Quality Sri Lankan food at affordable prices

It is a new addition to the chain of an affordable dining restaurant that is literally for everyone, whether you are looking for traditional food or just need a quick bite on-the-go.
In the presence of a large number of community members, the ambassador of Sri Lanka to Qatar Prof Dr W M Karundasa recently inaugurated the latest branch of New White Oceanic Restaurant & Bakery, sixth in the chain owned by Sri Lankan restaurateur Tenisan De Silva.
Functioning around Tenisan’s idea of quality food for everyone at very low prices in a pleasant and comfortable environment, the new restaurant in Asian Town Cricket Stadium offers a lunch and dinner buffet for only nine Qatari riyals.
It is the biggest restaurant in the chain owned by Tenisan, with the capacity to accommodate around 90 people in a comfortable sitting arrangement at a time. There are two adjacent meeting halls for hosting corporate events that can be catered by the restaurant itself.
“We mainly have Sri Lankan food but we also have Oriental, Filipino and Western dishes available on the menu so that everyone can come here and enjoy our food, whether you like your food spicy or non-spicy,” Tenisan, who is also the president of Sri Lankan Coordination Committee (SLCC), a community welfare organisation, tells Community.
The new dining place was praised by multiple community members for the quality of its food and the ambience.
“This is grand dining hall with really great sitting place and very good service. The taste, we already know, is great,” says George Bandula, the former president of SLCC.
The food is prepared by expert Sri Lankan chefs who have come from Sri Lanka. And most of the ingredients for the most popular running recipes, mostly involving rice, fish and vegetables, also come fresh from Sri Lanka, says the restaurateur.
With the new restaurant, Tenisan is aiming to attract a multicultural audience, including Western expatriates, besides the Sri Lankan community.
He came up with the restaurant within a short period of two months, after having acquired the place.
“We did not have any plan for this one and it just happened very quickly. We wanted a place where we can offer a variety of food to different kinds of people at a place which is easily accessible to them,” says Tenisan. He says this place is conveniently accessible to people and offers a large parking space.
“As you know a lot of cricketing events happen at the stadium and the Sri Lankan community here in Doha is very big on cricket. This place will offer them a very good dining option as well,” says Tenisan.
Despite the uptown ambience that the new restaurant offers, the restaurant owner says he has no intention of increasing the prices. He wants it to be a place that is accessible even to people with blue collar jobs.
“We are happy with what we are already earning. I would be happier if I see more and more people from the low income strata coming here to enjoy good food in a very good environment,” says Tenisan.
He started with a single restaurant in 2002 in Qatar, expanding to 10. Four of these places were demolished in some of the areas during upgradation. Now, he is left with six restaurants spread across the country.
He offers a mixed cuisine from the sub-continent at his restaurants located close to the labour areas.
His delivery vehicles reach hundreds of people every day.
Despite the rather swift rise, success did not go to Tenisan’s head. His feet remain firmly planted on the ground.
That, his wife Maureen says, is the quality that has brought him success.
Human resource, Tenisan says, is the most valuable asset here. One of the big problems he has faced during the time he built his restaurant chain was losing the trained staff memebrs time and again.
However, he has always maintained a good working relation with his staff, which numbers close to 100 now and hopes to continue to grow.