A seafood restaurant near Hiriketiya, on Turtle Beach

Ohana is a seafood restaurant on Turtle Beach in Dikwella, less than five minutes by road from Hiriketiya, with tables on the sand and a kitchen that cooks the day's catch to order. A whole grilled snapper is 7,900 LKR, a seafood platter for two or three is 18,900 LKR, and lunch and dinner are served from 11:00 to 21:00 every day.

What does fresh seafood by the water mean here?

It means three plain things.

• The catch decides. Our menu says it in its own words: it is subject to availability, because we work with fresh, local, seasonal ingredients and the daily catch. If the tuna did not come in, we tell you, and we do not replace it quietly.
• The kitchen cooks to order. A whole fish goes on the grill when you ask for it, not before. That takes a little time, and the bay is there for the waiting.
• You eat where it was caught. The tables stand on the sand in front of a calm round bay, with the reef on the horizon. Wild sea turtles often feed there while you eat.

No alcohol is served. People drink mocktails, house iced teas and king coconut water with their fish, and filtered water is on the house.

What seafood is on the menu, and what does it cost?

The whole list, with allergens and every ingredient, is on the full menu. These are the dishes people come for.

From the grill:

• Grilled Catch of the Day, 7,900 LKR. A whole snapper cooked on the bone, basted with garlic and thyme, with our fire-roasted tomato salsa.
• Grilled Jumbo Prawns, 7,900 LKR. Big tail-on prawns seared with paprika and thyme, beside coconut mashed potatoes, under a green chimichurri. A little spicy.
• Sesame Tuna Filet, 6,900 LKR. Tuna in a crust of black and white sesame, seared fast so the centre stays rare.
• Seafood Trio, 9,900 LKR. For one: paprika shrimps, coconut-crumbed calamari and sesame tuna on one plate.

Curries and a soup:

• Mahi Mahi Pineapple Curry, 6,900 LKR, and Sweet Prawn Curry, 6,700 LKR. Both are gentle, and built on coconut milk.
• Ohana Zuppa di Pesce, 6,900 LKR. Mahi mahi, shrimps and calamari in our fish stock and tomatoes, made to order the Italian way, with garlic toast.

Raw and light:

• Ceviche Limeño, 5,700 LKR. Tuna Tartare, 3,400 LKR. Tuna Tiradito, 3,100 LKR. The three are told apart in our guide to raw fish.
• Tuna Poke Bowl, 4,500 LKR. Marinated raw tuna over warm rice with avocado and a crunch of papadam. Spicy.

Crisp and to share:

• Coconut Calamari, 5,700 LKR. Rings in a coat of coconut and panko, fried in small batches.
• Baja Fish Taco, 1,800 LKR. Spiced mahi mahi in a warm tortilla, priced per taco.

How do you order a whole fish?

A whole fish is the simplest thing on the menu and the one people ask most about. There are three ways.

• For one or two light eaters: the Grilled Catch of the Day. One whole snapper, on the bone, 7,900 LKR. Add Coconut Mashed Potatoes, 1,500 LKR, or Steamed Basmati Rice, 800 LKR.
• For two: Red Snapper for Two, 15,900 LKR. A whole red snapper of about a kilo, or two smaller ones, with everything around it: a big gotukola salad, fries, rice, a coconut curry gravy, our sauces and a basket of papadam.
• For two or three: the Ohana Seafood Platter, 18,900 LKR. A whole fish of the day off the grill, shrimps marinated with herbs and grilled calamari, with the same salad, fries, rice, gravy, sauces and papadam. When the boats bring in something more, it joins the platter.

A few things help. Tell us how many you are, and we tell you what came in and how big it is. A fish cooked on the bone stays juicy, and the team will show you how to lift the fillet if you have not done it before. A whole snapper takes 25 to 40 minutes on the grill, so order it first and a starter with it.

To know your fish before you order it, read the fish of the south coast.

Is the seafood spicy, and what about allergies?

Food at Ohana is not spicy unless the dish says so. The menu marks each dish that has heat, and on the platters it names the part that carries it: the coconut curry gravy and the fire-roasted salsa are a little spicy, the fish itself is not.

Every dish lists its allergens. Ours is one shared kitchen with one fryer, so we cannot promise that no trace is there. Tell us about any allergy before you order, and we will advise you honestly.

When should you book?

You can simply come. The restaurant is open to everyone, every day, and you do not need a sunbed to have a table.

Book in these cases:

• You want the first row on the sand at sunset. The sun sets between about 17:45 and 18:30 all year, and those tables go first.
• You want a whole fish for two or a platter. Reserve by noon when you can, so the fish is chosen for you.
• You are a big family. Tell us the number and the ages, and the table is ready when you arrive.

A table can be booked through our booking page. The evening built around the fish, with sunbeds from 16:00 and a candlelit table, is on Sunset & Dinner. How the kitchen works is on the page of our seafood restaurant near Hiriketiya.

Good to know

• Lunch and dinner are served from 11:00 to 21:00, breakfast from 08:00 to 11:00. We are open every day.
• Prices are in LKR, plus a 10% service charge. Filtered water is on the house.
• No alcohol is served. There are mocktails, iced teas, fresh juices at breakfast and king coconut water.
• Sunbeds are free for the whole day, one for each person, when each person spends 10,000 LKR on food and drinks; otherwise they cost 1,000 LKR an hour each. A towel comes with every sunbed.
• We are at Turtle Beach, Dikwella, less than five minutes by road from Hiriketiya.