It has been an eventful week for the food and beverage industry as they have now been given the green light to go ahead and restart their operations.
However, many establishments remain closed or exclusively on a delivery basis only considering the expenses that must factor into keeping an establishment open and running, while also accounting for all the safety precautions that must be adopted in order to comply with guidelines.
On our quest to see what our options are when it comes to getting ourselves a good lunch, we came across some restaurants that did not originally provide a delivery service and have adapted to the times and are now available on the food delivery platform while also employing their own private services.
One such establishment is Sugar Beach, which is under MSD Productions, and when we reached out to Sugar Beach, they informed us that all outlets under the MSD banner are providing delivery. However, they are operating under a central kitchen which is located down Maitland Crescent at KAVA Island Bar.
Depending on your location, you are able to order from either Sugar Bistro and Wine Bar, KAVA Island Bar, Tribe Colombo, or Sugar Beach via any food delivery application or you can simply WhatsApp your order to 0704 606 070. If you are located in or around Colombo 7, then you will not be charged a delivery fee, but if not, there is a fee of Rs. 250 and also a packaging charge of Rs. 50 for each item.
When we spoke to the Manager at Sugar Beach, he shared that customers have been understanding as they are limited in the way of what they do offer – as there is a dedicated menu and deliveries are carried out only from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
However, when we were perusing through the menu, it was quite extensive in what it offered considering the circumstances and the best thing about it was that the delivery was extremely efficient. We simply WhatsApped our selection and within just a few minutes we received our total and order confirmation, upon sharing our location pin. Within 20 minutes the order was delivered.
There are multiple items to choose from, even a rice and kotthu offer which included crab kottu and the general options of pastas, noodles, pizza, pies, burgers, and hotdogs. Interestingly, they also have a kids menu which includes mac and cheese, a mini cheese burger, and also chicken strips with chips at reasonable prices. They also have some great dessert options.
Since it has been a while since we ordered something nice for ourselves, we decided to get a variety of items to try out.
Here’s what we tried from the Sugar Bistro delivery options.
Garden Supreme (vegetarian burger) – Rs. 850
We decided to try out the vegetarian option as some of our colleagues recently complained that while food places are delivering, most have not given a lot of priority to the vegetarian or vegan options they once served.
We are glad we chose it because it was a delicious burger with a delightful veggie patty and the vegetarian peeps were satisfied, with the perfectly tender texture of the patty and the well-balanced flavours. The portion was really great and it came with a side of fries.
However, those fries left much to be desired.
Black pork pie – Rs. 750
The pie was an interesting one because we have never actually had this type of giant pie before and although quite bland on its own, we were uncertain this was intentional because it came with a side of delicious and perfectly seasoned mash. If you have the two together, it tastes great.
Giant chocolate éclair (8 inches) – Rs. 350
The éclair was an absolute hit, particularly considering a sweet treat has been somewhat of a rarity these days considering essentials are where our focus has been. It has been nearly three months since we’ve had any éclairs and we were glad to have gone with this one because the custard cream filling was generous and mind-blowingly delicious, and the chocolate coating was lovely. The pastry itself was quite well done and we appreciated every bite. Totally worth it.
Overall, MSD Productions is doing an admirable job at maintaining their standards during these hard times and providing their customers with some luxuries they may have once been used to but have not had the pleasure of indulging in. The ease and convenience that they provide, despite being short-staffed and limited to one kitchen, is excellent.
PHOTOS: Sudarsha Kannangara