, to name a few.

Apart from the food stall, there is a Sri Lankan stall that showcases famous varieties of Sri Lankan tea and spices.

A four-member Sri Lankan band, ‘La Ceylonians, Music for Leisure,’ fills the air with soul-stirring music. The décor has also been designed to suit the fete. The proud lion flies high all over the place.

The food festival comes to an end on March 23. Those who are not the adventurous kind when it comes to food, can choose from the North Indian, South Indian or continental spread.

One can be assured of a great time at The Leela, and one leaves with a full stomach and a mind full of fond thoughts of one’s neighbour across the sea.

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