Bonavista Ceylon | Restaurant Review

This is for the ones who just can’t decide what they’re craving!

Bonavista Ceylon is a chic fusion restaurant tucked conveniently down Barnes Place, offering an extravagant menu featuring cuisines from exotic destinations like Japan, China, Thailand and Italy. With an extensive combination of vegetarian and non-vegetarian options, the restaurant adds a unique touch to elevate each dish and drink.

You can always ask for recommendations to navigate their diverse offerings. Read on to discover more about our experience!

Mains

Pad Thai (Small) — LKR 2,400 (5/5)

This prawn pad Thai is an authentic Thai dish for the eyes to feast on. Not only is the presentation stunning, but the rice noodles are cooked well and bursting with tangy and spicy flavours. The noodles soak up all that ‘goodness’ from the juicy shrimp, egg, lime, vegetables and tangy sauces. For those who are used to lighter versions of Pad Thai, this is an excellent find to try. Even though this is a ‘small’ dish, I’d say it’s enough for two to share. You can also get the large portion at LKR 2,900 for four people to comfortably share.

Pak choy – LKR 1,800 (5/5)

Soaked in soy sauce, this is a juicy plate of veggies that is definitely on the larger side of servings. The mushrooms and the leafy Chinese cabbage complement each other well, cutting through the aftertaste of the proteins. The veggies being light and healthy is honestly, just an added bonus.

Double Cooked Belly Pork – LKR 2,500 (5/5)

We can go on and on about how tender this pork dish is, but we’d rather have you try it yourself. It comes to the table in all its theatrical glory with sizzling meat and cabbage in soy sauce straight from the kitchen. Moist, meaty, and crispy on the edges, this one must not be missed! You have three other pork options on the menu: black pepper pork, mustard pork, and belly pork, so if you want variety, they’ve got it.

Spicy Tuna Maki – LKR 2,500 (5/5)

This maki set of eight delivers a pretty straightforward taste experience. First, the Spicy Tuna Maki sets your taste buds on fire. This rice roll was the perfect base to wrap up all the spicy tuna with cool cucumber. And trust us when we say, this is the fieriest tuna maki we’ve tasted to date! You will need water and cold juices by your side for this one. They offer seven other types of maki: chicken katsu, cucumber, chilli prawn, shrimp avocado, prawn tempura, crab, and cucumber tuna on their menu.

Steam Mullet in Thai Chili Sauce – LKR 4,400 (5/5)

If you have guests to impress, you should go for this spicy seafood dish. The presentation is fit for royalty, with a steamed delicate grey mullet garnished and flavoured with tomatoes, bell peppers, lime juice and garlic. The fish soaks up the lime juice and Thai chilli sauce to make a small flavour bomb. It’s shareable among family and friends, and ideal for a celebration or a business lunch.

Drinks

Ambarella Juice – LKR 700 (4/5)

A refreshing tropical drink, garnished with lemon. It has a tangy and sweet taste and, flavour-wise, is quite simple. The lemon juice does overpower the sweetness of the ambarella, so we recommend telling the staff to go easy on the juice.

Tamarind Juice – LKR 700  (5/5)

Sweet, sour and tangy. This guilt-free and unique tamarind juice is garnished with chilli and mint leaves. It has a very distinctive tangy tamarind taste – a must-try!

Desserts

Chocolate Brownie – LKR 950 (per serving) (5/5)

This usually comes with one piece and one scoop of ice cream, which can be shared (only if you want to, no pressure). But we were lucky enough to get extra; that definitely won some brownie points from us. It was loaded with gooey chunks of chocolate, but it was a bit on the firmer side. And the answer to that is the ice cream and we have no complaints.

Ambience

Bonavista has an indoor seating space for about 25-30 people. They also boast a spacious outdoor seating area with string lights to light up your romantic evening dinners or to enjoy a drink with friends. The kitchen, where all the action happens, can be seen from the dining space, allowing you to glimpse into how your meals are made. The staff is quick, friendly, and always wears a smile.

If your idea of a meet-up is a combination of class, style, and enough and more options so you don’t have to pick just one – choose Bonavista.