2017 Sep 5
Located just 2 km from the town of Kandy, this little boutique hotel is situated on a hill top down Hewaheta road, Talwatta. Camouflaging with its surroundings, Range Kandy is hidden with the trees making it the ultimate spot for nature lovers to take a break from their tiresome day of trekking and bird watching, where they can cool off at the pool or simply take a yoga lesson to relax their body and mind.
This 5 bedroom property also consists of lounging spaces that the residents or their visitors could use, not to mention the food served at their restaurant that is blessed with a gorgeous view overlooking the Mahaweli River and the Kandy town.
Rooms
• Thuna Paha – USD 130
Thuna Paha at Range is a cozy little double bed room that consists of facilities such as wifi, TV, Air conditioning, etc.
There’s not really much to complain about this room. However, although the theme of the room was ‘spices’, I found myself not being a big fan of the interior décor. Most of the décor did not stick to one theme, not to mention the fact that my mild OCD kicked in when the bedding area was just not symmetrical to the rest of the room. However if you’re just looking for a good enough place to crash, this would be it.
• Surya Namaskar – USD 130
Unlike Thuna Paha, Surya Namaskar can be occupied as either a Double or Triple bedroom. It is slightly more spacious than Thuna Paha and I’d say a lot less tacky. For the same price, it’s a good deal since you can include one more person without having to dig out your wallet furthermore for accommodation.
Food
Although an incredibly homely spot, Range Kandy did not meet my expectations when it came to the food that they served. Most of it was very bland and lacked flavor, which was quite disappointing because although we enjoyed the view at the restaurant, we did not enjoy the food. This is what our experience was like:
Breakfast:
• English Breakfast
At Range, their breakfast spread was slightly mediocre, not that anyone would mind when the hunger kicks in. Starting off with the fruit platter, they had a small variety of packed jams, toasts and pancakes. The good thing about Range is that their staff is extremely nice to cater to whatever you ask them, so we took the pleasure of getting ourselves the Sri Lankan omelette and scrambled egg on toast.
Everything we had for breakfast was alright except for the pancakes that were simply horrible. They tasted extremely flour-y and dry, that not even the jam could hide the distaste.
Lunch:
• Pumpkin Soup
Richly infused with the essence of pumpkin, this soup was quite thick and creamy! The flavor of pumpkin properly came through, not to mention the spices and seasoning that complemented it.
• Spaghetti with Cheese
This is where the disappointment kicked in. As someone who likes authentic Italian dishes, I expected this dish to be more than simply boiled spaghetti with a sorry excuse of a slice of cheese on top. Range Kandy made absolutely no effort to make this dish the least presentable, not to mention the fact that it was almost inedible. Big letdown.
• BBQ Chicken with Boiled Vegetables
Compared to the spaghetti, this dish was quite flavorsome. The chicken was barbequed to perfection, turning out to be golden brown and the sauce that topped it added to the flavor. In contrast to the soft, chewy chicken leg, the crunchy vegetables brought in a different texture to the dish, overall making it one of the best dishes at Range.
Dinner:
For dinner, there was a BBQ night taking place so we had the pleasure of piling our plates full of meat. There was quite a variety of meet such as chicken, beef, pork, etc., all of which were grilled perfectly although it did taste a little too salty.
All in all, Range Kandy is a cozy little boutique hotel where the adventurist in you can lodge at without having to burn a hole in your pocket!
