Kandy guide · Where to eat
Places to eat in Kandy, with what to order and how comfortable each is for families and older travellers.
Updated
Kandy's food is Sri Lankan at heart: rice and curry with coconut sambols, string hoppers, hoppers and kottu roti, most of it cooked with fish or meat on offer alongside vegetable curries. For vegetarians, the practical approach is to eat at dedicated South Indian restaurants such as Balaji Dosai, Sri Krishna Dosai and Nagalingam's Bhavan, which are listed in this guide, and to ask hotels for vegetable rice and curry cooked without fish or meat.
Verified evidence is limited. We found three fully vegetarian restaurants with enough evidence to tag: Balaji Dosai (its own site says 100 percent vegetarian), Sri Krishna Dosai (a local review says everything is vegetarian) and Nagalingam's Bhavan (a vegetarian directory lists it as pure vegetarian and onion- and garlic-free). We found no restaurant that clearly meets a strict Jain standard. Jain diners should ask each kitchen about root vegetables and onion, and carry snacks.
Sri Lankan vegetable curries often use coconut milk and sometimes fish-based flavourings such as Maldive fish in sambols, so ask rather than assume. Vegan travellers can usually manage with dosa, idli, sambar and chutney, but milk and ghee appear in many dishes, so check. Tea is the drink to try; Ceylon tea in the hills is excellent.
Menus and kitchens change. If you follow a strict diet or have an allergy, confirm with the restaurant before you order.
D.S. Senanayake Veediya, central Kandy
A long-running Kandy chain of 100 percent vegetarian South Indian restaurants, serving dosa, idli, poori sets and thalis a short walk from the Temple of the Tooth.
Sri Dalada Veediya, near the Temple of the Tooth
A busy, locally popular restaurant and bakery on Sri Dalada Veediya near the Temple of the Tooth, serving rice and curry, kottu and milk tea.
Hillside above Kandy, about a 25-minute brisk walk from the city centre
A hillside hotel above Kandy whose restaurant and bar serve a set meal and biryani, and is named in several visitor guides for its artistic dining room.
Ward Street, central Kandy, a short walk from Kandy Lake
A long-standing halal eatery on Ward Street, a short walk from Kandy Lake, known for chicken Kabul, a curry-stuffed roti, and for cheap breakfasts and dinners.
Colombo Street, central Kandy
A pure vegetarian Indian restaurant on Colombo Street, listed by diners as cooking without onion, garlic or leeks. It has a vegan thali and a following among vegetarian and Indian travellers.
921 Peradeniya Road, Kandy
A Thai restaurant on Peradeniya Road that guides single out for its vegetarian menu, with mushroom soup and red curry named as dishes to try.
29A Anagarika Dharmapala Mawatha, about 10 minutes' walk from central Kandy
A restaurant and bar on Anagarika Dharmapala Mawatha with a rooftop balcony, serving Sri Lankan and Chinese dishes. It is named in several visitor guides to Kandy.
Central Kandy, near the Temple of the Tooth
A simple, fast dosa restaurant in the centre of Kandy where, a local review notes, everything is vegetarian. Known for affordable meals and well-made pooris.
21 Temple Street, near the Temple of the Tooth
A casual cafe on Temple Street near the Temple of the Tooth with an affordable mixed menu of wraps, spring rolls and Sri Lankan curry.
11/B5/10-1, 6th Lane, off Upper Tank Road, Kandy
A fine-dining restaurant on 6th Lane off Upper Tank Road offering Sri Lankan, European and fusion menus, with vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options noted by a guide.
Peradeniya Road, Kandy
A South Indian vegetarian restaurant on Peradeniya Road, listed for freshly made dosas and a plain rice and curry meal, open from morning to late evening.
21 Dalada Veediya, Kandy
A two-floor eatery on Dalada Veediya with a bakery and café downstairs and a restaurant above serving Sri Lankan, Indian and Chinese dishes.
