Flag And Whistle is a German restaurant overlooking the Colombo Port. It has a beautiful, spacious locations and some hearty if expensive food. The only thing is that its location is actually pretty far for people living in Colombo South.
The Location/Ambience
Flag And Whistle overlooks the north end of the Colombo Port. It used to be a high security areas and you could barely see anything, but now their balcony is open and you can see right into the docks. It’s a nice view, and if you work or are in the Fort Area, it’s a convenient location.
If you’re coming from southern Colombo, however, it’s a bit of a trek.
The interior is one of the more spacious spots in Colombo. The place has really high ceilings (almost three stories it seems) and is well appointed with nice furniture, in a sorta nautical style.
This is a well-appointed space to hang out, especially for business, but note that there is a dress code (ie, no shorts and slippers).
The Food
Flag And Whistle does hearty, calorically dense German fare. Their pork knuckle (Rs. 1,750) was recommended and it is pretty tasty. Note, however, that what we got actually didn’t come with the bone, the meat had been shaved off. I actually prefer this but purists might be shocked.
Taste-wise this was nice, tender and well-cooked pork with mustard for dipping. Didn’t try the mashed potatoes cause I’m trying not to get fats. The cole slaw was good.
We also tried the chicken cordon bleu (Rs. 940) which was all right. It came with gravy, which was of questionable value, and was not stuffed with ham or bacon as one would expect. Was certainly big portion size.
As a starter we tried the crab toast (Rs. 610), which was sorta flavorless and mediocre.
Overall, we’d say the food here is filling and generally OK, but not great. If you order right you likely won’t be disappointed, but the prices here are above average. We ended up paying Rs. 4,000 for two (with two beers).
Speaking of, a Lion Stout is Rs. 450 and a Lion Lager is Rs. 400 (large bottle). Cocktails here seem to run about Rs. 700 and up.
The Service
The place is quite professionally run. We were seated by an exceedingly smiley young man who made our waiter look dour in comparison. The waiter was actually quite nice, however, had limited knowledge of the menu. He couldn’t really say if the fish and chips was batter fried or with bread crumbs, and when I asked for grilled veg with my pork I got mashed potatoes anyways.
Beyond that the service here is quite good, unobtrusive, fast and polite.
Conclusion
If you make it to the north side, Flag And Whistle is a well-appointed space with a view of the port. They do hearty but expensive German fare but the main draw remains the setting. You rarely get ceilings this high. Wear shoes.
