Located at: 34 Kepungoda, Pamunugama Road, Negombo, Sri Lanka

Visited on: 28th December, 2024

We finally made it to Dutch Trails – the home of the Seafood Shovel!

Let me begin with a bit about the ambience – we loved it. The vast area of well-maintained turf was neatly arranged with spaced out tables, and lit up with lines of whimsical hanging lanterns pulled out over the lawn. Being Christmas season, there was a fair bit of decoration as well, tastefully done in keeping with the modern yet rustic feel of the place. With the weather gods on our side, and a good playlist from the band, it was an absolutely perfect evening.

Of course, the star of the show – and what we all were looking forward to – was the Seafood Shovel. They offer two options – the Silver Shovel (LKR 19,800) with seven varieties of deep-fried seafood, and the Golden Shovel (LKR 29,800) with ten varieties of grilled seafood. We went with the latter, which included giant (really giant!) fresh water prawn, barramundi filet, tiger prawn, baby octopus, cuttlefish, lagoon crab, short neck clams, mangrove clams and green mussels. This came with sides of garlic sauce, Thai chilli sauce, cheesy cream sauce and spicy tomato salsa. We were told that this shovel would be ideal for eight pax and, being a party of nine, we opted for this along with a few other dishes. The seafood was beautifully prepared, fresh and grilled to perfection. Naturally, the presentation was rather eye-catching, and what was most satisfying was that the taste of the food lived up to the theatrics of the presentation.

They recommended garlic toast, garlic rice or egg rice to go with the shovel. We opted for Garlic Rice (LKR 1,900 for roughly 2-3 cups of rice). I have to confess that I have limited photographs from this visit, for I was too engrossed in enjoying the company and ambience to engage in photography! However, I can tell you that everyone loved the garlic rice. It wasn’t heavy on garlic flavour, but it had been prepared in such a way that it was a light, bright and thoroughly enjoyable accompaniment.

We also tried their Clay Pot Prawn Curry (LKR 4,700), which was excellent. The yellow curry was fabulous with both the rice, as well as the mini roast paan which came with the dish. A side of coconut sambol was also included. The prawns were fresh from the lagoon, and the that curry was such a winner.

Their food menu is rather comprehensive and has a lot to offer. Their beverage menu, too, offers a wide array of cocktails, wines, spirits and soft drinks. You can have a look through both menus on their website. On the whole, there’s something for everyone. Dessert can be picked from whatever is available on the day, including local sweets.

Dutch Trails also offers a range of other activities that include archery, air rifling, kayaking, river fishing, boat riding/dining, mud crab excursions, toddy tapping experience and the likes.

Yummy Rating: 4.0 / 5.0