Chop Chop Kottu (ODEL).

In a time when kottu was mostly limited to the nightlife in Colombo, the sound of "all-day-kottu, delivered to your doorstep" was a dream come true for us. This trend was made by Chop Chop Kottu, and thanks to them, we have a couple more places now – that follow their footsteps.

Chop Chop Kottu was a hit when they launched their drive-through kottu place adjoined with Gonuts With Donuts down Castle Street. Serving a range of string hopper and roti based kottu with different kinds of meat that one wouldn't normally come across in other kottu places, it was truly something back then.

But now, the hype is down – probably because they hadn't been very innovative with their varieties. For over 3 years, they've been doing the same menu, just with increased prices. But, in the meantime, the ones who followed the same suit and established new kottu-ventures have been very busy – inventing more and more kinds of this classic Lankan street food.

In this review, we look at Chop Chop Kottu's branch down ODEL Promenade.

The Kottu

The meat varieties of Chop Chop's kottu range involves chicken, egg, sausages, prawns and crab. From what we observed, the only relatively new option on the list is the Mixed Kottu, which includes all of the meats and clocks in at Rs. 810.

Depending on the availability, we went with the Egg Kottu (Rs. 610) with Cheese add-on (Rs. 120) and a Chicken Kottu (Rs. 610).

Featuring a bullseye egg, and a few pieces of onion, the portion size of this kottu is adequate for one person. It wasn't oily in any way, and had some bits of leeks, carrots and karapincha, but not in an overpowering way.

The cheese add-on was barely there, but they seemed to have made good use of milk. Well-seasoned, not too spicy yet flavoursome, while the milk adding a bit of creaminess, it was a good kottu.

However, does it really worth the Rs. 730 price tag? No, not really.

The base of the Chicken Kottu was similar to the previous one, except for the bits of roast chicken scattered about. There was a good amount of that, but not enough, especially when you're at the last few spoonfuls.

Again, in terms of flavour, it's good, but doesn't quite justify the Rs. 610 price tag.

Service & Ambience

The Chop Chop Kottu at ODEL Promenade is tucked to a corner of Elephant House outlet, so it can be easily missed. As this is a part of a food court, you have the option to sit down and enjoy your kottu.

The staff managing the counter was friendly. We received our food within around 5 – 10 minutes into ordering.

Conclusion

From what we gathered, the drive-through spot of Chop Chop Kottu (and Gonuts With Donuts) down Castle Street is no more. They've been moved to Battaramulla, and therefore, if you're craving for a taste of their kottu in a super-central location, this outlet at ODEL Promenade is the closest bet.