Hosting a Sri Lankan Dinner Party: The Menu That Always Works

Feeding friends Sri Lankan food for the first time. Here is the menu that converts people, and the mistakes to avoid.

Introducing people to Sri Lankan food at a dinner party is one of the most satisfying things you can do, and it is very easy to get wrong. The mistake is trying to show off. The trick is to make it easy for them.

Do not open with the hardest thing

Nobody who has never had Sri Lankan food should be handed a devilled dish. You are not being generous, you are being showy, and they will spend the meal drinking water.

The menu that converts people

Start with a biryani. It is aromatic, familiar in shape, and universally liked. Add a kottu roti for the table to share, because kottu is the dish people fall in love with. Then one chicken curry and one dhal, so they can see what the coconut and the roasted spice actually do. A coconut sambol on the side. Rice.

That is it. Five things. It will look like a feast.

Teach the plate, briefly

Tell them once: this is not a main and sides, mix it. Rice, a bit of curry, a pinch of sambol, all in one bite, and change the ratio each time. Say it once and then leave them alone. That single instruction is the difference between people enjoying the food and people politely eating separate piles.

Manage the heat honestly

Have at least one genuinely mild dish, and say which one it is. Do not make people find out by accident.

Finish with watalappan

It is less sweet than Western desserts and works after a heavy meal, which is exactly what it was designed for. It is also the dish nobody has had before, so it lands.

Or just cater it

You are hosting. You should be at the table. We are a family-run halal Sri Lankan and Indian kitchen in Scarborough and we do exactly this menu. See how to host a Sri Lankan dinner, or our catering page.

For a special table, add crab curry or a seafood devil, and finish with watalappan.

Turning the five-dish menu into an actual order

The menu above is easy to describe and slightly harder to buy. Here is how it maps onto what we actually cook, with real prices, so you can plan before you call.

For 8 guests

  • 5 Biriyani at $12 each (chicken, beef, mutton or vegetable) = $60
  • 3 Kottu Roti at $13 each, cut into a shared platter = $39
  • One curry for the table, such as Chicken Korma Curry or Green Peas Curry, ordered on request
  • 1 Vattalappam at $15 to finish

That is $114 before tax for the priced items, plus whatever curry you add. Eight people rarely finish five biryanis and three kottus, which is the point: leftovers mean nobody leaves hungry.

For 20 guests or more

At 20 people it is simpler to switch to a per-person combo, which has a 20-person minimum. Chicken Biryani Combo 2 at $25 per person gives you the biryani, deep-fried chicken, pineapple curry, eggplant mojo, acharu, maasi sambal, green-pea cashew curry and a custard dessert. For 20 guests that is $500 before tax and delivery. If you want the watalappan finish described above, the Mutton Biryani Combo at $29 per person includes ktull wattalapam.

A heat ladder you can say out loud

When you tell guests which dish is mild, it helps to rank everything once:

  1. Mildest: Potato Milk Curry, Chicken Korma Curry, plain biryani rice.
  2. Middle: kottu roti, pineapple curry, eggplant mojo, which is sweet and sour as much as hot.
  3. Hot: Chicken Devil, Chilli Chicken, maasi sambol.

Things to tell guests about the food

  • Kottu roti on our menu comes with egg omelette, and vattalappam is made with eggs.
  • Maasi sambol contains dried Maldives fish, so it is not for vegetarian guests.
  • Green-pea cashew curry contains cashews.
  • Our Green Peas Curry is described on the menu as naturally vegan, which makes it a useful anchor for a vegan guest.

Timing the table

Pick up or receive the food about 45 minutes before you plan to eat. Keep rice and curry covered in a low oven, but leave kottu uncovered so it does not steam soft. Put the sambol out cold. Serve dessert at room temperature or chilled. If your dinner falls on a weekend, you can collect it yourself on Saturday or Sunday, or order through our direct ordering page. Planning around spice? Read is Sri Lankan food spicy, or see our vegetarian Sri Lankan dishes.