Quick answer
The best things to eat in Ella are home-style rice and curry, kottu, hoppers and fresh Uva tea, and the best places to eat them are family guesthouse kitchens and small local cafes as much as the busy main street. Ella's main street offers the widest choice in the hill country, from Sri Lankan dishes to international cafe food. For the most memorable meal, book a guesthouse rice and curry dinner in advance, which often brings eight or more dishes to the table.
Key takeaways
- Ella's main street has the widest choice of cafes and restaurants in Sri Lanka's hill country.
- Home-cooked rice and curry at a family guesthouse often brings eight or more small dishes to the table and usually needs booking in the afternoon.
- Kottu, chopped roti stir-fried on a hot plate, is an evening staple in Ella's local eateries.
- Hoppers, bowl-shaped rice-flour pancakes, are usually a breakfast or evening food rather than a lunch dish.
- Uva tea, grown on the slopes around Ella, is best tasted plain before adding milk.
Why food is one of Ella's quiet pleasures
Food is one of the unexpected reasons Ella suits a longer stay. The town is small, but its popularity has given it a range of places to eat that most hill country stops cannot match, from roadside rice and curry to cafes serving coffee and smoothie bowls.
The cool climate helps too. Meals on a terrace at 1,000 metres, with the Ella Gap in view and no need to hide from the heat, feel different from eating on the plains. Evenings in Ella tend to revolve around a long dinner rather than an early night.
What to eat in Ella
The dishes worth seeking out in Ella are Sri Lankan classics, cooked with the vegetables that grow well in the hills. Menus aimed at visitors often soften the spice; ask for it the local way if you want the real thing.
- →Rice and curry: rice with several vegetable, dhal and meat or fish curries, sambols and papadums.
- →Kottu: chopped roti stir-fried with vegetables, egg or meat on a hot iron plate, an evening favourite.
- →Hoppers: bowl-shaped rice-flour pancakes, plain or with an egg, with sambol and curry.
- →String hoppers: steamed rice-noodle nests, usually at breakfast with dhal and coconut sambol.
- →Pol roti: coconut flatbread, often with lunu miris, a chilli and onion relish.
- →Uva tea: grown on the slopes around Ella, best tasted plain first.
Guesthouse kitchens: Ella's best meals
Some of the best food in Ella is cooked in family guesthouses. A home-style rice and curry dinner often brings eight or more small dishes to the table, using vegetables from the market or the garden, and it is usually cooked to order.
Most guesthouses need to know by mid-afternoon if you want dinner, because the cooking starts early. It is worth asking on arrival. These meals are also a good way to meet your hosts and learn how the dishes are made.
- →Ask on arrival and confirm by mid-afternoon.
- →Say if you want the spice level as the family eats it.
- →Mention any dietary needs early; vegetarian rice and curry is easy.
Eating on Ella's main street
Ella's main street is lined with cafes and restaurants, and it is where the town's evenings concentrate. The choice ranges from Sri Lankan dishes to international food, coffee, cocktails and bakery counters, which suits travellers who have been eating rice and curry for a week and want a change.
Quality varies, and prices on the main street are generally higher than in local eateries a few steps away. The small places near the bus stand and market serve rice and curry at lunch and kottu in the evening at local prices and are worth trying.
Eating well in Ella with dietary needs
Ella is one of the easiest places in Sri Lanka to eat with dietary needs, because so many kitchens cater to visitors. Vegetarian food is simple to find, since much of Sri Lankan cooking is vegetable-based, and vegan options are common on the main street.
Gluten and nut allergies need more care: roti, kottu and many breads contain wheat, and some curries use cashews. Explaining clearly to the cook, rather than the server, and carrying a written note in Sinhala or Tamil helps.
- →Vegetarian: easy everywhere; ask for vegetable rice and curry.
- →Vegan: common on the main street; check for ghee and dairy.
- →Gluten-free: choose rice and hoppers rather than roti and kottu.
- →Allergies: speak to the cook and carry a written note.
Planning your meals around an Ella stay
A good pattern for a two-night stay is a guesthouse rice and curry dinner on the first night, a kottu on the main street on the second, and breakfasts of hoppers or string hoppers before the morning walk. Add a cooking class if you want to take the recipes home.
Lankan Stays & Trails chooses guesthouses in Ella partly for their kitchens, because a family dinner is often what travellers remember most.
Frequently asked questions
What food is Ella known for?
Ella is known less for a single dish than for the quality of its home-style rice and curry, cooked in family guesthouses with vegetables from the hills. Kottu, hoppers and Uva tea are also staples, and the main street offers the widest choice of cafes in the hill country.
Where is the best food in Ella?
Many of the best meals in Ella are cooked in family guesthouses, where a rice and curry dinner can bring eight or more dishes. The main street offers wide choice, and small local eateries near the bus stand serve rice and curry and kottu at local prices.
Is food expensive in Ella?
Main street cafes in Ella charge more than local eateries, reflecting their popularity with visitors. Local rice and curry and kottu remain good value. Guesthouse dinners usually sit in between. Daily costs overall fit the usual Sri Lankan budget ranges for each travel style.
Is Ella good for vegetarians?
Yes. Much Sri Lankan cooking is vegetable-based, and vegetable rice and curry is available almost everywhere in Ella. Vegan options are common on the main street, though it is worth checking for ghee or dairy in some dishes.
Do guesthouses in Ella serve dinner?
Many family guesthouses in Ella cook dinner for guests, usually rice and curry. Ask on arrival and confirm by mid-afternoon, because the cooking starts early. These dinners are often the most memorable meals of a hill country stay.
Is it safe to eat street food in Ella?
Generally yes, with the usual care. Choose busy places with high turnover, eat food cooked hot in front of you, such as kottu, and drink bottled or filtered water. Most visitors eat well in Ella without problems.
Can you get good coffee in Ella?
Yes. Ella's main street has several cafes serving espresso-based coffee, which is less common elsewhere in the hill country. That said, Uva tea grown on the surrounding slopes is the more local choice and is worth trying plain.