Sri Lankan street food
What Is Kottu Roti? Sri Lanka's Loudest Street Food — Now in Milan
Kottu roti is a Sri Lankan street food made by chopping godamba flatbread on a hot griddle together with egg, onion, leek, carrot, spices and a choice of meat, seafood or vegetables. Two metal blades do the chopping, which is why you hear kottu before you see it. At Rawana in Milan it is served in chicken, meat, seafood and vegetable versions, including a chopsuey kottu with soy, garlic, ginger and pepper.
- Address
- Via Giuseppe Cesare Abba 7, 20158 Milano
- Open
- Mon, Wed, Thu 12:00–15:30 and 17:00–23:00 · Fri 12:30–23:00 · Sat 12:30–15:00 and 18:00–23:00 · Sun 12:00–23:00 · Closed Tuesday
- Phone
- 324 796 5832
If you have ever walked past a food stall in Colombo at night, you have heard kottu. It is a rhythm — metal on metal, fast, deliberate, almost musical — and it carries down the street long before you can smell anything. That sound is the dish being made.
How kottu is actually made
- The roti. Godamba roti is a thin, elastic, layered flatbread, cooked fresh on the griddle.
- The chop. The roti goes onto a hot flat-top with two blunt metal blades. Onion, leek, carrot, cabbage, egg and spices go in with it.
- The rhythm. Everything is chopped and folded together at speed. The blades cut the bread into ribbons and mix the whole thing at the same time.
- The protein. Chicken, beef, mutton, prawns, cuttlefish or vegetables go in near the end, with curry sauce for moisture.
- The finish. A last blast of heat so the edges catch. Served immediately, hot, in a pile.
Nothing about it is delicate. That's the point.
What it tastes like
Somewhere between a stir-fry and a very good bread-based hash. The roti stays chewy in the middle and crisps at the edges. The egg binds it. The curry sauce soaks into the bread, so every mouthful carries spice without being wet. It's savoury, a bit peppery, faintly smoky from the griddle.
It is, by a distance, the dish most likely to be the reason someone comes back.
Kottu at Rawana
We serve kottu in several forms:
- Chicken kottu — The classic. Chopped roti, egg, vegetables, chicken, Sri Lankan spice
- Seafood kottu — Prawns and cuttlefish through the same base
- Vegetable kottu — No meat, no seafood — same technique, same spice
- Kottu Chopsuey Seafood — The fusion one: chopped roti with crunchy stir-fried vegetables, seafood, soy, garlic, ginger and pepper
Individual dishes on the menu run €7–19. Portions are generous — a kottu is comfortably shareable between two people alongside a curry. See what to order the first time.
Kottu vs the things people compare it to
Kottu vs fried rice. Same idea, different carbohydrate. Kottu uses chopped flatbread instead of rice, so the texture is chewier and it holds sauce differently.
Kottu vs chow mein. Kottu is not noodle-based. The bread ribbons look a bit like wide noodles but behave nothing like them.
Kottu vs a kebab. Both are late-night food that punch above their price. Kottu is cooked to order in front of you and has a proper spice structure behind it.
Why kottu matters to Sri Lankan food culture
Kottu was born from leftovers — day-old roti, whatever curry was left, whatever vegetables were around. It became a national dish anyway, and it's now the thing Sri Lankans abroad miss first. Every Sri Lankan family has an opinion about the correct ratio of roti to filling, and every one of those opinions is held strongly.
Cooking it in Milan means the roti is made in-house, the same way, and chopped the same way. That's the only version worth serving.
Where to eat kottu in Milan
At Rawana Bar & Restaurant, Via Giuseppe Cesare Abba 7, 20158 Milano, in the Dergano–Bovisa area. Open Monday and Wednesday to Sunday; closed Tuesday. Book a table or call +39 324 796 5832.
Come and eat it, rather than read about it.
Via Giuseppe Cesare Abba 7, Dergano, Milan. Book online, or call and someone who works in the room will pick up.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
And if it isn't here, just call. Someone who actually works in the room will pick up.
Godamba flatbread chopped on a hot griddle with egg, onion, leek, carrot, cabbage, Sri Lankan spices and a choice of chicken, beef, mutton, seafood or vegetables.
At Rawana Bar & Restaurant, Via Giuseppe Cesare Abba 7, 20158 Milan, which serves chicken, meat, seafood and vegetable kottu as well as a chopsuey version.
Kottu is warm and pepper-forward rather than fiery. The heat can be adjusted if you ask when ordering.
Yes — vegetable kottu uses the same roti, egg and spice base without meat or seafood. Ask for it without egg if you need it vegan.
Because it is chopped with two metal blades on a steel griddle. The sound is the bread and vegetables being cut and mixed at the same time.