An Asian restaurant in Milan built for sharing.

Rawana is at Via Giuseppe Cesare Abba 7 in Dergano, north of the centre of Milan, nine minutes on foot from Dergano M3. It is a Sri Lankan kitchen with a broad Asian menu around it, and the two are cooked by the same people on the same line.

That matters more than it sounds. It means the noodles are not an afterthought stuck on the back page for the one person at the table who does not want curry — they come off the same wok, with the same aromatics, and they are ordered as often as anything else.

Noodles and rice, off the wok

Five noodle dishes, €8 to €18, built on leek, carrot, garlic and ginger — no egg in the base, which makes them the easiest thing on the menu to adapt. Seven fried rice dishes over the same range, stir-fried with egg, leek, carrot, onion, garlic and ginger.

Both run from a plain vegetable version up to seafood. The chopsuey dishes sit in the same family: noodles rather than roti, everything chopped through a spiced gravy on the flat top.

Seafood

Prawns, cuttlefish, fish and crab appear across the menu rather than being penned into one section — in the kottu, in the fried rice, in the devilled plates, in batter, and in the large sharing specialities.

The batter dishes run €17 to €35 and are the crisp, hands-on end of the menu. The sharing specialities go from €18 to €70 and are the ones that land in the middle of the table and end the argument about what to order.

Devilled, fried, and the rest of the line

"Devilled" means onions, capsicum and chilli cooked hot and fast until the edges catch — six of those, €14 to €18. Seven fried dishes at €12 to €17. Four starters from €6, and four desserts from €4.

The Sri Lankan side of the menu — kottu, curries, sambols — is described in full on its own page, and the two halves are meant to be ordered together rather than chosen between.

The bar

There is a proper bar in the same room, not a wine list bolted onto a restaurant. Signature cocktails at €9, classics from €7, spritz from €7, and a zero-proof list at €7 to €9 that is made with the same attention as the rest.

Wine is €5 a glass and from €30 a bottle, with sparkling running up to €45. Beer is €3 to €6, on tap and in bottle. Soft drinks €2 to €5, and proper coffee from €1.10.

How to order for a table

The format is shared. Wide plates down the middle, generous portions, everyone reaching. A reasonable order for four people looks like a kottu, a curry, a plate of noodles or rice, and one of the sharing specialities — then you all eat some of everything.

Most guests spend €20 to €35 a head. Two or three courses each, ordered individually, is not how this food is at its best, and it will cost you more.

Vegetarian and vegan

Vegetable kottu, vegetable noodles and vegetable fried rice are all on the menu. The kottu and the fried rice are built on a base cooked with egg; the noodles are not, so they are the straightforward choice if you are eating vegan.

Allergen information for all fourteen categories listed in Annex II of EU Regulation 1169/2011 is published on the menu page, dish by dish. If you are managing an allergy, tell us when you book rather than at the table — it gives the kitchen room to do it properly.

Lunch, dinner, and the hours

Lunch and dinner Monday, Wednesday and Thursday: 12:00 to 15:30, then 17:00 to 23:00. Friday we stay open straight through, 12:30 to 23:00. Saturday is 12:30 to 15:00 and 18:00 to 23:00. Sunday runs straight through from 12:00 to 23:00. Closed all day Tuesday.

Weekday lunch is the quiet, fast version of the room. Friday and Saturday evening is the other one.