Wasantha’s Sri Lanka Cuisine

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#5 of 201 Restaurants in Unawatuna£, Healthy, Sri Lankan, Vegetarian friendly

+94 77 288 6761+ Add website

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Hours

Sun

12:00 - 22:00

Mon

12:00 - 22:00

Tue

12:00 - 22:00

Wed

12:00 - 22:00

Thu

12:00 - 22:00

Fri

12:00 - 22:00

Sat

12:00 - 22:00

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What is Travellers’ Choice?

Tripadvisor gives a Travellers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travellers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.

Ratings and reviews

5.0

903 reviews

#5 of 201 Restaurants in Unawatuna

Travellers' Choice 2024

RATINGS

Food

Service

Value

Atmosphere

Details

Someone from this business manages this listing.

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CUISINES

Healthy, Sri Lankan

Special Diets

Vegetarian friendly, Vegan options, Gluten free options

Meals

Lunch, Dinner

features

Location and contact

180/A Yaddehimulla Rd, Unawatuna 80600 Sri Lanka

+94 77 288 6761

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Details

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About

Sri Lankan cooking is an art of its own. It's not about reading recipe books. It's food made from the heart and made out of pride. Wasanthi's kitchen is just that. A place to indulge your taste buds in what real in the Sri Lankan kitchen

CUISINES

Healthy, Sri Lankan

Special Diets

Vegetarian friendly, Vegan options, Gluten free options

Meals

Lunch, Dinner

FEATURES

Reservations, Outdoor Seating, Seating, Parking Available, Street Parking, Serves Alcohol, Wine and Beer, Table Service

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5.0

903 reviews

Excellent

828

Very good

Average

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Terrible

Kate B

Ramsgate43 contributions

Cashew Curry

Feb 2020 • couples

We visited Wasantha's on our first evening in Unawatuna. We arrived early evening and found a couple of guests who had enjoyed a cooking lesson that afternoon. As vegetarians we both ordered the rice and curry with sides of coconut sambol and cashew curry and the staple lion beer. When we ordered the waiter was helpful around the quantity of food we should order and asked us how spicy we would like our food. He also mentioned that the food is all cooked from scratch and takes a little longer. We happily sat and enjoyed the atmosphere while the restaurant got busier, Sam was a lovely host who told us about his lovely labradors. The food arrived in around 30 minutes. All of the curries were delicious with good portion sizes. The cashew curry and coconut sambol were extremely good and I would recommend ordering these to share if you have ordered a main meal. A homely restaurant with a good location 5 minutes walk away from the main strip of restaurants and beaches, so you don't have the traffic noise experienced close to the beach. We will be returning before our holiday ends.

Written 16 February 2020

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

wasanthahewage

Dear Kate, Thank you so much for taking your time to write us this amazing review, It means a lot to us and encourages us to keep up the good work, we are sl glad that we could make you happy, hope to see you soon :) Thank you, Wasantha and team

Written 5 March 2020

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Katarina K

6 contributions

Cooking from the heart

Jan 2020 • solo

Beautiful little family restaurant, with an extraordinary food cooking with love. Restaurant completely change at the evening and has beautiful atmosphere. Little warm lights under the roof, candles and fresh orchids on the tables, family members serving guest and Wasantha's husband walking around the tables and doing friendly chat with customer making sure they are all happy. Food is soooo delicious prepared with family secred spices. It was actually best food in Srílanka I had, and I travelled 1 month. I took also cooking class with Wasantha which was another great experience. First we drove to Galle to buy veggies (we had to pick 4 on our own choice, from which we cooked curry) and then fish market. We helped with preparing all ingredience for cooking and then Wasantha started to explain and cook. Whole class including market took aprox. 4 hours. At the end we eat all that delicious food. If you are near Unawatuna, definately need to visit this place.

Written 16 January 2020

845wasanthah

Dear Katarina, Thank you so much for taking a moment of your valuable time to write us this amazing review, it means a lot to us while encouraging us to do better in the future, thank you for choosing us among other classes and we do really hope that you enjoyed the stay at Wasantha's and all together the class and the food you had, Again thank you so much for your time :) Wasantha

Written 20 January 2020

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

WNB

Abu Dhabi10 contributions

Absolutely delicious

Mar 2020 • friends

My friends and I spent 10 days traveling in Sri lanka over a month ago, each night experiencing different restaurants and flavors but to say we saved the best to last is an understatement. We arrived at Wasanthas, were welcomed by the family who run it and were recommended have their rice and curry special. With a vast array of colors, spices and tastes it was absolutely stunning, a delight for all the senses and unlike any other type of curry I had tried before. The accompaniments to the dish were equally appetizing and presented beautifully and I only wish we had visited sooner so we could return there again and try the cooking class they offer so I could learn for myself how to make it. The atmosphere inside was relaxed and the simple but tasteful decor and lighting contributed to a wonderful evening spent with friends and drinking Arrack with Sam and his family who own it. Hoping to return here again!

Written 25 April 2020

845wasanthah

Dear sir/madam, thank you for taking a moment of your time to write us this amazing review, it means a lot to us while it encourages us just to do better :) Thank you, Wasantha

Written 12 May 2020

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Camilla

3 contributions

I came here with my parents,

Jan 2020 • none

I came here with my parents, they have visit your place last year when it was a smaller place with few tables and great homecooked food, and had a good experience. This time we all was very disappointed. We came and the waiter almost look like someone who wish he wasn’t there, no smile and no advise for food. After that I was served a warm water and a glass that smells so bad. We waited for nearly 2 hours for our food, no one came to our table and asked if we needed some more drinks, I ordered a juice and I have to wait for 45 minutes. When the food came THEN both a man and 2 women came to apologize in a very awkward way, they tried to put the guilt on each other. The food was okay nothing really special for waiting 2 hours. Just after we left my mother gets a hestamin poison by your fish, which means that it’s not handled correct! She was very sick, and couldn’t nearly walk Home! Some of the other guest left before they get the food. Maybe you are #1 for home cooking classes, but honestly this was the worst visit in our 3 weeks holiday.

Written 28 January 2020

845wasanthah

Hi Tha k you for your time. I’m very disappointed in your review. You come to my place (which is number one in the area and for a reason) in the high peak and expect the staff to be talking with you rather than working? When we offer you the water. We always says it’s room temperature. The glasses are all well cleaned and dried before it gets to the customer. The food was 1 hour and 15 minutes late to be exact. And yes there is a note behind every of our menus. If you went through the menu you would have seen it My son the waiter who had no rush to be anywhere else as he lives here constantly keep checking on our guests as the waiting time is longer. Surprised that you didn’t got your second drink. Yes we do come an apologies for keeping the guests waiting for an unexpected time. We were not guilty for taking the time to cook your food freshly. We were apologizing for the wait. We could serve you pre made food reheated as other places do. But then there will no be difference of us. Would there now 😊 Not sure if your mother got food poisoning or mind poisoning by my beloved neighbors. Because I saw you the next day having food there right after a cooking class ( just so you know. You had their left overs of the class) Yes the man walked out saying he couldn’t wait until the food got to his table. Because his food was already on the plates. And yes he was the last table for the night and only had been waiting for 45 minutes with unmannered personality And again thank you for your time. Hope your mom recovered the poisoning Toodles

Written 29 January 2020

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Neil M

London19 contributions

Average...

Feb 2020 • couples

Read the positive reviews and decided to try it out. Meal started badly with the waiter who was off hand and arrogant. I’ve eaten in restaurants all over the world and in many different countries, I don’t need to be patronised when consulting the menu, just pointers when required thanks. The fish curry that turned up was inedible and I refused to pay for it... the veg and rice that came with it were nice but nothing different to what you would see in a dozen other places round here. Makes you wonder what all the other reviewers have been eating? This is standard fare at best, don’t believe the hype!

Written 1 February 2020

845wasanthah

Not gonna even call you sir First I must remind you that you did not come to our place. You came to sea waves and you chose us as an option because they were closed. Secondly, be thankful for us taking you in just right before we close for the night. The waiter was not arrogant he was just making sure we are not an option. The fish curry. I myself came and explained to you that the spices we use are different. And it is the traditional way we cook it. And yes we were not anyways gonna charge you for that Thirdly, if we weren’t any different we wouldn’t be number one. Would we now. You don’t have to believe the hype since it was never your choice but just an option No thanks to you and never to see you Toodles 😊

Written 1 February 2020

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Michael M

Greater London52 contributions

Hillside retreat

Feb 2020 • none

Stumbled into Wasantha's one evening on our way down the track towards the beach-side strip of Unawatuna looking for a welcoming eatery. We never got anywhere near the strip, we found our welcoming eatery at Wasantha's. A most rewarding stumble! An open air informal restaurant with an attached cookery school presided over by Wasantha, the lady of the house and head chef. Front of house is handled by other family members; father Sam - a very engaging fellow with a host of stories ranging from the aftermath of the tsunami to his rescued Labradors. Their son is effectively the MD offering knowledgeable guidance on the menu and how spicy you would like your dishes. Given that Russians are the predominant tourists, the restaurant has sensibly engaged a Russian speaker to overcome possible language barriers (coincidentally the MD's girlfriend). The menu is a little more adventurous than most SL restaurants, with a few original dishes courtesy of Ma Wasantha - and why not! Just as it should be. After warnings that all dishes are cooked from scratch and could take time, we were prepared for the worst and thought about ordering breakfast whilst we are at it! Good ambience, delicate, subtle and complex tastes rewarded our wait. Well worth taking 45 minutes out of our hectic SL schedule.

Written 29 February 2020

wasanthahewage

Dear Michael , Thank you so much for taking your time to write us this amazing review, It means a lot to us and encourages us to keep up the good work, we are sl glad that we could make you happy, hope to see you soon :) Thank you, Wasantha and team

Written 5 March 2020

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Diana

Ireland28 contributions

3 generation of family home cooking.

Jan 2020 • couples

A great experience, Wasantha a wonderful cook & teacher. Her daughter Sasa collected us at hotel Tuk tuk to vegetable market & fish market. Explained all about the green market & it’s history.She spoke great English. Went to the restaraunt to cook. Very informative about veggies & spices & their secret homemade spices. My husband & I helped prepare & chop 6 wonderful curries with Sasa & Wasantha both giving us lots of tips & information. Everything tasted beautiful & Wasantha allow us take pictures of all her recipes for us to cook at home. So thank you to this family. Hope to try these recipes out.

Written 13 January 2020

845wasanthah

good Day dear sir/madam, Thank you for taking a moment of your valuable time to write us this review, it means a lot while encouraging us to do better in the future, we are so glad that you decided to join our cooking class among others, we really do hope that you had a wonderful time with us, If you need any more recipes you know where to contact me ;) Thank you, Wasantha

Written 20 January 2020

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Alyson G

6 contributions

Absolutely delicious!

Dec 2019 • family

My husband and I bought a cooking class for his parents for Christmas. We were very pleased from the very beginning as Sam was very friendly and full of stories to tell making us feel welcome. We enjoyed the trip to the market to pick out our fresh vegetables and fruits for cooking, as well as which fish we wanted. The pumpkin curry was my one of our favourites as well as the avocado curry. Her special recipe for the avocado curry was insanely good! The entire course was fun and full of little cooking tips. We left full and happy!

Written 19 January 2020

845wasanthah

Written 20 January 2020

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Andrew_Giles

4 contributions

Culinary Heaven in Paradise!

Jan 2020 • friends

Having eaten the best curry ever on my whole trip around Sri Lanka at Wasantha's wonderful restaurant,Prawn curry. I just had to have a bash at her cookery course. Her lovely daughter Sasangi took us to the fruit and vegetable market in Galle to buy fresh ingredients. Back at the restaurant Wasantha showed us her method of mixing and toasting various spices,her secret for perfect rice and then we helped make four delicious curries.. A truly memorable experience,made especially so by the warmth,love and kindness of this lovely family.. One experience not to miss!! Thank you.

Written 22 January 2020

845wasanthah

Thank you so much for choosing us as your cooking demonstration. We really hope that you had a wonderful time with us. And do hope you will be re creating wasantha’s magic And spread the family love through food Thank you. Wasantha

Written 24 January 2020

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Federica M

36 contributions

Good food but Long wait

Feb 2020 • couples

The atmosphere at night is nice, with music and lights. They do fancy cocktails and their menu offers both Western and local food. We ordered rice&curry, It came all in one plate, rice in the middle and four different curries all around with papadam. Reasonably good but quantity was not much. Desserts are good. We waited 1 hour for the food to come and about 15 minutes for the bill.

Written 7 February 2020

845wasanthah

Good day. I appreciate your time and effort you put into writing us this review 😊 But I must say that you didn’t visit our restaurant. Just checked the menu and the prices and walked into the restaurant opposite the location. Most people who eats rice and curry at our restaurant can not finish the dish as the portions are big. Sometimes people even share among two. If you really did cake to my restaurant there Is a note written in back of every menu. Saying it’s a family run small restaurant and apologizing for the wait. Even so when ever we get customers we explain them about the waiting time depending on how busy are we for the night. And again. We are a small family run restaurant. We don’t use computerized machinery to make bills. It is hand written. Again depending on how busy we are it takes a time to write them down and to calculate without making any mistakes. Relax man you are on holiday. Why so much in a rush. Enjoy your time with the good background music 😉 Thanks

Written 8 February 2020

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Bethany

26 contributions

We came here as the reviews

Mar 2020 • couples

We came here as the reviews were really high and positive. However we ordered the vegetable curry and were quite disappointed. This was one of many vegetable curries that we have had in Sri Lanka, throughout our month long trip, and it was unfortunately the worst. The curry was dry and lacked flavour, just seemed abit rushed. Staff were kind and fairly attentive in busy circumstances. We waited a while for food but already expected that, we don’t mind waiting if the food is worth the wait. Also 450 rupees for a small lion beer is quite overpriced. Perhaps we came on a bad day?

Written 2 March 2020

wasanthahewage

dear Bethany, sorry to disappoint you, the vegetables curries are dry curries that's why the menu has a different section for additional curries, where you can choose as many as you like, we are sorry that you didn't find the traditional curries good, and we don't serve common curries like lentils, potatoes, beans as other places do we make traditional curry, and curry doesn't always stand for gravy ( there are many different kinds of curries) but the other people say otherwise of our dishes, we are not a beach restaurant, which makes us far from the main road ( where the liqueur shops are located,) and to get to the liqueur shop we need to get a tuk tuk that charges us 700 rupees, and we are only allowed to travel with 24 beers at once, and to make them cold need to put to a fridge which requires electric, to get electric we have to pay the bills, do your math :)

Written 5 March 2020

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Arran S

Colombo21 contributions

An experience of authenticity, family, home. That's Wasantha's

Jul 2021 • family

There are so many reasons why I gave given this review a 5/5. If there was an option, I would give it more. Firstly, as this is a review about a culinary experience, let's talk about the food: You could have rice and curry anywhere in Sri Lanka; at a hotel restaurant, at a beach bar, at the side of a road even. But what most places lack in the way they cook rice and curry for a traveller is authenticity. The flavours in the dishes that are served here literally shout "mama's food" and that's a rare quality when it comes to finding authenticity in rice and curry as a traveller. Value for money: in my opinion, the food at Wasantha's is worth a lot more than is charged. That's another clear result of using local fresh produce and simply wanting to share what home-cooked Sri Lankan food is supposed to be. Ambience: what creates and rather compliments the food itself is the fact that Wasantha's is not a restaurant but is indeed their family home of which a cozy family veranda on their porch has been converted into a place for a traveller sit and "join the family meal". I would sit with this beautiful family and share their authentic food any day of the week before even thinking about ordering food in a 5 star restaurant; this place would get 6 from me if it were allowed for other more experiential reasons. The people: again, it's a family home where cooking and sharing their home-cooked food is their passion. You are not served by a waiter, you are served by "mama" and that is an experience that makes me want to come "home" again and again. I would recommend a meal or 20 here if you have the time. Even for me, as a well travelled Sri Lankan, when I keep returning to Wasantha's, I simply feel as I've returned home.

Written 24 July 2021

wasantha's

Dear Arran, Thank you so much for taking your time to write us this amazing review, it means a lot. we are very happy to know that we were and are able to give you a homely experience We look forward to wlcome you back, Thank you, Team Wasantha.

Written 4 August 2021

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Maya M

3 contributions

Homey and Delicious

Mar 2020 • friends

If you want to taste some traditional Sri Lankan dish, I definitely recommend this place. My friends and I visited this restaurant and we got a warm welcome. Without hesitation they recommended a few dishes that we should try and I am very happy to say, I'm glad we listened to their advice. The dish was filled with vibrant colors of various spices and healthy vegetables. Some of my friends who rarely eat vegetables couldn't stop themselves from expressing how delicious it was. My absolute favourite was the chicken curry. I truly wish I had the time to take one or two of their cooking classes to learn how to make such flavourful dishes.

Written 3 May 2020

845wasanthah

Dear maya, Thank you so much for taking a moment of your time to write us this amazing review, it means a lot while it encourages us just to do better for the future we wish that you had more time to spend with us, now we do have a YouTube channel where you can learn the chicken curry ;)

Written 12 May 2020

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Ben C

Dubai14 contributions

Sri Lankan food at its best

Jan 2020 • couples

On the whole the experience was amazing and we have taken away hints and tips you couldn’t learn anywhere else. The day starts at the market and my only criticism would be that our group was a little big and difficult to herd. It would be best suited to a private group of 6 if possible. We then went to the fish market and onto the kitchen itself. It’s Wansantha’s daughter who takes you to the market but at the kitchen you meet the master herself! With a quick demonstration you are cutting all of the produce you picked and being talked through how they cook best. At this point I did wish I’d had a big breakfast as the cooking takes some time! Is it worth it? Absolutely. The freshest food I’ve ever had and so tasty! They are great hosts and I can see why their lessons are so highly rated!

Written 3 January 2020

845wasanthah

Dear sir/Madam, Thank you so much for taking a moment of your time to write us this amazing review, it mean a lot to us and encourages us to keep up the good work, we do hope to see you someday soon, Thank you! Wasantha

Written 8 January 2020

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

mfacchinelli

Cambridge16 contributions

Tasty Local Food in Cozy Environment

Jan 2020 • solo

Very tasty food in a really cozy environment. Highly recommend to try while in Unawatuna. I actually did not have enough cash to buy a meal and a drink, but the owner was so kind to offer a bottle of water when I explained the situation. That’s some great hospitality!

Written 7 January 2020

845wasanthah

Written 8 January 2020

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

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