Being a complete foodie, the urge to try an exemplary ifthar buffet atleast once during Ramadan is painfully tempting. Ramada Colombo has a middle Eastern ifthar buffet happening this month. We were more than delighted to try it because there is no fear of cross contamination with non-halal meat and it was perfectly safe for us to try every dish without the discomfort of having to check on the halal factor.
The buffet was primarily a fusion of indo-middle Eastern cuisine. It had three main sections. One that served finger food and the famous savouries that we Muslims love to have when we break fast. Another section served scrumptious mogul dinner delights from their signature Indian restaurant Al-Hambra and a final area served desserts and sweetmeats. Therefore, it was a whole feast laid out before us.
The savoury area had a subtle mutton kanji and a shorba coupled with various types of bread and middle-eastern patisserie. This section progressed with lebanese fatteyar, salads, hummus, olives and mouth watering Charcuterie (cheese and meat platters). A highlight being that this section did not ignore local taste buds and consisted of local finger favourites such as cutlets, mini-pizza, creamy tuna sandwiches and crispy samosas. Further, there was a delectable offering of a range of thirst quenchers such as fresh papaya, fresh watermelon, faluda and a pineapple cordial.
A designated prayer area was available for us to pray our Maghrib prayers (the sunset prayer ) which alternatively provided a minor break before proceeding onto trying the mogul feast laid out.
Dinner was a delightful spread of Hyderabadi chicken biriyani, plain rice, ghee rice, chicken khormah, a black mutton curry, prawn dhansak, fish, paneer, bindi (okra), dhal makhani and a range of vegetarian dishes with Papad, chutney and naan. The meat and sea food variety was massive in taste and variety. However, I personally perceived it might have surpassed expectations if every dish wasn’t curry based and alternated between grills and sautées as well.
The dessert corner was a mixture of English cakes, tarts and puddings in one area , while the other area consisted of mogul junkets like barfi, jilebi, Gajr ka Halwa, Kheer, mango sago pudding and a healthy fruit finisher.
My personal favourite off the buffet was the mogul dinner by Al Hambra which was extremely fulfilling. The hotel drew in a decent crowd which added to the liveliness to the ifthar ambience. Considering we didn’t have to forego any meats or dishes due to halal anxiety, made the meal comfortable and relaxing.
Lots of love,
Zarika