Located at: Cinnamon Life, 02 Glennie Street, Colombo 02, Sri Lanka

Visited on: 18th January, 2025

Indiya is beautiful. From the enchanting entrance to the subtly vibrant interior, the attention to detail is spectacular. The up-end restaurant is a spacious affair, including an open-kitchen area – tandoors and all – and an in-house bar as part of the layout. The cuisine is North Indian, as implied by the impressive décor, the employees’ attire (one cannot miss those bejewelled shoes!) and, of course, the elaborate menu. When I say elaborate, I don’t mean endless. Rather, the five-page menu suggests that much thought has been put into working around the different proteins, plants, carbs and spices to curate an ultimately satisfying gastronomic experience.

The beverage list, though limited in signature cocktails and ‘zero proof iced teas’ (aka mocktails), was interesting, too. We loved Kashaya (LKR 2,800), a unique concoction of pomegranate, masala chai, soursop and lemongrass. There wasn’t one particular flavour that stood out, but you could definitely taste the masala element of the masala chai. There was also a sweet undertone to the drink which, although very apparent, wasn’t overpowering. It was more of a light botanical sweetness (hello, lemongrass), rather than a sticky sugary sweetness. Very refreshing. I’m told that Katu (LKR 3,500) was good, too. It came with a mix of Indiya spiced rum, dark rum, apricot, papaya, hot honey and tamarind.

To start with, we ordered a dish each from their vegetarian and non-vegetarian ‘small plates’. Jodhpuri Mirchiya (LKR 4,000) was a dish of crumbed and fried stuffed banana peppers (capsicums). The stuffing was a pillowy preparation of banana blossom cut length-wise, and its texture worked brilliantly in combination with the crispy crumbed exterior. It was served on garlic chutney, with a side of a sweet-tart pickle that was flavourfully garnished with fennel seeds and black sesame. The dish, as a whole, was novel and top-notch.

The non-veg starter that we picked was their NH48 Chicken Tikka (LKR 3,000), tandoor-grilled chicken with a chilli garlic marinade. The marination on the chicken was excellent, and it had been cooked to tender perfection. Again, thoroughly enjoyed this one.

The Saag Paneer Tikka (LKR 4,500) that we ordered for the main meal was a sight to behold, with the vivacious yellow colour of the tandoor-grilled cottage cheese and yellow pepper, with red saffron garnish, bearing a striking contrast to the luscious green creamed spinach. To be frank, at a glance, I was slightly concerned about how the spinach cream might taste, for it looked viscous and intense – and intense spinach flavour can be, well, intense. However, a little taste of it proved that there was no need for any concern. It was perfectly balanced. Viscous, yes, but not too intense at all. In fact, it was great, and worked really well with the perfectly-marinated tandoori paneer.

Being one of our go-to dishes in general, we thought of trying Indiya’s butter chicken – in this case, their Singh Sahab’s Butter Chicken (LKR 5,500). It was good, a sizeable portion in comparison to the other dishes. It was also a little different from the usual – chef’s special recipe, we were told. It had less of the characteristic tart sweetness, in terms of flavour, that we inadvertently associate with butter chicken.

To go with the curries, we tried two types of bread. One was Laccha Paratha (LKR 750) – we picked the mint option over butter. A portion comprises of a large, crisp, flaky paratha cut into two. While there was a fair bit of mint sprinkled on the bread, the aroma and flavour didn’t come through as expected. However, having been cooked longer for that extra crunch, it proved to be a good vessel to enjoy the curries.

The second bread we picked was their Paronthi Naan (LKR 900), and we picked the saffron-cardamom option over carom seed. As with the paratha, a portion comprises of a large bread cut into two. The texture was more like that of a paratha – a perfect, layered, flaky paratha. I quite liked this one, with its bit of spicy flavour as well. Soft and buttery on the whole, but crisp and flaky at the edges. It was great.

Dessert options are limited at Indiya – hopefully only for the moment. We weren’t all that keen on the three choices available – ladoo, cashew marzipan and a type of jamun. A little more experimentation with variety might make the dessert menu more enticing – perhaps the likes of kulfi, soan papdi, jalebi-based dishes and other North Indian treats. Some food for thought for Indiya.

Yummy Rating: 4.0 / 5.0