Shopping is no easy task, especially during the festive season. And, having the need to fill up on your tank while shopping, or give yourself a treat among the treats that you've already bought on your shopping spree, is quite natural. Still, no matter how fancy they are you can't eat clothes, so we have restaurants popping up inside clothing shops to help you alleviate that problem.
Dislin must have thought the same when they opened up a little resto at the premises of Kandy Selection in Nugegoda. Given that it’s quite rather close to our home base and incredibly hungry, we happily trotted over to there.
Food
First, we got ourselves the Chinese Set Menu (Rs. 480) which was served with a portion of basmati fried rice, chop suey, moju, chilli paste and roast chicken.
While the rice here was adequately cooked, and tasted as if the flavours were subdued – probably by rushing the order and not seasoning it properly. At least it wasn't too oily and there were plenty of thinly cut veggies and scrambled eggs mixed in.
There was a sad piece of tiny pineapple sitting on the plate – which made us feel like it’s not there at all. The two pieces of roast chicken had a nice crisp to it and was soaked in a sauce. While the sauce itself had a good tanginess, the chicken was quite bland – with minimal seasoning.
The botu moju, however, added a much-needed definition of flavour to the dish with its sweet and sour elements, while the chilli paste contributed a little bit of heat to it. The was chop suey, which had a good amount of gravy going on, tasted quite watery like the veggies were boiled for too long. To be quite frank, this was your run-of-the-mill set menu rice that can help you to quickly soothe your hunger.
The Club Sandwich (Rs. 690) we got was a rip-off. The bread was toasted nicely with a beautiful crisp, but we were quite disappointed to see the chicken inside didn’t cover the whole sandwich, and did not have any significant taste to it. It delivered this weird, old oily whiff-kinda taste that made the whole thing unappetizing. Sure, it doesn’t stay on the tongue for long but you cannot help but wonder why it tastes like old kavum.
The filling also had a layer of fried egg and cheese, alongside veggies like lettuce, tomato and onions. Sadly, the veggies didn’t do any favours either, as they did not seem that fresh.
Drinks
From left to right, Apple Juice and Watermelon Juice.
The Watermelon Juice (Rs. 280) was a delight to quench your thirst. It wasn’t on the low side of sugar but carried the natural taste of the watermelon very well with a fair bit of its texture.
While the Apple Juice (Rs. 290) was fresh and delivered the right amount of sour, and sweet flavours of green apple, it took away all the excitement by being too pulpy. With each sip, the apple taste got interrupted by the thick texture, which later got stuck at the back of the throat.
Service & Ambience
“Oh boy”
Being avrudu season and the lunchtime on top of it, the whole place was jam-packed with customers. It was nicely lit and had a bunch of comfortable cushion chairs.
But after sitting down, there's no way of getting up from your chair to walk up to the counter (which we had to, three times to get our order), without bugging the person who sits behind you.
The ordering process is quite new. You can place the order at the cashier and get a slip with an order number. Once your food is ready, it will be displayed on the TV over the counter and announced through the speaker. Then you go up to the corresponding counter to get your order. This seems efficient in theory, but when it comes to reality, it feels like playing in a circus with the food and manoeuvrability, especially when the place is packed.
The staff behind the counter were quite busy, but seemed friendly and kept up well with the orders as they can- even though they were delayed with the huge amount of orders at the same time.
Conclusion
We feel like there are a few more things here and there that they can polish up on and rearrange to make for a much better experience. But in all honesty, unless you are in the Kandy Selection and figuratively dying inside of thirst or hunger, this place is quite acceptable.
