editorial

From highland farms to a flurry of cool new cafés, Sri Lanka’s coffee comeback is shaking things up in Colombo.
<figure id="attachment_154293" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-154293" style="width: 1200px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-full wp-image-154293" src="https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Colombo-Sri-Lanka-Coffee-Culture-Dickwells-Coffee-and-using-a-Belgian-syphon-at-Department-of-Coffee.jpeg" alt="Dickwells Coffee is a brand from Sri Lanka’s south coast; using a Belgian syphon at Department of Coffee." width="1200" height="800" srcset="https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Colombo-Sri-Lanka-Coffee-Culture-Dickwells-Coffee-and-using-a-Belgian-syphon-at-Department-of-Coffee.jpeg 1200w, https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Colombo-Sri-Lanka-Coffee-Culture-Dickwells-Coffee-and-using-a-Belgian-syphon-at-Department-of-Coffee-300x200.jpeg 300w, https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Colombo-Sri-Lanka-Coffee-Culture-Dickwells-Coffee-and-using-a-Belgian-syphon-at-Department-of-Coffee-1024x683.jpeg 1024w, https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Colombo-Sri-Lanka-Coffee-Culture-Dickwells-Coffee-and-using-a-Belgian-syphon-at-Department-of-Coffee-768x512.jpeg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-154293" class="wp-caption-text">Left to right: Dickwells Coffee is a brand from Sri Lanka’s south coast; using a Belgian syphon at Department of Coffee. (Photos: Lydia Swinscoe; Courtesy of Department of Coffee)</figcaption></figure>
Undulating hills carpeted in glossy, bright-green tea bushes may be the image that springs to mind when one thinks of <a href="https://destinasian.com/travel-guide/sri-lanka" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sri Lanka</a>. But rewind to the early 1800s, and the tropical island would have appeared markedly different as red-berried trees and shrubs, known locally as kopi, cloaked much of the landscape. Coffea arabica and Coffea canephora were principal crops at the time, and British Ceylon produced some of the best coffee in the world. Yet this caffeine high was destined for failure when a crippling rust disease swept through the highlands, wiping out Sri Lanka’s coffee industry entirely.
Over a century after planters made the switch to tea, kopi is slowly gaining traction once more, thanks to a handful of specialty roasters, passionate farmers, and café owners eager to showcase Sri Lankan beans to the world.
In the congested streets of Colombo’s Pettah neighborhood, the words TENIK 24 distinguish the open storefront of <a href="http://instagram.com/thebeanscoffee/?DestinAsian" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Beans Coffee Factory</a>. This nondescript family business run by Ijaz Ahemed has quietly played a leading role in Sri Lanka’s coffee culture revival. Having supplied the city’s venerable <a href="https://barefootceylon.com/pages/cafe/?DestinAsian" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Barefoot Garden Café</a> and The Grand Hotel in Nuwara Eliya with freshly roasted beans for over a decade, The Beans Coffee Factory was one of the first companies to harness this new wave of homegrown coffee, working closely with processors to inform local farmers of the differences between arabica and robusta crops.
Other small-batch roasters swiftly followed suit. <a href="https://templegroundscoffee.lk/?DestinAsian" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Temple Grounds</a> produces a number of ethical and sustainable single-origin coffees from Sri Lanka, as does <a href="https://www.soulcoffee.lk/?DestinAsian" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Soul Coffee Roasters</a>. Both rely on their own plantations and contacts to source exquisite beans grown in places like Kotmale, Nuwara Eliya, and Welimada, where the best arabica can be found.
<figure id="attachment_154296" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-154296" style="width: 1200px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-full wp-image-154296" src="https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Colombo-Sri-Lanka-Coffee-Culture-Radicle-at-the-De-Mel-Building-and-head-barista-Nuwan-Samaravickrama.jpeg" alt="Radicle takes up a portion of the neoclassical De Mel Building; Nuwan Samaravickrama, head barista at Grind, Seed, and Radicle." width="1200" height="800" srcset="https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Colombo-Sri-Lanka-Coffee-Culture-Radicle-at-the-De-Mel-Building-and-head-barista-Nuwan-Samaravickrama.jpeg 1200w, https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Colombo-Sri-Lanka-Coffee-Culture-Radicle-at-the-De-Mel-Building-and-head-barista-Nuwan-Samaravickrama-300x200.jpeg 300w, https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Colombo-Sri-Lanka-Coffee-Culture-Radicle-at-the-De-Mel-Building-and-head-barista-Nuwan-Samaravickrama-1024x683.jpeg 1024w, https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Colombo-Sri-Lanka-Coffee-Culture-Radicle-at-the-De-Mel-Building-and-head-barista-Nuwan-Samaravickrama-768x512.jpeg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-154296" class="wp-caption-text">Left to right: Radicle takes up a portion of the neoclassical De Mel Building; Nuwan Samaravickrama, head barista at Grind, Seed, and Radicle. (Photos: Courtesy of Radicle; Courtesy of Grind)</figcaption></figure>
These specialty roasters supply hip Colombo cafés such as <a href="https://www.instagram.com/thegrindlk/?DestinAsian" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Grind</a>, a minimalistic city-center haunt not far from the landmark Gangaramaya Temple; the relaxed all-day hangout <a href="https://www.instagram.com/seedcafesl/?DestinAsian" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Seed</a> inside a renovated bungalow; and coffee shop-slash–art gallery <a href="https://www.instagram.com/radiclespecialtycoffee/?DestinAsian" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Radicle</a>. Nuwan Samaravickrama, head barista at all three spots, describes Sri Lankan beans as “floral and delicately sweet”—traits that make them especially versatile in brewing. While preparing a silky flat white at Grind, he mentions how the bright and tropical flavor notes of local beans often boast a hint of citrus. And the best way to enjoy them? “Both espresso-based methods and the V60 pour-over work exceptionally well,” he reveals. “Espresso highlights the more concentrated flavor notes, while the V60 showcases clarity, sweetness, and aromatic complexity.”
Over in the affluent Colombo 7 area, <a href="https://deptofcoffee.lk/?DestinAsian" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Department of Coffee</a> lists six brewing methods on its menu, ranging from V60 to Kalita Wave. The recent opening of its first overseas outpost in Oman proves that Sri Lankan coffee is going global. And while purists may scoff at the fudge-brownie frappés and tiramisu lattes found on the menu at <a href="https://www.instagram.com/kirikopi.colombo/?DestinAsian" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kiri Kopi</a>, first established in the highland town of Ella, the brand’s recently launched outlet on Colombo’s Flower Road serves espresso and Americano as well as 16 other coffee-based drinks. Taking stock of the café’s clientele—teenage couples snapping photos over coconut lattes and graying aunties chit-chatting with cappuccinos in hand—it’s clear the island-wide kopi craze has well and truly caught hold.
Cocktail bars are also taking notice of coffee’s renaissance. After dark, mixologist Nelaka Dayawansa can be found shaking up experimental tipples at <a href="https://www.instagram.com/kampong.colombo/?DestinAsian" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kampong</a>, with one particularly heady sip utilizing homegrown beans. Named after Colombo’s historic Malay Street, Malay Brew blends coffee-infused whiskey with clarified milk, white chocolate, and orange—just the drink to toast the industry’s comeback. Brewed in patience and with passion, Sri Lankan coffee is finally getting the attention it deserves.
<figure id="attachment_154295" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-154295" style="width: 1200px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-full wp-image-154295" src="https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Colombo-Sri-Lanka-Coffee-Culture-Seed-cafe-interior-and-iced-latte-at-Kiri-Kopi.jpeg" alt="Seed’s historic interior; an iced latte at Kiri Kopi’s Colombo store." width="1200" height="800" srcset="https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Colombo-Sri-Lanka-Coffee-Culture-Seed-cafe-interior-and-iced-latte-at-Kiri-Kopi.jpeg 1200w, https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Colombo-Sri-Lanka-Coffee-Culture-Seed-cafe-interior-and-iced-latte-at-Kiri-Kopi-300x200.jpeg 300w, https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Colombo-Sri-Lanka-Coffee-Culture-Seed-cafe-interior-and-iced-latte-at-Kiri-Kopi-1024x683.jpeg 1024w, https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Colombo-Sri-Lanka-Coffee-Culture-Seed-cafe-interior-and-iced-latte-at-Kiri-Kopi-768x512.jpeg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-154295" class="wp-caption-text">Left to right: Seed’s historic interior; an iced latte at Kiri Kopi’s Colombo store. (Photos: Courtesy of Seed; Courtesy of Kiri Kopi)</figcaption></figure>
This article originally appeared in the <a href="https://subscription.destinasian.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">March/May 2026</a> print issue of DestinAsian magazine (“Good Beans to Spill”). Buy a single issue or subscribe <a href="https://subscription.destinasian.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.

Local barista Nuwan Samaravickrama; Radicle is located inside the De Mel Building; an iced latte at Kiri Kopi Colombo.

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