3. Lakruwana
Lakruwana Restaurant
Originally located in Manhattan, Michelin guide-rated restaurant Lakruwana restaurant opened in Stapleton in 2004 by Lakruwana Wijesinghe. The ornately decorated restaurant features many Sri Lankan artifacts like Buddha statues similar to those found in the Sri Lanka Art and Cultural Museum. Customers sit on skinny triangular-shaped metal chairs underneath hanging artworks and creative light fixtures. The exterior of the restaurant also features a gold-colored door, an intricately designed scene of Buddhist figures, and painted elephants walking in a line.
Lakruwana features a weekend buffet offering dishes like devilled chicken, black pork curry, dal, pineapple curry, and crispy pappadam, as well as various desserts like gooseberry mousse and sago pudding. For their normal menu, Lakruwana offers classics like kotthu roti, string hoppers made with rice noodles, and Godamba roti, square-shaped bread with choice of curry. Also popular is lamprais, literally translating to “packet of food,” consisting of curry with rice, fish cutlet, sambal, and eggplant wrapped in a banana leaf.