Lemon - bursting with flavours

Dilanka Mannakkara

I have always been a fan of Kollu’s food. I was very young when I first visited Frangipani Kollu and I loved the food there. Kollu, perhaps Sri Lanka’s only celebrity chef owns Lemon, the jazz themed, hip, trendy yet relaxing place.

It offers everything from a scrumptious dinner, a great place to spend a lazy Sunday to a place to chilax with a mouthwatering cocktail. Those who are fans of Kollu’s cooking (I am one!!) will find their favorite hot butter belly pork, the signature baked crab, the Portuguese rice as well as the authentic kalu pol pork served at Lemon.

I was greeted by the cheerful Kollu and found it extremely difficult to choose a drink from the endless fresh juices, smoothies, fruity mocktails and the signature cocktails. I finally selected an Apple Cooler which was a fresh juice made out of apple pulp, juicy strawberries and orange juice. I instantly liked the juice since it wasn’t overly sweet, had the fruity flavour and taste and I felt the apple, strawberry and orange zest.

Starters and soup

The long menu tempted me to savour the wonderful appetizers in the form of pPrawn balls made out fresh, juicy minced prawns and crab cake which complemented well with the amazing sweet chille and mustard sauce. The prawn balls which were crispy, just about spicy was wonderful with the coriander sauce.

For the soup I would recommend the prawn and spinach soup and the coriander and mushroom soup. I have detested spinach from my small days but combined with prawns, it was delectable. The mushroom soup was spicy and had a bit of mollagathanny taste to it but for those who prefer something out of the ordinary this is the soup for you.

Main courses

Probably the biggest headache for me was to decide on a main course and we finally ended up tasting five main courses to satisfy my desire for Kollu’s cooking. Being a meat and seafood fan, my favourite was surprisingly a vegetarian dish, pasta with sun dried tomato and pesto sauce. The pasta was creamy and delicious and the fresh basil, garlic and sprinkled cheese on top added to the flavour. The dish was simple, made out of basic ingredients but was definitely my pick for the main course!

Whenever I go to Lemon’s, I dig in to the ‘kalu pol pork’ which was just perfectly cooked with the right amount of spices with a lovely Sri Lankan flavour. I haven’t come across many places where they prepare an authentic kalu pol pork curry and being one of Kollu’s signature delicacies it didn’t cease to amaze me. It is a MUST TRY!

The baked crab was presented in a beautiful heart shaped dish and it was very cheesy and rich, but it lacked a bit of salt for my liking. The texture was smooth and creamy but I felt that the dish was too filling. The Portugese rice, Kollu’s version of a Spanish Paella had an interesting flavour. The seafood was cooked in wine and a creamy tomato sauce and topped with bacon was great but too filling for me.

The chicken kebab which was our last main course was a star. Succulent, tender chunks of chicken was put in to a skewer with onions and capsicum and grilled to perfection. The potato wedges and the salad complemented really well with the chicken.

Desserts

We were so full at this moment but I would never say no to a dessert. The strawberry torte was nutty and was topped with freshly sliced strawberries. It was just yummy. It wasn’t overly sweet and the vanilla cream complemented it beautifully.

The triple layer chocolate mousse was a winner. The three exotic layers of creamy milk, dark and white chocolate had the correct amount of sweetness and bitterness to it.

The meal was a true gastronomical delight and Kollu’s touch to the dishes made them special and made me love spinach as well. The ambiance is just soothing and relaxing with the Araliya trees along with the comfy iron chairs.

Lemon opens only at 5 pm so although Lemon is generally crowded it isn’t all that noisy and busy, you can be assured of great service, super food and a soothing, relaxing evening. So make your date at the Lemon and enjoy your dinner as much as I did.