Do I get to keep the clay piece that comes with my meal at Hambu Café?

Yes. Every meal at Hambu Café is served with a handmade clay piece, and it's yours to take home afterward as a genuine souvenir — not just tableware.

Who makes the clay piece that comes with every meal at Hambu Café?

Each piece is handmade by an artisan in Lulnawa, Anuradhapura, and purchased directly from them as part of the SPARK Project — a social initiative supporting rural potters and the youth they're training.

SPARK

Hambu Café & SPARK

Every Meal Comes with a Gift

Every meal at Hambu is served with a handmade clay piece — and unlike the plate underneath it, this one goes home with you.

A young visitor proudly holding a handmade clay piece at Hambu Café

An elder artisan in Lulnawa, Anuradhapura shaping the clay pieces served with every meal at Hambu Café

An artisan's hands shaping one of the handmade clay pieces served with meals at Hambu Café

A guest shaping clay on the pottery wheel at Hambu Café

What You're Actually Getting

More Than Tableware

A few things worth knowing about the piece that comes with your meal.

Served With Your Meal

Your food arrives on or in a handmade clay piece — the first thing you'll notice is that no two look quite alike.

Yours To Take Home

It's not returned with the bill — the piece is yours to keep afterward, a genuine souvenir of the visit rather than just something you ate off.

Handmade in Lulnawa

Each piece is thrown by hand by an artisan in Lulnawa, Anuradhapura — young or elderly, trained at a wheel that's been in use for generations.

Purchased Through SPARK

Hambu buys these pieces directly from the artisans as part of the SPARK Project, so every meal here puts a little support behind a fading craft.