A tiny spot situated in the suburbs of Colombo, Asian Gate is a great place to go to have a quick, filling meal at a cheap price. They focus mainly on delivery, but they also have a table which can accommodate around four people where you can dine-in.
The Food
One of the best things about Asian Gate is the enormous portions they serve. The Rice Chicken Set Menu, which was just Rs. 200 was absolutely relishing, although it wasn't much on the fresh side. The brinjal moju was cooked to perfection, with that tinge of sweetness lingering in your tongue.
The chunk of chicken that came with the rice kept us company all throughout the meal, and although it was slightly chewy, the usual sauce slathered all over the chicken made up for it. The rice was a tad bit oily and the finely sliced vegetables were semi-cooked, which gave it an edge which we loved.
The hot, steaming mound of Chicken Noodles (Rs. 350) was quite oily, but the well-cooked noodles and the slices of chicken, along with a spicy seasoning made us attack the noodles straight away. A portion that could easily feed two people, the Chicken Noodles is easily well worth the money.
If you assumed that the "Yum" in Tom Yum was short for yummy, well, not really, but at the Asian Gate, yes. The Tom Yum Soup (Rs. 350) had the perfect ratio of soup to other elements, and the other elements, in this case, were delicious. Prawns, chunks of well-prepared fish, and cuttlefish made the soup so good, and to stick to the spirit of the original Tom Yum, they had added various spices (including slices of rampe) and pieces of boiled lemon, which added to the overall taste.
The Chilli Chicken might have been the only dish we didn't particularly enjoy, owing to the fact that it was the same chicken that we received with our rice. The chicken was a bit stiff, and not as supple as we would have expected it to be. Although there were a couple of chillis scattered on to the dish, the spicy flavour was not necessarily emphasised upon.
Service and Ambience
There were only a couple of people manning the restaurant (including the cook), and the waiter/cashier seemed a bit surprised when I asked to see the menu instead of just sticking to the rice. The service was a bit slow when there was an influx of customers, but other than that the staff were really accommodating.
The place itself is tiny and a bit warm (due to the absence of a fan) and like I mentioned previously, has one table which can accommodate four people. As we spoke to one of the other customers who had also chosen to dine in and was eating across us, he too endorsed the good food and claimed it was quite tasty.
Conclusion
The Asian Gate definitely has good food for an affordable rate, and if you're looking for a quick fix and also looking forward to not denting your wallet, this is the place to go to. You might not find the dine-in experience all that great, but in terms of value for money, they're quite good.
