Diner’s Lounge Kollupitiya

A multi-cuisine restaurant that actually has a good variety for each cuisine it offers is very rare. One look at the menu at Diner’s Lounge and we were impressed at the very extensive range that they offered. That being said, I think I heard my wallet cry a little when we looked at the prices.

Diner’s Lounge opened up not too long ago and appears classy and laid back at the same time. It is not a very large space and it did feel a little cluttered. Overall, looks-wise, we weren’t all too impressed and the service wasn’t all that great either.  We dropped by for lunch at around 2.30 p.m. on a Tuesday; we’re not sure if it was deserted because of the odd hour, or because it is a fairly new place that’s tucked away in a by-lane in Kollupitiya, but it was quite empty.

It isn’t one of the best restaurants that I’ve been to, but it isn’t the worst either. Since their menu is extremely extensive, you don’t really have to struggle with a lack of choice.  They offer Chinese, Western, Indian and Arabian cuisines. In addition to this, they have a few Thai delicacies like Tom-Yum soup.

You can also choose drinks from a range of tea, coffee, cold beverages, milkshakes, mojitos as well as your usual fresh juices.

Drinks

Passion Mojito – Rs. 495

It did taste quite nice, but I wouldn’t say that it’s one of the best. It’s great for a hot day because it does have a very refreshing kick to it. This is probably because of the copious amounts of passion fruit that they incorporated in the drink. However, it did taste very soda-like, so I have mixed feelings about it.

Oreo Delight – Rs. 550

This was definitely the best from what we ordered. Again, I have had better, but it was thick, creamy, and had a very rich Oreo taste to it. Halfway through the drink I wished that I could have found some chunks of Oreo in the drink, but as I took my last few sips, I realized that it was all at the bottom of the glass and ended up clogging up my straw.  

Cremosito with Chocolate – Rs. 475

You could opt to have the Cremosito accompanied with chocolate or cappuccino, and being the chocolate fanatics we are, we went with the former. I think it would be safe to say that this was our least favourite. It was watery and you probably wouldn’t have known that there was chocolate in it if you hadn’t placed the order yourself.

Food

Cream of Mussels Soup – Rs. 595

We opted for the Cream of Mussels Soup and we’re glad we did. I would definitely recommend this dish for anyone who loves seafood and is a great dish to start your meal with.  It had a lovely thick consistency, was very creamy and had a smooth texture to it. The mussels were also a treat to have as the soft insides combined incredibly well with the cream.

Prawn Fried Balls – Rs. 975

It is quite pricey for an appetizer, but it does taste amazing. Bathed in a rich sweet chilli sauce are 4 medium sized, well- seasoned prawn balls. Since the balls were drenched in sauce, it did make the crispy outer layer soggy and in turn, tougher to munch on.

Beef Pepper Steak – Rs. 1350

The steak came with a side of mashed potatoes and boiled vegetables. The potatoes tasted funny and this is probably due to the fact that they added way too much butter (or something that tastes like butter) to the concoction.  The veggies were also disappointing because they weren’t boiled enough; they were hard to bite on and weren’t seasoned enough either. The steak was on the brink of being a real tragedy. It was easily more than well-done and the meat was extremely tough. The more we ate, the harder it got. Since it didn’t remain hot for long either, it started to feel like trying to eat rubber. The only good thing I would say about this dish was the sauce they had generously poured over the steak. It was thick and tasted a bit sweet; it was the only thing that made the entire dish bearable.

Spicy Beef Meatball Pasta – Rs.945

I would definitely go back for another round of this! The meatballs were delicious and were seasoned well. The sauce made the dish a real winner because it was thick and had copious amounts of tomato in it, which was a huge plus point for me. The herbs incorporated in the sauce as well as the meatballs made it so much better! The only downer here was the garlic bread; it looked like it, but tasted like ordinary toast. It was neither crunchy nor flavoursome.

Salami Beef Pizza – Rs. 1850

There aren’t a lot of places here that offer salami dishes, so when we saw it on the menu, there was no doubt that we were going to try it out. I would recommend this for anyone who is a lover of pizza and beef. It was absolutely AMAZING! They didn’t hold back on the cheese (and we were so glad they didn’t). They had also generously topped the pizza with black and green olives, a few slices of onion, and of course the mouthwatering slices of salami. It’s not your usual fast food pizza and does carry some Italian authenticity with it. The crust was also seasoned with a few herbs and was incredibly soft. We had no complains with this one!

Desserts

Fried Ice Cream – Rs. 425

It did take us quite some time to finish off with our mains because the portions were massive. We were determined to try at least one dessert before leaving, so after much thought, we decide to go for the Fried Ice Cream. It was a miracle that we didn’t burst after eating all that food, but like they say, there’s always room for dessert!

The fried ice cream came in a sizzling pan. In addition to being covered in rich chocolate sauce, the portion, like every other dish we indulged in, was huge! The outer fried layer was a bit thicker than we would have preferred it to be, but it was delectable. It was a while before we actually started eating the dessert, but we were pleasantly surprised that the ice cream hadn’t immediately melted into a sticky sweet puddle! It was mango flavoured ice cream and combined with the fried batter, it tasted amazing!