CÉ LA VI Colombo

Incredible Asian Cuisine paired with beautiful city views.

CÉ LA VI is one of Singapore’s most loved rooftop bars and the brand’s most recent expansion is to Sri Lanka. CÉ LA VI now houses the rooftop at The Kingsbury Hotel, which previously was the Sky Lounge. In Singapore, CÉ LA VI is known for its Sky Bar and insane Club Lounge that promises you a good night. In Colombo, it is the same. Our mission this review was not to check out their bar, but their hidden gem of a restaurant serving up curated Japanese dishes.

Their restaurant is almost like a speakeasy within the bar and lounge. A long corridor adorned with Far East architecture leads you to the restaurant.

Appetizers

One look at the menu and you know it’s exquisitely fine dining. The dishes are closely curated; the prices reflect this and plating is intricate.

California Roll – LKR 975

We started the night with (amazing) sushi. They served a classic California Roll with snow crab and cucumber. The sushi was delectable, and looked aesthetically appealing too, with a generous topping of glass orange caviar – almost too pretty to eat!

Soft Shell Crab – LKR 1800

This was the most intriguing dish I had that night. Tiny, crispy, deep fried soft shell crabs were stacked one over the other over a good-sized chunky watermelon. Watermelon and crab was a combo I hadn’t heard of, so I was very eager to taste the end result. You’d be as surprised when you try this for yourself: this combination and dish actually works! The watermelon base did not make the crabs soggy at all – a credit to the plating that the preparation of the dish, I’m assuming.

Assorted Tempura – LKR 1100

What’s Japanese without some good Tempura? Although I did end up picking more vegetables than seafood, the Tempura batter was rich and the output was very crispy.

Mains

French Duck Breast – LKR 1600

This item on their list is many seas away from their Japanese menu and a pick from that list of dishes you’d only find at exclusive fine dining restaurants. I have to say, they do Duck Breast better than any French restaurant in Colombo. For 1600, the portion size is questionable but because this dish is a delicacy, we’re going to look past this. The flavours in every bite of meat were an explosion in your mouth. Although the slices of meat were small, the big flavours make their mark.

Balsamic Chicken Teriyaki – LKR 1200

This was my favorite dish of the lot. Japanese teriyaki dishes are always a treat to have, paired with a carb or just on its own. In this dish, the chicken skin was left on, so the flavors were packed in both the meat and the outer skin. A flavourful balsamic reduction had bathed the teriyaki chicken which was paired with roasted vegetables.

Braised Pork Belly – LKR 1200

Nobody does Pork Belly like the Japanese do it. This braised pork belly had flavours that sing to you! The meat was soft and tender and the execution was superb! Paired with garlic chive kimchi and ssamjang sauce, this dish is well worth your money!

New Zealand Lamb Chops – LKR 2000

This dish was another off the ‘you’d only get them at fancy places’ list. I was actually quite surprised at how good the meat was since CÉ LA VI was predominantly a Japanese restaurant, and my feelings were that they wouldn’t execute dishes outside their cuisine as well as they did the rest. I was wrong. The meat was cooked to medium rare; it was juicy and sat on a roasted bed of vegetables.

Dessert

Hazelnut Truffle – LKR 800

If anything at all, I think that a meal at CÉ LA VI should definitely end with dessert. Their desserts are carefully crafted and you can actually see the layers and effort put into every dessert in every bite. The Hazelnut Truffle was a combination of a layer of chocolate brownie and frozen hazelnut soufflé. This brownie is accompanied with scotch whiskey ice cream that I thought, was definitely the oomph the dish needed.

Matcha Lava – LKR 800

I wasn’t a huge fan of the Matcha Lava desert because to me, it was more a matcha pie than a lava cake. The little crusty pie was accompanied by a Sakura and Blood Orange Sorbet, Cherry Blossom Whip Ganache, and little cubes of Green Tea Sponge.

Rose and Watermelon Petit Gateaux – LKR 800

If you haven’t tried this dish at CÉ LA VI, you haven’t lived! This dessert is gorgeous! I was so obsessed with this dessert that I almost didn’t even want to eat it! This is food that’s too pretty to eat! What was inside this meringue spike bomb made me fall in love with it harder…when you break it, you see layers of Rose and Vanilla Opalys, White Chocolate Cremeux, Fresh Watermelon, and a Raspberry Crumble inside. This is a dish that is worth more than 800!

Have you checked out the restaurant at CÉ LA VI yet? Let us know in the comments.

#PulseTip – Do not leave without trying their dessert, specifically the Rose and Watermelon Petit Gateux