Colombo 12, Hulftsdorp, or Aluth Kade: a locality known by many names but synonymous with one: street food!

Abdul Hameed Street comes alive with its unique and exciting variety of dishes that entice even the pickiest eaters out there. Located at Aluth Kade, these street food vendors hail from various backgrounds, with many from the Moors-Muslim Community of Sri Lanka. In recent times, this iconic stretch of road has garnered the attention of many visiting and local YouTubers and vloggers, making it an online sensation that is now on everyone’s must visit list!

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These stalls offer a vast variety of eats, ranging from the conventional grilled sandwiches, burgers, and submarines to shawarmas and wraps and moving on to more unconventional dishes, which include a variety of curries prepared fresh to enjoy with parotta, rotti, and biriyani. These curries include a vast range of proteins, including mutton (goat meat in a variety of preparations and cuts), prawns, fish, calamari, calamari eggs, beef, beef liver, beef babath (a dish prepared with the stomach and intestines of the cow), chicken liver, chicken in various other forms, and the piece de resistance, the infamous goat brain, made either as a spicy fried dish or a creamy curry.

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The team at Classic Destinations ventured out to Aluth Kade one night to the main outlet, which offers a variety of curries. The trick is to order as many dishes as possible and share them as a group with roti or parotta. The flavours of each of the dishes are even more unusual! The goat brain was mouth-watering, given the spices and preparation time taken to prepare each dish daily. A visitor can choose to either sit outside, right on the streets, where each outlet sets up small plastic tables, or inside the shops, which gives access to the sink and tap, which would be essential for these dishes, which are best eaten by hand!

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Despite the humble settings, the service at each of these establishments was excellent, with the waiters eager to please. Furthermore, it is very interesting to witness countless visitors to the street, ranging from locals, families with children, office professionals, teenagers, as well as a few foreign travellers, all flocking to this busy night scene to take in the vibe and experience as well as, of course, taste the variety of cuisine.

For dessert, the team headed to a small stall that prepared what is known as “badam milk” or “almond milk”, which is a mixture of milk, sugar, and ground almonds. A sweet and delicious milkshake to wash down the spicy food consumed earlier. As the team’s sweet tooth was still not satisfied, they headed to a local pani puri stall. Inspired by Indian street food, these puffed-up rice balls are filled with a topping of your choice. The group tried the chocolate and Nutella varieties, which were akin to Ferrero Roche chocolate.

As an experience for those seeking to truly immerse in local cuisine and culture, this would be a must visit location when staying over in Colombo. We at Classic Destinations organize a guided experience with a season local host to try out and interpret each and every delicacy on offer. A true foodie experience like no other.