Mangrovia, Sri Lanka
Nights to remember.
We celebrated five years tonight. At what I could possibly classify as the best dining experience of my life - So far. I'm a big foodie. And a lover of fine dining. Fine wines. And long evenings over a multiple course meal.
Mangrovia is an Italian restaurant ran by a Sri Lankan woman that is situated on a gorgeous lagoon in the Sri Lankan jungle of Hikkaduwa. The owner, (name), lived in Italy for most of her adult life. The cuisine is authentic, homemade, fresh Italian foods. The pasta is homemade. Fresh. And never hardened. The restaurant requires a reservation because it is so individually catered to it's customers, she must know how many guests to prepare for. Of which, she generally only serves two maybe three tables a night. The assistance is just one waiter (who is a relative) and one dish washer. The menu comes individualized by nightly selection and hand written on an oversized chalkboard that the waiter sets next to your table. The view is a magnificent sunset - landscaped over lush green grass, surrounded by overlapping coconut, banana, and (-) trees. And the ambiance is pure intimacy. Faint Italian jazz music plays in the background as you listen to the mellow sounds of the blue lagoon going to sleep.
It is - the perfect setup. In the Sri Lankan jungle. We enjoyed our evening eating very slowly. A way of dining I love to enjoy, but find myself often unable to. Because in dining, even for an event or celebration, your are typically in a hurry to order another drink, catch the waiter before he is busy again, place the food order before the kitchen gets backed up, and etc.
Later on the woman's daughter informed us that she is looking for two expats to run the place while she goes back to Europe for a few months. We exchanged contact details. ☺️
Cheers to all that is good.
-AS @travelingsnow