Lamprais at Apey Kade in Tarzana

Americas - USA West Los Angeles
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As a Sri Lankan, the one dish that I miss the most from back home has been lamprais. I’ve tried most of the Sri Lankan restaurants in the LA area, and so far my favorite is at Apey Kade. If you’re not familiar with the dish, it consists of yellow rice, chicken (or any other protein) curry, seeni sambol (a red onion sambol with Maldive fish and other spices), a fish cutlet, fried ash plantain curry, wambatu moju (an eggplant pickle with dried shrimp), and a deep fried boiled egg, all of which is wrapped in banana leaves and then baked. While this one at Apey Kade did not have an egg, unfortunately, I thought that all the flavors were on point and it wasn’t dry like at some of the other places. It also had pol mallung in it, which is grated coconut with turmeric and other spices.
This was $12, and they recommend calling at least half an hour ahead to order it.

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(Sorry, this picture sucks.)

I also recommend the hoppers, string hoppers, kottu roti, gothamba roti with egg, the various curries, and the deviled chicken.

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I had it a month back, loved it. Thanks for the reminder, will need to stop by soon.

Do you know if they make crab curries? I had it once when it was run by the previous owners, delicious - only saw it offered that one time though.

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Only been once, but loved APEY KADE.

Lovely owners. Hot as all hell. Deviled chicken was terrfic (pre-order for lunch).

Don’t remember having the lamprais. Note to self.

Thank!

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Terrific food, and a very nice family that runs it. They have specials just about every day: the other day I was treated to kola kenda. But I’d go any day for the kottu roti, vattalappam, string hoppers, and seeni sambol.

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Sounds delicious. Not super far from my office. Will be nice to have another place on rotation, when I have a few hrs off for lunch.

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I don’t think they do. I’ve never seen it on the menu. The Curry Leaf in Reseda makes a crab leg curry, but I have not tried it yet.

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Thanks thechez5!

Do you (or anyone else know) if the lamprais and most of the menu is spicy or not?

I called in once and the waiter I spoke with said that pretty much their entire menu was spicy. :frowning:

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I have a very high tolerance for spice, so to me none of the food is that spicy. Lamprais in particular is usually not a very spicy dish, though. Also, I’m sure that when you order your food you could always tell them to go easy with the spice level.

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Yah I asked them about that, and they said they pre-marinade their dishes, and couldn’t really remove the spice.

Thanks.

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It’s all pretty spicy, but you could pre-ordered the Devil Chicken for less spicy. Pre-order only, though.

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Gah. Sorry to hear that. :pensive:

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Only been for the lunch buffet.

Need to go back, next time I do the backbone maybe.

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Hey. Wondering why you think the one at A.K. is superior to the Curry Leaf?

I also miss the Sri Lankan place that was on Reseda just south of Nordhoff near CSUN. ANy diea where the lady went? she had the most interesting stews.

(for spice, just went to Mayuri (sp?) at MOtor and Venice. The spice flavors in the chicken “biryani” and the other keralan dishes were amazing to me).

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I feel like the lamprais at Curry Leaf is too dry, granted I’ve only had it there once. Maybe I should try it again?

Never been to the other place on Reseda, unfortunately. I live in Torrance, so it’s always a chore to drive out to the valley. :confused:

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that one looks a lot more delicious than this one!

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I don’t recommend it. I feel Apey Kade is much fresher and has brighter flavors and warmer service.

Priyani in Northridge was good, though it did not last very long, and wasn’t nearly as good as Apey Kade.

Mayura is very inconsistent, varying between reasonably good to unsatisfying. It gets a lot of praise online but I’d avoid it.

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Aah, good to know. Thanks for all the info!

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Ah, I went there on Reseda Blvd once and had a delicious meal. Priyani Oriental Cafe (I had to look up the name). Appears it closed in 2010.

I’ve been to Apey Kade once, and despite it being small and the food prep being slow, it was delicious. It was all on the spicy side, though, that was true. I think I’d call ahead, as @thechez5 mentions, and as the owners recommended when I was there. But, if you’re up for spicy food, and calling ahead (or waiting a while the first time), worth it.

I didn’t try the lampreis either… and it looks awesome. Reminds me of the banana leaf curries I used to get at Simpang Asia in Palms. Last time I went there, they didn’t appear to be using banana leaves anymore :unamused:

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I wish Chicago chefs would compete with lamprey dishes. I think there’s a famous one from bordeaux.

gruesome but probably tasty.

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Love it. Did u see that episode of the borgias where the guy gets hossed down by the lampreys too?