Arts
Take a round-the-world voyage at Galle’s Galley52
On the quaint streets of Galle Fort sits Galley52, a restaurant and coffee lounge. With white and blue striped cushions and vivid paintings of ships, the nautical themed cafe has the perfect ambience for the Galle Fort.
Galley52 is open every day from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. and has a seating capacity of 35. Having an open courtyard creates a relaxed atmosphere .
Owned and managed by the “The Food Cartel”, Galley52 is run in partnership with Villa Ayura.
“We’ve been inspired to make Galley52 a part of a ship concept because of how its name is related to the fort and harbours,” says Dillon Daryanani, managing director of ‘The Food Cartel’. The atmosphere of his café and the names he gives to his dishes bring to mind routes, maps, ships and pirates. It is also about exploring food for the diner.
Look out for dishes such as Silk Route which consists of panfried “Bay of Bengal” jumbo prawns in a hot Asian sauce served with scissor cut basil noodles as well as the “Age of Discovery”, which is an Indian Ocean calamari panfried in a shallot and oyster sauce as well as butter rice and spiced herb salad on the side. Voyage of Good Hope is another nautical themed dish made with Yellowfin tuna steak cooked in a spicy masala gravy served with kade paan or two flat iron chapatis and a garden salad. The famous female Pirate, Anne Bonny is represented in the dish ‘Anne Bonny’s fish and chips’ made with beer battered whole fish fillet, hand cut fries with a side of curry sauce and sriracha.
“I am trying to fuse in Sri Lankan food with the rest of the world. We have things like kade paan (local bread) bruschetta. Bruschetta is predominantly an Italian dish but we are using kade paan instead of French bread. We also have a pol sambol mayo that we use instead of the usual tartar sauce. “ Dilan says his vision is a restaurant that focuses on Sri Lankan Fusion as well as Pan Asian, Mediterranean and Indian cuisine.
One of the best dishes is the Creamy Chicken Korma, served with iron flattened chapatis, a side of rice, sour pickle and kachumber salad which has such an interesting flavour that stands above the rest. The other favourite is the colonial Biryani which is curry mutton cubes simmered and cooked with saffron rice served in a clay pot after heating at 300 degrees for 6 mins. Isso hodi rice (prawn curry rice), cheese and chicken kothu, pad thai, butter chicken made with Greek yoghurt and pol roti (coconut roti) with polos – some old favourites with a twist are popular dishes.
Galley 52 is at 52A Church Street,
Galle Fort.
For more information or reservations call +94(0) 912235858.
A must try: The Creamy Chicken Korma
Local favourites with a twist. Pix by Ishanka Sunimal
Galley52: An atmosphere of all things nautical