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5km west of Kandy; a taxi costs around Rs
600 one way. Nonguests can use the pool for
Rs 700.Hotel Suisse HiSTORiC HOTEl $$$
(map p 146 ; %223 3024; http://www.hotelsuisse.lk; 30
Sangarajah mawatha; d incl breakfast US$160;
aWs) This is one of those grand old creaky
colonial properties, with huge rooms and a
lakeside location. It has lots of old-fashioned
charm but in reality is only really held to-
gether by all the polish on the wooden floors
and furnishings.5 Eating
For years the restaurant scene in Kandy has
been a bit of a nonevent revolving around eat-
ing in your guesthouse or at one of a handful
of fairly basic restaurants in the town centre.
However, in the last couple of years change
has been afoot with the opening of some fan-
cier places to eat in the town centre.
Even so, most people eat their evening
meal in one of the guesthouses. Most are
open to nonguests, but you usually need to
inform the hotel a few hours in advance. Par-
ticularly good is Sharon Inn (map p 146 ; % 220
1400; buffet Rs 1100), with a buffet comprising
up to a dozen dishes (try the aubergine curry)
at 7.30pm. It’s often possible to just turn upand eat without booking in advance here. Ho-
tel Mango Garden (p151) has a lovely decked
terrace restaurant and no early reservation
required. Freedom Lodge (p152) has room for
just a handful of people for some of the best
curries in town and St Bridget’s Country Bun-
galow (p151) also whips up excellent curries
for a limited number of people.Kandy Muslim Hotel SR i lANKAN $
(map p 146 ; Dalada vidiya; mains Rs 200-350) No,
it’s not a hotel, but it is an always bustling
eatery that offers Kandy’s best samosas, au-
thentically spiced curries and heaving plates
of frisbee-sized, but gossamer-light, naan.
However, what people really come for are
the kotthu (rotti chopped and fried with
meat and vegetables), which come in a vari-
ety of styles and flavours, and are legendary
throughout town. Foreigners are often hus-
tled up the stairs, but for more local charac-
ter eat downstairs with the locals.Devon Restaurant iNTERNATiONAl $
(map p 146 ; 11 Dalada vidiya; mains Rs 225-450)
This large and busy restaurant and bakery
has a long menu of Sri Lankan and Chinese
staples, a few lacklustre Western offerings
and some ‘healthy’ salads (the bacon, egg
and chip butty ‘salad’ being a particularly
healthy offering!).
The main dining hall is a smart can-
teen-like affair that’s a step up in the posh
stakes from many of the other town-centre
restaurants. It has high chairs and is popu-
lar with young families.Bake House SR i lANKAN $
(map p 146 ; %223 4868; 36 Dalada vidiya; mains
Rs 80-250) Bake House is versatility plus,
with tasty baked goodies out the front and
a more formal dining room concealed under
the building’s whitewashed colonial arches.
Pop in just after 3pm, when the second bake
of the day comes out and the short eats are
still warm.oOlde Empire
Cafe SR i lANKAN, iNTERNATiONAl $$
(map p 146 ; %223 9870; 21 Temple St; mains Rs
380-500; h8.30am-8.30pm) People who know
the Olde Empire from just a couple of years
back will be shocked by the recent transfor-
mation from musty old relic to a flamboyant,
modern and very inviting restaurant where
diners sit under a bevy of fluoro paintings
and tuck into great rice and curries, pastas,
salads and juices.KANDY FOR CHILDREN
Kandy isn’t as obvious a child-friendly
destination as Sri Lanka’s beaches
and national parks, but there are a few
sights and activities that’ll keep little
ones – and therefore you as well – hap-
py and sane.
Renting a boat from Joy Motor Boat
Services (p151) for a putter about the
lake and burning off some energy in the
Udawattakelle Sanctuary (p150) and
Peradeniya Botanic Gardens (p158) are
both likely to be hits. With their elabo-
rate costumes and fire eaters, Kandy’s
various dance shows (p156) will surely
meet with approval. The Temple of the
Sacred Tooth Relic (p145) has enough
exotica to capture the imagination of
most children and a day trip to the
Pinnewala Elephant Orphanage (p144)
is an obvious one. Finally, there’s a sur-
prisingly good children’s playpark (map
p146; Sanagaraja Rd; hTue-Sun) at the
eastern end of the lake.