We recently wrote about Theva Residency, a tasteful boutique hotel with windows that look out on Kandy’s hills. Their restaurant serves an upscale menu, the food is good (but spiced for tourist palates), and the view is the best part about it.
You don’t get a whole lot of fancy dining restaurants at Kandy’s center, so it’s good that there’s one just a 15 minute drive from the Central Market.
The Food
The menu here generally includes a range of meats specially prepared with sides, and you can tell from the menus descriptions and the presentation that a lot of preparation goes into it. You’ll probably spend about Rs. 2500 per head here.
Chef’s special: chilli crabDuring our stay here we had a look at their chef’s special menu, titled ‘bringing the sea to the mountains’ – which as you’ve probably guessed, are seafood dishes. For lunch, we got their chilli crab served with mantou bread and steamed rice (Rs. 2500), and steamed garoupa with rice (Rs. 2000).
Steamed garoupaThese guys get a ten out of ten for presentation. The chilli crab came beautifully prepared in a clay pot, slathered in plenty of chilli curry. The crab meat was soft and sweet, although not incredibly spicy as expected – but probably spicy enough for European taste buds. The chilli crab curry made a great dip for the mantou bread. The garoupa came well steamed and very soft, and along with the crab curry again, mixed well with our rice.
Stuffed chicken breastFor dinner we got chicken breast stuffed with palak paneer, served with mashed potatoes (Rs. 1500) – this is a must-have if you’re here – the chicken was incredibly soft and juicy and stuffed to the brim with well prepared paneer and veggies. We appreciated the effort put into presentation again – it was served with a line of tomato slices topped with little globs of seeni sambol.
We wish the rice we got hadn’t always come in rather small portions though. We also ordered the pepper crab (Rs. 2500), which is spicier than the chilli crab, but I personally enjoyed the spicy-sweetness of the former curry. The food here was good and well prepared, although it did lack a special punch, and it’s rather a place you come for a fine dining experience than to fill your belly.
Service & Ambience
The people at Theva were very professional, polite and attentive. The food took a while to get to our table – about half an hour (we were there past lunch time though, so it’s likely they had to prepare things from scratch again). The ambience at Theva Residency is amazing, especially if the weather is good. You get a spectacular view of the hills and the open skies from your dining table, whether you’re seated inside or at a table on the terrace.
The terrace is especially awesome in cool weather, with a little stone-wall fountain, red cushion seats and greenery towards the back. It’s pretty idyllic for a romantic dinner in the evening with lit-up Kandy city and stars for a view.
After your meal you can even wander off to the pool-side which is right outside the dining space. There are a couple of sofas here, that look out over the pool at the mountains and green ahead.
Conclusion
The food at the Theva Residency restaurant is good, though pricey, and the service and presentation are pretty professional, making for a typical fine dining experience. The best part about the place though, is the view.
