For half a century, London Grill at Cinnamon Grand Colombo has held its place as one of the city’s most enduring fine dining rooms, showcasing classic European cooking. As part of its 50th anniversary celebrations, the restaurant is celebrating the flavours of Scandinavia, led by Swedish chef Carola Magnusson.
This takeover of the London Grill by Magnusson, titled ‘A Taste of Sweden’, takes place from 2-5 October. Magnusson, Founder and CEO of the Stockholm-based organic catering company Carolas Eko, is well known in Sweden for her commitment to sustainable, wholesome cooking and her instinct for marrying tradition with innovation. She has travelled widely, cooked in kitchens across the world, and developed a keen sense of how food connects cultures.
Her visit to Colombo is part of a larger series of anniversary events, and her takeover of the London Grill is more conversation than a spectacle. The Daily Morning Brunch sample, but it feels more like a conversation than a spectacle: Swedish classics translated through local ingredients, shaped by what she found on arrival and served to us by Magnusson herself.
“I’ve been in and out of Sri Lanka many times for over 20 years, and I’m amazed by the produce here,” Mangnussion shared with the group. “The dairy, particularly, is excellent. Even today, for this menu, I’ve used Kotmale butter. The butter here is sometimes better than what I get in Sweden.”
Nordic soul, Lankan touches
The tasting began with potato bread and brown butter, an understated introduction to Nordic comfort. Magnusson calls Sweden “a country of potato,” and her bread was soft, slightly sweet, and perfect for spreading with her whipped brown butter, nutty and warm but balanced with unbrowned butter to keep it light. She had also added a few Sri Lankan spices to the mix – subtle, but enough to give the familiar combination a new depth.
We were then treated to skagen – a classic Swedish appetiser made of butter-toasted potato bread topped with a creamy shrimp and dill mixture, lemon, and fish roe. It was delicious and will certainly appeal to seafood lovers.
A course built around beetroot, a vegetable deeply rooted in Nordic cooking, followed. The beets were confit and smoked, then enriched with butter and brightened by an acid she had brought from Sweden. Unable to find golden beets locally, she turned to butternut squash to add the yellow she wanted for visual balance. “You work with what you have, but you don’t compromise on the feeling of the dish,” she explained. The result was autumn on a plate: smoky, sweet, sharp, and deeply satisfying.
No Scandinavian menu would be complete without herring, and Magnusson served it in two ways — acid herring and a more experimental coffee herring using Sri Lankan coffee. Traditional Swedish herring starts with fish salted in barrels, then soaked in cold water to draw out excess salt before being preserved in a mix of acid, sugar, and water. “It gives that special taste, delicate but sharp,” she said. Her version added lemongrass and pomegranate, touches she picked up here to keep the flavours bright and contemporary. The coffee herring was darker and more complex, its earthy notes working surprisingly well with the fish.
For Swedes, fika – the ritual of coffee and something sweet – is almost sacred. Magnusson’s contribution to Colombo’s celebration of International Cinnamon Bun Day is a live cinnamon bun station at the Tea Lounge on 4 October, part of the hotel’s high tea buffet. “Sri Lanka has the best cinnamon in the world,” she said simply. “I can’t find this quality anywhere else.” Her buns were soft, buttery, and spiced with an aromatic warmth that felt unmistakably Sri Lankan even within a Swedish tradition.
Lamb, truffle, and a touch of home
The heartiest plate of the night was a Swedish lamb sausage, although it arrived pan-fried rather than in its usual casing. “I couldn’t find casing here, and I thought about whether to keep the sausage at all,” Magnusson admitted. “But the flavours mattered more than the form.” She used Sri Lankan lamb and carrots smoked over Swedish wood she had brought with her, folded in black truffle for richness, and built a sauce with deep umami notes that married beautifully with the meat. It was robust but elegant — comfort food lifted into something celebratory.
What made the evening compelling wasn’t only the food, but the way Magnusson seemed to treat Colombo as a collaborator. She spoke warmly of the team at Cinnamon Grand: “The experience here is phenomenal. I’ve been so well treated, the hospitality is excellent, and the team is helpful and open. I feel at home.” That attitude shows in her menu. She doesn’t simply import Sweden; she negotiates with Sri Lanka’s pantry.
Beyond cinnamon and butter, she singled out cassava and samba rice as ingredients she loves. She’s also a fan of local seafood: “I like the fish here, and my absolute favourite is Sri Lankan crab curry,” she said with a grin. It’s easy to imagine her returning with even more ideas sparked by these flavours.
50 years of London Grill
‘A Taste of Sweden’ is part of the London Grill’s golden anniversary celebrations. The restaurant’s longevity comes not from clinging to the past but from adapting without losing its sense of occasion. Bringing a chef like Magnusson, who respects heritage while playing with what’s in front of her, is a subtle way of honouring that spirit. The room remains as elegant as ever — white linen, quiet service, the sense of a night out — but the food speaks in a fresh accent. The menu’s highlights — from moose meatballs with lingonberries and potato-celeriac purée to salt-cured seabass with white wine sauce and trout roe — join the dishes from the tasting to create a rich picture of Nordic gastronomy.
The anniversary runs from 2 to 5 October with Magnusson’s à la carte menu at London Grill, while 4 October sees the Tea Lounge celebrate Cinnamon Bun Day with buns inspired by Magnusson’s recipes alongside a generous high tea buffet.
For Colombo diners used to Italian or French fine dining, this is a rare chance to experience Swedish cooking beyond clichés. There’s no IKEA meatball in sight; instead, you get technique, curiosity, and a dialogue between two culinary worlds.