If you’re craving proper Sri Lankan street food in Newcastle — the kind that makes you sweat a little, smile a lot, and question how you’re still eating — Trip to Negombos is the place.
Tucked away at Newcastle upon Tyne (NE6 4HA), this spot is primarily a takeaway joint, but step inside and you’ll find space for about a small family (around 5-6 people max) to sit and feast. It’s cosy in that unmistakably Sri Lankan way — slightly chaotic, full of character, and instantly comforting.
The interior is a vibe on its own. Quirky ornaments — mini Raksha (devil) masks — peek out comically from behind Christmas lights strung haphazardly across the room. The menu is written on slabs of blackboard in chalk, listing everything from rice and curry to kottu, plus all the essential short-eats: malu pan (fish bun), mutton rolls, eluva rotti (vegetable triangles) and more.
The short-eats display deserves its own shoutout — the food sits alongside hand-drawn caricatures showing spice levels: a smiley face for mild, and a scrunched-up angry face for very spicy. Honest, funny, and extremely accurate.
There were only two workers, but they ran the place effortlessly — chatting with us, cooking, serving, and greeting regulars popping in for takeaways. It felt exactly like being back home, where the hostess knows everyone, talks to everyone, and somehow still gets everything done.
What We Ordered 🍽️
Main meals:
- Mutton kottu
- Seafood kottu
- Chicken rice and curry
- Chicken fried rice
Shorteats:
- Mutton rolls
- Chicken rolls
- Devilled chicken buns/pastry
- Fish bun
The spice levels were very tolerable, but this is clearly food made for the community it serves — a proper, day-to-day Sri Lankan fix. And honestly, as a Sri Lankan myself… I better be able to handle it (and more).
The stars of the show were hands down the fish buns and the seafood kottu. The fish bun had the perfect ratio of fish, potato, and chilli tucked inside a soft, fluffy bread roll — comforting, nostalgic, and dangerously easy to eat more than one. The seafood kottu was packed with flavour, crunch, and heat, the kind that keeps you going back for “just one more bite.” I would’ve loved a bit more seafood — maybe extra squid, some fried fish bits, or even a touch of dried fish — but even as it was, it delivered.
An honorary mention goes to the mutton roll: chunky, soft filling, a generous amount of mutton, and fried to perfection. The rice and curry was solid too — pure nostalgia, like lunch after school, eaten quickly before running back out.
Everything paired beautifully with chilled king coconut water, which helped quench the thirst and reset the taste buds between bites. And the portion sizes? Comically large — just like the proper Sri Lankan street food stall serves. Normally, my sister, mum, and I would share one dish. So imagine my stomach’s confusion as I just… kept eating.
After 2.5 months without proper spice or Sri Lankan food, this meal absolutely hit the spot. I’d happily drag my roommates all the way here just to prove a point.
We sadly didn’t get around to trying the wedding cake (that dense, condensed Christmas-cake-meets-icing situation), but that means one thing: there will definitely be a next time. Hopefully sooner than I think.
A totally unbiased, very full, very happy 5/5 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐.
Images by Rishika Senevirathne