Kolamba duo to open second restaurant in Spitalfields

Kolamba East follows the success of their first Sri Lankan restaurant Kolamba, which opened in Soho in 2019​​, and will once again showcase the duo’s modern take on home-cooking and celebrating the island's vibrant cuisine.

The menu at Kolamba East will revive dishes from the pair’s childhoods spent in the city, highlighting the culinary diversity of Colombo’s heritage. Adapted by Eroshan from dishes handed down by family and friends, the recipes celebrate the communities of Sinhalese, Tamil, Moor, Burger (Dutch) and Malay descent that call Sri Lanka’s capital their home.

The new 92-cover restaurant will be located in the Norton Folgate development, which sits at the meeting point of Spitalfields, Shoreditch and the City, and will have a dedicated central bar that will serve cocktails made using Sri Lankan spirits and ingredients that complement the food menu, as well as two private dining rooms.

It will serve some different dishes to the Soho original, including a new selection of larger feasting plates alongside its signature ‘short eats’ snacks, hoppers and sambols.

The interior design of the space is led by Annie Harrison of London studio FARE INC, in collaboration with WhiteBox London, the property development and design company co-founded by Aushi and Eroshan. Echoing the design of Kolamba’s Soho location, the space will pay homage to the work of the celebrated Sri Lankan architect Geoffrey Bawa and the Tropical Modernism movement he pioneered, through plaster relief panels sporting leaf motifs and emerald marble paving, contrasted with timber panelling and original exposed brickwork.

“We are thrilled to be bringing Kolamba to east London this spring, and to be able to offer a brand new, elevated dining experience to our guests in this incredible space,” the pair say.

Kolamba East will open in the spring.