The Old Dutch Hospital in the Fort district is the oldest colonial building in Colombo still standing, built around 1681 when this was the Dutch East India Company's headquarters. The long arcaded building with thick whitewashed walls and a central courtyard has been beautifully restored and now houses restaurants, boutiques, and a jewellery market. It is the most pleasant shopping and dining environment in the Fort area.
The building's colonnaded interior keeps it cool even in Colombo's humidity. Several good restaurants occupy the ground floor; the upstairs verandas overlooking the courtyard are good places for a coffee. The Dutch presence in Colombo lasted from 1640 to 1796, and the hospital is the most tangible surviving evidence of it.