Banana Leaf Restaurant

As part of my birthday celebrations last month, Mum and Dad took us out to a surprise night on the Wednesday following my birthday. Apparently there was something on this night that was only on this night but we wouldn't be able to eat there so had to go to dinner somewhere before hand.

I had no idea what we were going to, but then a couple of weeks before the dinner an ad came on the TV for a show at the Canberra Theatre called Shen Yun which was only on this night and the night before this, so I pretty much guessed that this was where we were going, plus the restaurant that we were going to was right near the theatre.

When we got to the restaurant we told them we had to leave in an hour as the show started st 7:30 and they said that's fine and that most of the people in the restaurant were going to the show also. So it must be the place to go if you are going to the Canberra Theatre.

I had never been to Banana Leaf before, but had heard lots of good things about it, so I was keen to try it out.

When we got in there the restaurant seemed pretty ordinary, which I find the norm with most restaurants in Canberra. They don't really put any effort into the decor/ambiance of the restaurant. We were also seated at one of those small tables which usually seats only 2 people, so it was really squashy for the 4 of us, which contributed to me knocking my champagne glass over as I was half way through my entree and it spilling all over my food. Hey I love champagne, but not in my food thanks!

The menu is quite strange, it's meant to be a sri lankan restaurant, but there are a lot of dishes on there that aren't.

Chilli Prawns - $19.90

Frankie, Mum and Dad all went for the chilli prawns which they said were quite good. There were quite a few prawns on here too which is always good to see. You can also get all the entrees in a main size which I think is a good idea too.

Smoked Salmon and Quail Egg Salad - $17.90

I wasn't particularly hungry, so I didn't want to get anything too filling for my entree, so I decided on the smoked salmon salad. When I ordered they told me they didn't have quail eggs either, so they were just normal eggs. I thought there might be some sri lankan influence to this, but there wasn't, so I was quite disappointed. It was very nice, just nothing special.

For mains there were quite a few options to choose from and lots more sri lankan dishes which I was happy about.

Sri Lankan Style Rice and Curry (with Beef) - $26.90

Both Frankie and Dad opted for the traditional curry in beef and chicken. It was massive and came with a lentil curry, sambol and chutney.

View of the accompaniments


This one is the chicken curry

Chicken Pittu - $24.80

Mum went with the Chicken Pittu which was described as pebbles of different flour and coconut served with a curry of your choice and traditional accompaniments. I am not sure what else was served with this, as it looks different from the previous meals.

Lomprisht - $27.80

I decided to go with the Lomprisht which is Basmati rice with a fragrant combination of chicken, fish fricadel and vegetable curries wrapped in banana leaves and baked served with condiments, sambol and mild curry sauce.

Innards of the Lomprisht

This was really delicious. I couldn't really tell what was in the parcel as everything sort of blended together, but there tasted as though there was some sweet potato in there which really brought all of the flavours together.

I don't know if I would come back here again as I found it a bit hit and miss and when you paying high prices you just want hits! I think if they fixed the place up a bit I might be tempted. It was a lovely night though and thanks to Mum and Dad for taking us out xx

Banana Leaf Restaurant and Cafe
U2/ 240 -250 City Walk
Canberra City 2601
Ph: 6248 5522