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

Availability : 02nd to 30th March 2025, 6:00 PM onwards

Price : LKR 6,900 nett per person

This Ramadan, Colombo’s abuzz with iftar offerings of all sorts – from stalls and food fests on streets, to special menus at restaurants, and dedicated spreads at hotels. Cinnamon Grand’s iftar buffet is curated by award-winning Egyptian chef Shehab Medhat, who will also be dishing out a special Arabic à la carte menu at The London Grill from the 28^th to the 30^th of March.

The buffet, which was laid out at Cedar (old Cheers pub) offered an array of authentic and fusion dishes from the Arabian region and beyond. In keeping with iftar tradition, each table had a plate of dates, which is usually what Muslims break their fast with. The beverage dispensers offered a couple of fruit juices, but what seemed to be the most popular choice among the crowd was the faluda.

There was a variety of nuts, pickles, vegetables and spreads among the appetisers – all of which are commonly consumed during iftar. While it was a little less viscous than usual, I quite liked the flavour of the hummus, which went very well with the herby garlic khubz (bread) that I picked. The moutabal was good, too, but I particularly enjoyed the near-fuchsia coloured beetroot labneh and the muhammara.

There was mutton kanji and lentil soup to choose from – we went with the latter, which was pretty good. Savoury flavour on point, and a good balance of viscosity between the cooked lentil and broth.

The main savoury section was, expectedly, meat-heavy, while also offering some seafood dishes. The range of mostly typical iftar foods included the likes of sambousek, kebab, cheese spring rolls, couscous, pilaf, Moroccan- and Mediterranean-style chicken, beef, lamb, fish and mixed seafood dishes, and chicken shawarma wraps among other things. Apart from the tahini sauce – which was more mayo than tahini – the overall presentation and taste were quite good. Enjoyable and, expectedly, something different from the conventional buffets that we otherwise indulge in.

Among the usual international desserts, there were a number of sweet treats that were Mid East-influenced such as umm ali, basbousa, harissa and baklava. I was excited to see baklava in the mix, however, it wasn’t the flaky, crunchy, nutty texture that I hoped it would be. Perhaps the preparation was a more Greek-influenced recipe than Arabic-influenced.

We rounded things off with a cup of Arabic coffee which brought back memories of a Turkish coffee that I’d enjoyed somewhere close to Istanbul, many years ago. It was subtle, but had a strength within itself that, combined with its aroma, finished the evening off for us on a great note.