By Marianne David
Avartana, ITC Hotels’ signature South Indian fine dining restaurant, has already made its mark at ITC Ratnadipa in Colombo with its intricate tasting menus and interpretation of traditional flavours. With Jiaa, the restaurant’s 11-course tasting experience created specially for ITC Ratnadipa, the dining experience highlights a harmonious connection to Sri Lanka.
The word Jiaa means soul food, soulfulness, and wellness, showcased via each of the courses, which include familiar local flavours – from rampe, chilli, kithul, and coconut to jackfruit, lovi, aubergine, and red rice, to name a few. These need no introduction to anyone who has grown up in Sri Lanka, but are presented at Avartana in ways that elevate them.
The evening began with an amuse bouche (which changes daily) and this time it was a delicious cucumber dipped in buttermilk, coated with black rice crisps, followed by the warm and irresistible rasam, which is left to steep for 48 hours for all the goodness to seep in and served to all diners.
Then came the first dish – Spiced Cuttlefish, pandan cloud, and carrot leaf potato. Cuttlefish isn’t an unfamiliar ingredient in Sri Lanka, but this is not the cuttlefish we know from home-cooked curries or devilled versions. Here it is marinated with jaggery and mustard and the delicate pandan cloud gives the dish an unexpected lightness, making it a lovely introduction to Jiaa.
The Bananaflower Fritter with rose apple jam is another eye-opening combination. The bananaflower is transformed into a flavour-packed fritter that is crunchy and comforting, while the rose apple brings a fresh note to the dish.
The Pepper Chicken dumpling with fermented sesame and jaggery brings more intensity despite looking harmless, with the fermented sesame adding an interesting layer and fiery scotch bonnet completing it.
The crunchy Sago Prawn with water spinach emulsion laced with bird’s eye chili brings together very different textures. The sweetness of the prawn is balanced by the brightness of the green emulsion, the fragrance of the chili, and the freshness of the tiny cherry tomato, which sits on the plate like a chef’s kiss.
A little Passion Fruit and Lovi Berry palate cleanser follows – a lovely flavour explosion on the tongue – before the menu moves into richer fare.
It was time for the coconut water and vinegar spiced Black Pork with coconut barley, date, and a tapioca cracker. Pork and coconut are familiar aspects of local cuisine, but here they appear in a combination that is entirely different. I enjoyed the barley component and the delicious tapioca cracker, but the pork didn’t quite hold my interest.
Then came the Cashew and Mango bursting with colour, with a steamed hopper bun perched delicately atop the plate. The mango and cashew work beautifully together in the rich broth, while the familiar hopper taste comes through in the interesting bun. I scooped up every last drop.
With the Fried Seabass with fermented Jaffna chilli and smoked aubergine – ingredients that need no introduction here – I enjoyed the fish but not the texture and taste of the aubergine, although my dining companions enjoyed it.
The last of the mains was the nourishing and generously-portioned Lamb Congee, with okra yoghurt adding a tangy contrast. You will find yourself hard pressed to finish this given everything that comes before, but it’s hard to stop with such a comforting dish.
Finally, dessert!
The Banana and Jackfruit with spiced coconut cake was an interesting combination that ended the meal on a familiar and tropical note, while the Kithul and Yoghurt with puffed red rice and cinnamon tuile was a particularly beautiful and delicate interpretation of quintessentially Sri Lankan ingredients.
Avartana in Colombo incidentally welcomed a new Sous Chef recently – Chef Prakhar Srivastava, whose association with Avartana began in 2024 at Avartana at ITC Maratha, Mumbai.
Commenting on his move here, he said: “Sri Lanka has a rich and distinctive culinary heritage and I look forward to exploring its ingredients and flavours while bringing my experiences with Avartana into this new chapter. I am drawn to the details within South Indian cuisine and to exploring how those details can come together in unexpected ways.”
Outlining what diners can expect from him in Colombo, he said: “The uniqueness of Avartana is that it takes ingredients and transforms them in a way people have not thought of. If you take the first course of the Jiaa menu, it’s cuttlefish with a pandan cloud. You get the pandan flavour, but you cannot imagine that someone can make a cloud out of it. We have transformed the cuttlefish as well, which is presented in a very fine, julienned way, and the marination, which includes local jaggery, tamarind, and mustard, is also very distinct in terms of flavour. We are bringing in more Sri Lankan flavours from the south and from Jaffna and we are working on creating more meaningful menus in the months ahead.”
Speaking on how Avartana has been received in Sri Lanka, ITC Ratnadipa Colombo Manager Marketing and Communications Dilshi Fernando said: “We are delighted to see how warmly our guests have embraced the Avartana experience. It is a journey of rediscovering the familiar through a new lens. With the Jiaa menu, the flavours of South India and Sri Lanka are reimagined through progressive techniques, unexpected combinations, and culinary imagination. Each course offers something recognisable, yet entirely unexpected – a journey of flavour, surprise, and rediscovery.”
This is certainly true. And with Jiaa it never feels like Sri Lankan ingredients have simply been added to an existing menu for the sake of being local. Avartana maintains its own identity throughout, while carefully incorporating local ingredients, ensuring the final result is a harmonious dance between two cuisines. Remember to take your time when dining at Avartana; set aside at least three hours for the Jiaa
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