Dharshan Munidasa

Dharshan Munidasa was born in Tokyo, Japan to a Sri Lankan Father, Dr. Milton Munidasa and Japanese Mother, Nobuko Munidasa, spending most of his childhood in Japan,[5] where his earliest experiments in cooking were observing his mother and Japanese aunts in the kitchen.[6] He is the eldest of three children; he has a younger brother, Kanishka and a younger sister, Dulee.

After completing his primary and secondary education at St. Joseph's College, Colombo and Wycherley International School,[7] Munidasa went on to graduate with a Double Degree in Computer Engineering and International Relations from The Johns Hopkins University, USA in 1994.[3] It was as a university student that he unearthed his passion for cooking - out of necessity - as he found the commercial cafeteria food not palatable.[5]

Munidasa returned to the island in 1994, after the death of his father, where the gap in the market combined with his heritage and passion for pure Japanese culinary fare motivated Munidasa,[8] who had never had any formal culinary training to open his maiden venture Nihonbashi (meaning "Japan Bridge") in 1995 at Galle Face Terrace, focusing on providing the most authentic Japanese food in Sri Lanka.[3]

Subsequently, he went on to open two more branches of Nihonbashi at ODEL, Alexandra Place in 2001 for on-the-go dining and at Hilton Colombo Residencies in 2002, specializing in tempura.[9] Munidasa has also been invited to prepare Japanese degustation dinners at various establishments in South Asia; including the Conrad, The Four Seasons, Hilton, Huvafen fushi, and the Six Senses properties, all in the Maldives, and for the International Wine and Food Society in Mumbai.[9][10]

In December 2011, Munidasa in collaboration with close friends, Sri Lankan Cricketing Legends Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara opened the Ministry of Crab,[11] housed in the recently refurbished 400-year-old ‘Old Dutch Hospital’ Shopping Precinct.[12] This restaurant has the clear distinction of being one of the first in the country dedicated to serving the freshest export quality lagoon crabs.[13]

In 2011, Nihonbashi was one of only two Sri Lankan restaurants selected to feature in the 2011/2012 edition of The Miele Guide (Asia’s first independent restaurant guide).[14] In their 2013 Edition, Munidasa has the distinction of gaining both the coveted first and second place in Sri Lanka for the outstanding cuisine at both the Ministry of Crab and Nihonbashi, respectively.[15]

Nihonbashi also had the prestige of being the first Sri Lankan restaurant to have ever made it into Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants List,[16] and has ranked consecutively from 2013 to 2018,[17][18][19][20] Ministry of Crab was also honoured to be ranked on this prestigious list from 2015 to 2019.[19] Further, in the 2016 edition of this list, Ministry of Crab took the title of The S.Pellegrino Best Restaurant in Sri Lanka which it retained in 2017 to 2019.[21][22][23] On the 2019 edition of the list Ministry of Crab sits at no.35.[24]

As recognition for his contribution to Japanese Culture, Munidasa was awarded the Japanese Ambassador's Special Commendation by the Japanese Embassy in Sri Lanka in December 2013.[25] Dharshan was also recognized by the Japanese government when he was awarded The Minister’s Award for Overseas Promotion of Japanese Food for the year 2014, becoming one of five in world to be given this prestigious award that year.[26][27]

In July 2014, Munidasa opened his third restaurant Kaema Sutra, in partnership with Bollywood Actress Jacqueline Fernandez.[28] Previously situated at the Arcade Independence Square, the restaurant which specializes in contemporary Sri Lankan cuisine moved to the Shangri-La hotel, Colombo in December 2017.[29]

In November 2014, Dharshan also opened The Tuna and The Crab at Dutch Hospital in Galle Fort, which features a combination of flavours from his two flagship restaurants Nihonbashi and Ministry of Crab and was his first restaurant venture outside the capital city of Colombo.[30]

Dharshan also launched his own green juice which utilizes Gotukola as its primary ingredient. Gotukola juices and the various methods of preparation have been a part of tradition for a long time in Sri Lanka. Dharshan's Gotukola drink is named Centella after its scientific name, and contains no water and no added sugars or sweeteners.[31]

In 2018, Dharshan together with Mahela Jayawardena and Kumar Sangakkara stepped into the second phase of their food and beverage journey by opening a Sports Lounge, Next Innings also located at the Old Dutch Hospital Colombo.

Munidasa made his first television appearance in 2009 on the Sri Lankan Episode of Rick Stein’s Far East Odyssey on BBC, UK.[32]

In 2010, Munidasa paired up with leading English Channel ETV to co – produce and host “Culinary Journey’s with Dharshan”, a culinary travelogue that took viewers a step forward beyond an ordinary culinary experience, to places far and wide in search of the best sources for the finest ingredients in Sri Lankan and Japanese cuisine. The show which was filmed in Sri Lanka and Japan ran for 2 seasons until 2011.[33]

Munidasa was one of five chefs - and the first non-Japanese chef - featured on season two of Nippon Shokudo for TV Tokyo in 2011. The episode focused on Nihonbashi Restaurant and Japanese Cuisine in Sri Lanka[34]

In 2017, he appeared Season 10’s Episode 6 of Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown airing on CNN.[35]

In 2014, Munidasa was named as a Cool Japan Ambassador by the Japanese Government for his work towards the promotion of Japanese cuisine outside of Japan.[36]

Munidasa has one child, a daughter, named Shanaia born in 1996.

• Nihonbashi Japanese Restaurants Official Website
• Ministry of Crab Official Website
• Kaema Sutra Official Website