A Barra-stravagant Feast: Ramada Colombo brings Round Island Barramundi to the table

Shareef Kareem, Executive Chef at Ramada Colombo 

Has fine dining and seafood been on your mind?Cast your net wide and step out of your comfort zone to experience delicious multi-cuisine dishes created with the freshest, flakiest barramundi sourced from Round Island at Ramada Colombo’s Barramundi Promotion starting this week.

Round Island’s sustainable and commercially farmed premium quality barramundi will be the star of the show from 29 September to 12 October at the Ramada Colombo. The hotel’s top chefs have created signature dishes based on this main ingredient, highlighting the delicate texture of the fish and the distinctive taste of sustainably farmed seafood. 

Executive Chef Shareef Kareem has created three dishes; ginger and lemongrass marinated grilled barramundi fillet with coconut risotto, mango salsa and centenella salad; barramundi braised in creamy dill and saffron sauce, with baby vegetables, crispy sweet potato and barramundi caviar; and herb-crumbed baked barramundi with Greek salad and prawn bisque sauce. “Chefs love barramundi because it’s a delicious ingredient to work with, but it can be challenging to find good produce,” says Chef Kareem. “Round Island barramundi makes all the difference-it gives us the chance to work with premium quality produce that is fresh, sustainable and completely delicious.”

Indian Chef Ziyad Akthar Khan has created Indian spice-marinated tandoori barramundi fillet with homemade chilli paratha and kachumbari salad. Sous Chef Jude Calistus Michael has devised a dish for the health conscious-Curry Leaves Tapenade marinated Barramundi fish fillet wrapped in pandan leaves and baked, with thebu kola and pomelo salad, spiced mango and passion coulis to accompany. The ingredients have been chosen for their ability to reduce the level of sugar in the blood, making this the perfect dish for diabetics in particular. 

Sous Chef Hasitha Dissanayake has whipped up Suppa de Barramundi- a bouillabaisse with tomato and basil grissini. Japanese Chef Chamila Lakshitha has created Grilled Barramundi with yuzu miso, cucumber salad and amasu sauce, while Japanese Sous Chef Erick Wijemanne has created Steamed Barramundi with netsuke sauce and vegetables. 

“As an ingredient barramundi is incredibly versatile, and you can see that reflected in all the dishes that have been devised by the talented chefs at the Ramada,” says Shabir Ahamed, Key Account Managerof RoundIsland. “It’s very exciting for us to see our produce, which we nurture with a lot of care and attention, used to create dishes that sound exciting and taste so delicious.” 

RoundIsland brings year around weekly harvests of barramundi with consistent quality and flavour from its commercial marine farm in Trincomalee. Oceanpick, RoundIsland’s holding company, offers a sustainable alternative solution to aggressive and harmful wild capture fisheries practices in Sri Lanka’s coastal towns in order to meet the increasing demands of the leisure industry. Thus Round Island’s barramundi is ethically farmed, available year around, and offers consistent quality and flavour every time.