This week James and Luke headed way out west, to Pinner, to visit a new Sri Lankan restaurant called Yako. Following a tour of the Grade II listed building in which they have recently set up shop, they sat down to a colossal meal and to hear the story of Yako’s founder, Darshana Wathadura, A.K.A Dash.

**Introduction** (0:00 – 3:39)

(Starter)

-Luke outlines the significance of the Yako symbol, the restaurant’s namesake.

**Interview** (3:40 – 23:41)

(Main)

-Darshana recounts the difficulties he had with settling in the UK. He also details the importance of authenticity in the success and potential breakout of the restaurant.

**Post interview discussion** (23:42 – 28:44)

(Dessert)

Luke and James discuss the menu items and how 'authentic' they are.

**Closing Remarks and acknowledgments** (28:44 -29:46)

The Migration Menu has been brought to you by James Staples and Luke Heslop, with help from Tina Boulton, Esther Opoku Debra and Vimal Dalal. If you have any questions or comments for us, send them in and we will address them in a future show, you can get in touch at info@themigrationmenu.com. Or on ‘X’ - formerly Twitter: @migration_menu.

Restaurant location: Yako 6 St Anns Road, Harrow HA1 1LG England

Menu dishes eaten:

Ceylon Chinese-Style chicken and sweetcorn soup

Southern Style Chicken Curry

Prawn Curry

Jackfruit Curry

Fish Curry

Seeni Sambal

Poppadoms

Hoppers ?

Pol Sambol

Gotu Kola

Kottu Roti

Menu: https://restaurantguru.com/Yako-Harrow/menu

To see images for this episode, click here.

Literature mentioned:

Daele, W. V. 2013. Igniting food assemblages in Sri Lanka: Ritual cooking to regenerate the world and interrelations, Contributions to Indian Sociology, 47(1), 33-60

Rival, L. 1990. The Social Life of Trees, Anthropological Perspectives on Tree Symbolism, Routledge

Tanaka, M. 1997. Patrons, Devotees and Goddesses: Ritual and Power Among the Tamil Fishermen of Sri Lanka, Delhi

For a list of academic literature on these topics and more, please see the list of extended bibliography on the references page or click here.

Guest speakers:

Lara de Soyza

Darshana Wathadura

For more information, please visit our website: https://themigrationmenu.com/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.