Nuwara Eliya guide · Where to eat
Places to eat in Nuwara Eliya, with what to order and how comfortable each is for families and older travellers.
Updated
Nuwara Eliya has few dedicated vegetarian restaurants, and choices are mostly plain. The most useful options we could verify are South Indian style cafés and hotel dining. Ambaal's Vegetarian Hotel on New Bazaar Street serves dosas, vadas and curries at low prices, and Gaayathri Mess near the Gayathri temple is a simple home-style vegetarian canteen. Grand Indian at The Grand Hotel is a comfortable sit-down Indian dinner with many vegetarian dishes and a few marked vegan items. None of these is certified Jain, and directories sometimes disagree about whether a place is purely vegetarian, so we did not give any a pure-veg tag. Ask before ordering.
If you follow Jain rules, say so at your hotel when booking and ask whether the kitchen can cook without onion, garlic and root vegetables; do not assume. Dal, rice, vegetable curry and string hoppers are available in most Sri Lankan eateries, but check for fish or meat stock. Tea is the local speciality, best at a plantation boutique or hotel tea lounge. Bottled or filtered water is safest.
Menus and kitchens change. If you follow a strict diet or have an allergy, confirm with the restaurant before you order.
Far end of Gregory Lake, Nuwara Eliya
A small strawberry-themed eatery at the far end of Gregory Lake, listed for strawberries and cream, strawberry pancakes and strawberry drinks made with locally grown fruit.
New Bazaar Street, central Nuwara Eliya
A long-running South Indian style vegetarian restaurant on New Bazaar Street, known for dosas, vadas and curries at low prices.
New Bazaar Road, town centre near the market, Nuwara Eliya
An inexpensive, long-running eating house on New Bazaar Road in the town centre, listed by several guides for rice, noodles, kottu and bakery snacks such as ulundu vade.
Gamunu Mawatha, next to the Gayathri temple, central Nuwara Eliya
A small, home-style vegetarian canteen near the Gayathri temple on Gamunu Mawatha, known for masala dosa, fried vegetable rice and low prices.
Grand Hotel Road, inside The Grand Hotel, Nuwara Eliya
The Indian restaurant at the Grand Hotel, serving Indian and Arabic dishes, with many vegetarian choices and a few marked vegan dishes.
Grand Hotel Road, Nuwara Eliya
A Thai restaurant on Grand Hotel Road, listed for traditional Thai dishes, a wine list and a romantic, luxurious setting.
Tea Factory Road, Kandapola, outside Nuwara Eliya
A hotel restaurant in a historic tea factory building at Kandapola, listed for contemporary Sri Lankan food, à la carte or as a five-course set meal.
No. 5 Grand Hotel Road, Nuwara Eliya
A high tea service at The Grand Hotel, with tea, triangle sandwiches and cakes set out as a buffet from about 3:30 pm.
18 Badulla Road, Nuwara Eliya
An Indian restaurant on Badulla Road, listed for curries, garlic cheese naan, tandoori dishes and desserts.
124/1 Badulla Road, Nuwara Eliya
An Asian fusion restaurant on Badulla Road with a wide menu that also includes pizza, beef curry and shawarma.
Badulla Road, Nuwara Eliya
A cosy restaurant on Badulla Road known for a wide range of pizzas, including wood-oven pizza with real mozzarella.
No 161 Badulla Road, Seetha Eliya, Nuwara Eliya
A small vegetarian cafe on Badulla Road near Seetha Eliya, listed for freshly made dosas, vadas and Sri Lankan coffee at modest prices.
Upper Lake Road, near Victoria Park, Nuwara Eliya
A modern Sri Lankan restaurant on Upper Lake Road, near Victoria Park, listed for kottu, rice bowls and a menu with vegetarian and vegan dishes.
