South London raised. Sri Lankan at heart.
Hi, I’m Akram. Food has always been how I make sense of the world. As a third-generation Sri Lankan, born and raised in South London, I grew up with kothu roti, sambols and curry on the dinner table, while being surrounded by one of the most diverse food scenes anywhere in the world. From an early age, I realised food is more than something we eat - it’s how cultures, stories and people come together.
That curiosity has taken me everywhere. I’ve planned holidays around food, wandered markets instead of museums, and spent countless hours chasing dishes down side streets because someone said, “You have to try this.” Every place I’ve visited has left its mark, but I always found myself coming back to the food I grew up with. More than anything, I wanted to share those flavours with other people and watch them discover Sri Lankan food for the first time.
That’s why I started paan. Everything we make starts with Sri Lanka and tells the story of the vibrant, beautiful world around us. It’s our way of celebrating the food I grew up with while embracing the inspiration, ideas and flavours we’ve found beyond it - bringing people together, one bite at a time.
Paan is my way of bringing people around a table to discover Sri Lankan flavours - through food that feels familiar, unexpected and worth talking about.
