Kandy attracts thousands of tourists a year, and there are some great places to eat at, for a reasonable price. While there are famous merchants such as KFC, Pizza Hut, and Burger King, there are some other places you may want to have a visit. Here’s a list of best restaurants in Kandy to suit all pockets.
Following list might give you at least one place you have been looking for. However I haven’t listed any high end restaurants or coffee shops in this list. They will be published in another article at a later time.
Kandy Bake House
Kandy Bake House is a good hotel in Kandy situated on the Dalada Veediya, the main road leading to the Temple of the Sacred Tooth. Their food is clean, and the service is not bad either. They serve a wide variety of short eats as well as rice and curry. In addition they have other menus such as Chinese food. Their main meals may range from 1600 upwards while the short eats would be around LKR 250 upwards. Unlike the before pandemic era, now you are served only what you order, when you order short eats. You are not served a plate of items to choose from, due to Covid19 precautions.
Devon Restaurant
Devon Restaurant is situated on the same street facing the Bake House, and is very much similar in price range and atmosphere, although the Bake House has a slightly higher reputation for being in food business for a very long time. Adjacent to the Kandy City Centre, this is a popular restaurant among locals as well as tourists.
The Muslim Hotel
The Muslim Hotel at the clock tower end of the same street is known for their cheese koththu, a dish tasted and sought after by many locals as well as foreigners. The also serve excellent Biryani for those who love spicy food. With a reputation of decades, the limited space of this restaurant does not discourage visitors from tasting their food.
Sri Ramya Hotel .
If you are looking for a clean place but with affordable food prices then Sri Ramya Hotel adjoining the Bake House could be the place you are looking for. They serve delicious food at comparatively cheaper prices, and their service is commendable too. You can taste Sri Lankan as well as Chinese food items at the Sri Ramya Hotel at reasonable prices. The place could be a little bit busy most of the time but again, that’s a good sign of their popularity.
Pizza Hut
Close to the Temple of Tooth Relic, facing the Queen’s Hotel, you will find the Pizza Hut if you are a lover of pizza. But there are several other privately owned pizza joints in Kandy that serve high quality pizza of all tastes and styles. There are 2 more Pizza Hut outlets on Katugastota Road and on Peradeniya Road. As typical in Pizza Hut restaurants in Sri Lanka, the space is highly limited in all these outlets, and therefore if you hope to eat a meal peacefully without many others looking at you until you finish eating, then Pizza Hut may not be for you.
KFC, Burger King, and more
Now, if your taste is where chicken is, then Kandy has KFC and Burger King outlets on Dalada Veediya. KFC is facing the Bake House while Burger King is located in the Kandy City Centre which is the building adjoining the KFC. Kandy City Centre is a shopping mall with Burger King on the top floor, and the Roots fruit juice station and Basking Robbins at the lower ground level. There are a few more shops that would sell you short eats and sweets although there is no seating at those shops on the lower ground floor.
Queen’s Hotel
Queen’s Hotel also has a restaurant which serves good food at affordable prices, and the place is very popular among tourists. You can find it on the ground floor of the hotel building with entrance from the long corridor. They have preserved the “Kandyan atmosphere” in the restaurant while a variety of cuisines offered on a normal day, although currently the pandemic may have limited the choices on the menu.
Hela Bojun
But the best of all places, there is a gem of a spot that offers you clean food cooked right before you, for the cheapest prices available anywhere. Named Hela Bojun, this is an initiative of the Department of Agriculture that brings traditional Sri Lankan food made with fresh ingredients at a very affordable price. Today this place has become very popular among tourists who never miss a chance to taste the authentic food of Sri Lanka.
With an open sitting area with alfresco style seating, the place allows you to take a quick bite or to have a full Sri Lankan meal in a limited area but with a spacious feel. The place is hard to notice although it is one of the easiest to find. Here is the location:
In its current location shown above, you can buy many other items such as pickles, coffee, ice cream, or even a straw hat to wear. It’s a small market place with a kids’ park.
It’s noteworthy that some of the shops by the name Hela Bojun found elsewhere could be fake with look alike name boards. With the popularity of the brand, many fake shops sprang up around the country.
Kandy City Centre Food Court
The top floor of the Kandy City Centre shopping mall has a food court you might love to visit. They have open kitchens that specialize in a variety of cuisines. You can order from any of the kitchens, and then pay at the exit of the food court premises. Chinese, Korean, Thai, and many other cuisines are on offer, and the best thing is that a huge price list is displayed at the entrance so you will know what costs what.
Apart from the restaurants we have mentioned here there are many other eateries that sell you excellent food although you must be cautious to find the right place. Otherwise you might end up eating unclean food at very high prices.
There are some fancy restaurants for fine dining but their costs are usually what you would pay in a European country. I will recommend some good coffee shops in another article later on.
