Kamu, the family-run Sri Lankan kitchen known for its residency at some of London’s most characterful pubs, is opening at the Sun & 13 Cantons in Soho on 28th October 2026. Its first central London residency marks the next chapter for the growing business, bringing a menu of traditional Sri Lankan dishes and British pub classics with an island twist to one of Soho’s best-known pubs.
Founded by Deshan Warnasooriya, Kamu began in 2022 when Deshan, who studied engineering, pivoted to making lamprais during the pandemic. His chef father had moved from Sri Lanka to Watford 30 years earlier, building a successful catering business supplying restaurants across London. Drawing on his family’s culinary heritage and his own upbringing in the Sri Lankan diaspora, Deshan began selling lamprais on Instagram during lockdown. Demand quickly grew from a handful of orders to 200 a day, leading to Kamu’s first residency at the Coach & Horses in Leyton. The business has since built a following through residencies at pubs across the capital, including the Old Fountain in Shoreditch, the Stapleton Tavern in Finsbury Park and Erin’s in Beckenham. Deshan is supported by his sister Sasanthi Warnasooriya, who previously worked as sous-chef at Paradise, the contemporary Sri Lankan restaurant formerly in Soho that held a Michelin Bib Gourmand.
The Menu: Built around the idea of bringing Sri Lankan food to the pub table, Kamu’s menu combines family recipes and island classics with familiar British favourites, designed to be enjoyed alongside a drink. Traditional dishes include spicy mutton rolls, Ceylon Buri-yani and street-style kottu roti, a Sri Lankan staple of shredded roti, vegetables, egg and curry, chopped and cooked together on a hot griddle. Often likened to Sri Lanka’s answer to the late-night kebab, kottu is as distinctive for the rhythmic clang of steel paddles against the griddle as it is for its mix of textures and spice.
At the heart of the menu is the Royal Sri Lankan Lamprais, a traditional rice and curry dish wrapped in banana leaf, served with fragrant yellow rice, slow-baked sweet-and-sour aubergine, caramelised seeni sambol, tempered potatoes, a double-cooked egg and a crisp poppadom. Guests can choose from Ceylon chicken, Jaffna lamb, Galle prawn or dhal. Other island classics include Kamu’s Ceylon Buri-yani, while small plates range from Negombo prawn tempura with Katta sambol aioli to garlic and chilli corn ribs.
Alongside the traditional dishes, Kamu gives British pub favourites a Sri Lankan makeover. The Colombo Cheese Burger combines a Wagyu beef patty, truffle mayo and American cheese with spicy seeni sambol and dill pickles, while The Hot Lankan features buttermilk-fried chicken glazed in Sri Lankan chilli oil. Other highlights include Lion Lager-battered haddock and chips, devilled buffalo wings tossed in Kamu’s signature sweet-and-spicy sauce, and slow-cooked Sri Lankan lamb curry served on a house-made paratha taco.
The Location: The Sun & 13 Cantons residency marks a new central London home for Kamu and adds to the pub’s history of launching food businesses that have gone on to establish themselves across the capital. Darjeeling Express, Asma Khan’s acclaimed Indian restaurant, began as a residency at the pub in 2014 before growing into an internationally recognised name. Malaysian laksa specialist Sambal Shiok also held a residency there before opening its permanent home on Holloway Road, while contemporary Cambodian and Khmer kitchen Mamapen ran at the pub for two years until June 2026. Kamu now joins this line-up, bringing its own family-led take on Sri Lankan cooking to Soho.
Founder of Kamu, Deshan Warnasooriya, says: “We’re really excited to bring Kamu to the Sun & 13 Cantons and follow in the footsteps of some brilliant food residencies that have called it home. Kamu started as a bootstrapped business during COVID, so bringing our family’s Sri Lankan cooking to Soho means a lot. Our menu reflects growing up Sri Lankan in Britain, bringing traditional dishes like lamprais and kottu roti together with pub favourites given a Sri Lankan twist. Everything is made to be enjoyed with a drink, and we can’t wait for people to come down and try it.”
Kamu at the Sun & 13 Cantons opens on Wednesday, 28th October 2026.
