Open Time:
11.30 a.m. – 9.30 p.m.What we had
by Anuki Premachandra
Swinging your meals in Galle
Hammock café is a gem of an idea and concept. The place is small, but big enough to accommodate a good crowd. The indoor dining area was furnished with one seater hammocks, bean bags and super comfy cushions. The place is the chill zone, literally and figuratively. Sadly, the air conditioner inside wasn’t working so we had to settle for the high stool seating option outside. Not complaining though, we had a lunch with a view. It’s on the first floor of the Dutch Hospital compound, at the Galle Fort. An absolutely beautiful place with quite a variety of resultants whipping up some great dishes!
Ambience
As cute as it seemed in the beginning, the service really wasn’t what we expected it to be. As we walked in, we were greeted by a chummy cheerful waiter and all was well until we realized that the kitchen staff was awkwardly glaring at us which mind you, felt a little uncomfortable. Also, the waiter that served us, was very inexperienced. They served all the meals all at once – no, I would like my appetizer and then my mains, please.
Food and Drinks
It was a Poya day, so we had to lay off on the alcohol ☹
Drinks: Watermelon fruit juice – Rs. 400
After a tiring day in Galle, a watermelon juice is what I was yearning for! The heat was the worst and the watermelon juice really did give me a refreshing start-over. You know that there was an actual watermelon being blended into a drink and not a solution of water + watermelon taste and texture preservatives, because the drink was super pulpy.
Appetizers: Hammock Special Soup – Rs. 650 and Coleslaw Salad – Rs. 450
The Hammock Special Soup was a mix of chicken stock and mushroom, flavored with coriander leaves and served with cheese toast. At first look, I thought they mistook the cheese toast for a sloppy mini sandwich and asked the waiter to take a look at it. He confirmed it was a cheese toast. This pretty much disappointed us because what we had with our soup sure did not look like a cheese toast. The soup tasted pretty good. It was served to our table piping hot and I almost burnt my tongue! There is excessive chicken broth with chunks of mushroom that really stood out in our opinion. The sloppy cheese toast-ish mini sandwich dipped into soup didn’t taste all that bad after all.
The Coleslaw salad was a basic coleslaw with some fresh olives garnished on top. Nothing over the top, a simple, yummy, creamy coleslaw. The portion is actually accurately enough for two. Although, Rs.450 did seem to be too costly for a mediocre coleslaw.
Mains: Chicken Fried Rice – Rs. 650, Calamari Deviled – Rs. 950 and Creamy Mushroom Pasta – Rs. 900
One thing about the place, that we realized later, was the fact that their food was pretty overpriced. When you actually look at it, this high pricing for very very mediocre and mundane food is quite pathetic. Didn’t realize it as and when we were ordering, only realized it when the bill came!
At first look, the chicken fried rice promised to be interesting. Topped with a slice of pineapple with some chilli paste and tomato sauce on the side, it looked like it came straight out of a Sri Lankan Chinese restaurant. And it was yum! Loved it. The chilli paste, not so much. But the rice was pretty solid. The portion was enough for 3 or 2, if you’re very hungry. The chicken was not too hard and the rice was bathed in spices and sauces that contributes to a good Lankan Chinese favorite.
The calamari was accompanied by a cupful of garlic butter rice in the center. One thing about Hammock Café is the fact that don’t pay much attention to presentation and we’re going to let that pass, because the cuttlefish was pretty nice. A typical cuttlefish deviled, only more loaded with spice and sauce. The garlic rice though wasn’t the best, it was a tad bit dry and the flavor seemed to have run out.
Their Creamy Mushroom pasta is not the creamy, to-die-for pasta you’d find at places like Peddlers Inn, but it’s pretty yummy pasta. Also garnished with fresh olives and a whole chunk of mozzarella, the creamy mushroom pasta was a good pick. The cheese sauce was super thick and creamy with chunks of button mushrooms.
Have you tried Hammock Café yet? Let us know what you think of it in the comments below! Is there anything we’ve missed?
Tip: They’re open for all day dining.
