Located at: 129 Kynsey Road, Colombo 03, Sri Lanka

Visited on: 20th July, 2023

Situated in the heart of Colombo, Maniumpathy is a boutique hotel which, post-Covid, has opened its doors to non-resident guests for dining and events. Behind the fortress-like parapet walls lies a colonial-era house that has been tastefully refurbished to meet today’s luxury standards while also maintaining its colonial grandeur. There are seven guest rooms, each unique and named after female members from among five generations of the Hallock family that have owned the place. The name ‘Maniumpathy’ is a tribute to their origins in Manipay, Jaffna.

Maniumpathy’s restaurant, The Verandah, serves up a menu of local and international dishes around a neatly maintained centre courtyard which also houses a pool at the far end. Ebony Room, with its majestic 16-seater ebony table, is an indoor space that can be booked in advance for hosting. There is more information about the property, accompanied by plenty of enticing photos, on their website.

We started off with the Vietnamese Prawn & Pomelo Salad (LKR 2,500). This vibrant starter came with several large prawns in a crunchy and summery salad of bitter pomelo, strips of red bell pepper and cucumber, lettuce, pear tomato halves, coriander leaves, Thai red chilli and crunchy peanuts, drizzled with a very light dressing. The prawns were truly seasoned to perfection and boiled just right to leave a nice bite to them. It was a luscious affair prepared with fresh ingredients.

The first of the three mains that we ordered was the Authentic Jaffna Thali with Jaffna Chicken Curry (LKR 2,000). Other available options were mustard fish curry, pork black curry, mutton paal poriyal, Jaffna crab curry and jackfruit (all ranging between LKR 1,600 to LKR 2,800). One can choose between red rice and white rice, and we went with the former. The thali came with a cup of rasam which was quite good – not too spicy, but flavourfully whipping up an appetite. The chicken curry was very nicely done, a tad bit spicy and cooked to the point where the meat came off the bone easily. Along with it came a fenugreek curry, eggplant curry and jackfruit curry, all of which were quite good. The eggplant curry was probably the best of the three, prepared in what I’m told was authentic Jaffna-style. Also on the thali was some curd, mango chutney and a papadam. More on the payasam when I get to the desserts.

The second main dish was their Creamy Seafood Pie (LKR 2,100) which was served with a fresh salad of red bell pepper, lettuce, cucumber and sprigs of dill. The honey vinaigrette that had been drizzled on the salad was an absolute winner. Light and tart and mouth-wateringly good. The salad was an excellent accompaniment for the pie, balancing the overall dish with its lightness and freshness. The pie itself had plenty of fish, prawn and cuttle fish in it and was topped with a layer of mashed potato. Both elements tasted good and the baked grated cheese on top was a nice addition for both taste and texture. However, I felt that the sauce inside would have been nicer on the palate if it was a bit thicker – or creamier, like its name. The viscosity of this sauce was such that it needed a spoon to be eaten.

Finally, there was the Assam Pork with Yam Taeng on Coconut Rice (LKR 2,400). The tamarind pork curry was lovely. The meat was tender and its tamarind-infused gravy was great with the rice. The coconut rice was really good, too, almost invoking the feel of a thicker nasi lemak. The spicy cucumber salad (yam taeng) had a few pieces of Thai red chilli and had been brushed with a light dressing, and the sago crackers added a bit of colour and crunchy pop to the dish. Quite a pleaser, overall.

One of Maniumpathy’s desserts that we tried was the Piña Colada Ice Cream Cake (LKR 1,100), which was pretty good! The coconut-heavy ice cream block was sandwiched between two fine layers of sponge with a thick layer of candied pineapple pieces towards the bottom. Together with the cut pineapple that sat around the slice and the salted butterscotch sauce that had been poured onto it, it was a delectable blend of coconut and pineapple flavours.

What I liked about the Mocha Mousse (LKR 1,100) the most was that the mousse itself was light, not too creamy, and barely sweet. It was essentially a coffee mousse and the chocolate element came from the milk chocolate shavings on top. It came with a meringue garnish, which wasn’t too sweet either, and a fresh strawberry. The overall lightness and subtle sweetness of the dessert was such that it almost felt guilt-free. (I reiterate, almost.)

As mentioned earlier, the Jaffna thali came with its own payasam. This, too, was quite nice, with plenty of crunchy cashew and raisins to accompany the lightly sweetened sago which had a few bits of vermicelli. Payasam (LKR 850) is also available as a separate dessert on the menu and, I assume, must come in a larger portion size.

Finally, a word about their beverages. We tried three drinks from their Juices & Smoothies menu – Ceylon Quencher – king coconut, mint, salt and naarang (LKR 950), Anti-ox – carrot and mandarin (LKR 1,100), and Tropical Zing – basil, pineapple, ginger soda and kithul (LKR 1,100). What I felt across the board was that the juices tasted really fresh and hadn’t been sweetened unnecessarily. The elemental ingredients of the each of the beverages were allowed to come through, some obviously more than others, and they had been prepared in such a way that they felt healthy while also quenching our thirst.

The same went for the Iced Tea (LKR 950) to which they had added several slices of lime and came unsweetened with sugar syrup on the side. Perfect presentation for someone like myself who prefers to minimise sugar intake in beverages.

We’ll certainly be back at Maniumpathy for more.

Yummy rating: 4.0 / 5.0