The Fort Printers

"Historic Galle Fort gets a most modern kind of accommodation, hotel service in a villa ambience, with the opening of The Fort Printers located on a prime corner in the former Dutch barracks along Sri Lanka’s southern coast. The 18th century former mansion turned printing company now boasts five chic suites, four linked by a covered second story walkway common to colonial buildings of this era, the other placed poolside. Each of the present-day quarters is unique and filled with Asian antiques, irreverent tiger carpets collected from Tibet, vibrant Thai silk drapes and a profusion of comfy cushions. Sleek jack wood floors, copper lined rain showers and an extra long lap pool generate buzz among design savvy visitors but the real sensation can be found in the kitchen. Owners lured Galle-born Suraj Rodrigo back from da Paolo’s, one of Singapore’s best Italian restaurants. Sensational tuna sashimi hints of local spices and citrus risotto with garlic chili prawns proves he has mastered the elusive art of East-West cuisine. Breakfast baked goods are the Fort’s finest. The English speaking staff is hardworking and efficient though voice volumes could be turned down a notch. Ask for an anachronistic spin in the 1945 Morris Minor or enjoy the juxtaposition of a sun soak within the hotel’s saffron washed walls while the Muslim call to prayer wafts through the Fort."