Located at: Cinnamon Grand, 77 Galle Road, Colombo 03, Sri Lanka

Visited on: 02nd January, 2025

Cheers to new beginnings!

The first review for 2025 comes from the recently re-launched Cheers pub at Cinnamon Grand. Now located where Chutneys used to be, the revamped spot is a lot more spacious, vibrant and buzzing. The resto-pub is partially divided into two spaces – one where the Gatsby-inspired long bar takes the spotlight, and another slightly quieter space with more seating and their rather popular pool table. There is no children’s play area at the new spot, but kids are welcome in the space which holds the pool table. While there are still several screens around the place with various sports channels running, Cheers now has more of an energetic, classic-yet-contemporary vibe to it than the wood-heavy sports pub it used to be. Kudos to the team that handled the incredible transformation from Chutneys to Cheers, for they’ve managed to create a great interior and a superb ambience.

We ordered a couple of ‘Cheers Bites’ to begin with – the Sri Lankan favourite Hot Butter Cuttlefish (LKR 2,500) and Fried Sprats (LKR 1,300). Both were top-notch. The cuttlefish had a wonderful crunchy, savoury batter on it that made it irresistible. The sprats were impeccably crisp on the outside, and soft and meaty on the inside – fried to perfection! It came with a garlic mayo dip that was mild in garlic flavour, thus not overpowering, and made a great accompaniment for the sprats.

For the main round, one of the dishes we tried was the Chicken Tikka Masala (LKR 2,500). The boneless chicken tikka came in a butter chicken-like gravy which was fantastic with the steamed basmati rice that accompanied it. The chicken had been marinated well, and there was a fair bit of meat on the plate. Although the menu mentioned butter naan as a third element, what was served was a papadam. That aside, the rest of the dish was quite good.

Dish of the night for me was the Pan-seared Seabass with Citrus Cream (LKR 3,200). The fish was beautifully prepared, with a salt and pepper rub on the grilled surface, and fleshy, moist and perfectly cooked fish on the inside. It was a sizeable portion, too! The citrus cream was lovely, and took the already perfect fish to another level. The vegetable component comprised a medallion each of carrot, beetroot and pumpkin, and the truffle mashed potato was silky, flavourful and divine. The herb oil delicately enhanced the taste and feel of whatever component it came into contact with – the fish, cream, veggies or mash.

Pan-seared Pork Chop (LKR 2,900) was a similar affair to the seabass dish, with the same lovely truffle mash and vegetable medallions. However, this had a Tasmanian mustard sauce which was definitely a great match for the pork. There was also a pineapple compôte which added a layer of fruity sweetness to the dish. The pork itself could probably have been left in the pan for a little lesser time, for it seemed to have crisped up in some areas as a result of the pork fat frying itself out. All-in-all, a satisfying dish.

I am told that the Shepherd’s Pie (LKR 3,900), prepared with minced lamb, was also pretty good. It was definitely presented rather eye-catchingly, with piped and torched mash on top. However, the bread element was missing here, too, as we did not receive the garlic toast mentioned on the menu.

On to the desserts, the Warm Chocolate Brownie Cake Slice (LKR 1,200) was rather large! And it came with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on the side. It was somewhat soft, and not too fudgy, which aptly made for lighter eating after a bit of a heavy meal. It tasted good, with a bit of cashew and chocolate sauce drizzled on top.

The Sticky Toffee Pudding (LKR 1,200) was good, as always, although a little on the sweet side. Of course, this was expected, since it came drenched in fudge sauce. Again, good texture on this one as well.

The Coffee Brûlée (LKR 1,200) was pretty good. Not too sweet – in fact it had a hint of bitterness from the coffee – which worked well for me. The texture, too, was on point, and the crackly torched sugar on top gave it the ideal degree of sweetness. An enjoyable dessert if you like a bit of coffee and aren’t craving too much sweetness.

Yummy Rating: 4.0 / 5.0