---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: joe dsouza <[email protected]> Date: Mon, Nov 1, 2010 at 9:37 AM Subject: Fwd: Fw: NORTHERN GOA'S BEST RESTAURANT'S. To: > > > > >> >> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>>>CNN Go travels the length of northern Goa to uncover the best places to >>>>fill >>>>your tummy in 2010 >>>> >>>> >>>>Soft jazz, softer sand, finger-licking French food and the best chocolate >>>>crepes >>>>outside France make La Plage in Ashwem one of the few beach shacks you >>>>actually >>>>need to reserve in advance. >>>>Whether you're a fan of shoreline shacks, riverside restaurants, treehouse >>>>tables or candlelit cliff-top dining, north Goa has a really eclectic >>>>variety of >>>>places to put your beach tote down and get your fingers greasy. >>>>Whether it's rustic Italian pizzas, gourmet Greek, fine French, Asian >>>>noodles, a >>>>BBQ steak, classic Goan prawn curry and all manner of fresh seafood these >>>>are >>>>the 25 best restaurants in north Goa for 2010. Not forgetting dessert, for >>>>our >>>>writer practically has a degree in chocolate hunting in Goa , India 's >>>>hippie-style, global-vibe beach destination. >>>> >>>> Eat: Pizzas at Fellini's in Arambol. >>>>1. Pepperoni pizzas at Fellini's Italian Restaurant & Pizzeria, Arambol >>>>Amongst the meandering shop lined lanes of the Russian appropriated >>>>Arambol, is >>>>a well hidden shack-style restaurant. Plastic chairs and fold-up tables >>>>serve as >>>>the no-nonsense décor that comes with some very, very serious pizza eating. >>>>Run >>>>by Moses Fernandes, pizza worshipers visit Fellini’s to try an exhaustive >>>>selection of oven fresh massive thaali-sized pizzas. Mozzarella melts in a >>>>delicious mess, the tomato sauce is just perfectly tangy and sweet, and >>>>each >>>>herb infused slice of salami pizza bends over with its generous helping of >>>>toppings. Your search for the best pizza along the Goan coast will end >>>>here, >>>>where a young staff of local boys have been trained in the art of pizza >>>>crafting. Socoillo Vaddo, Main Arambol Beach Road , Arambol Pernem Goa ; >>>>tel. >>>> +91 9764893896 +91 9764893896 , 9881461224; [email protected] >>>>2. Liver pate or chocolate pancakes at La Plage, Ashwem >>>>Over the years our love affair with La Plage has not only survived, but >>>>become >>>>stronger, despite an infiltration by chi chi crowds who make this an >>>>essential >>>>daily stop over. La Plage could be without a doubt the most stylish shack >>>>ambience and finest French food in Goa . Up three stone steps just off the >>>>hip >>>>Ashwem beach, La Plage appears like a fairy in white on a sand dune. >>>>Accented by >>>>billowing colourful muslin curtains cordoning off the outside sand seating >>>>from >>>>the larger open deck area one step up. An abundance of deck chairs, soft >>>>jazz or >>>>eclectic hip-hop and a finger-licking French cuisine make this one of the >>>>few >>>>places you actually need to reserve in advance. Off Ashwem beach; tel. >>>> +91 9822121712 +91 9822121712 ;[email protected] >>>> >>>>Eat: Desserts at Pink Orange in Ashwem. >>>>3. Brownies and apple pie with ice-cream at Pink Orange , Ashwem >>>>As shacks go, Pink Orange isn’t particularly spectacular. Chances are >>>>you’ll >>>>probably miss the inconspicuous blackboard that acts as a sign. >>>>Cheek-to-jowl >>>>with a sarong selling tent, and another with a menu of Goan food written in >>>>Russian, Pink Orange’s popularity has mostly spread through word of mouth. >>>>Dreadlocked owners Jai and his girlfriend Alex create a familial >>>>atmosphere, >>>>where seating comprises cushions on bamboo chattais and hammocks. Their >>>>toddler >>>>paddles around in her plastic blow-up tub with other the guest toddlers, >>>>while >>>>the mother shoots orders to the kitchen and her father handles other >>>>niceties. A >>>>completely vegetarian menu makes this the perfect detox vacation spot, >>>>where you >>>>can gorge yourself silly on salads, juices and spinach lasagne. Your only >>>>sin >>>>here will be Alex’s desserts, which aside from her regular brownies and >>>>apple >>>>pie offerings also include a daily experimental surprise. Beach Village , >>>>Morjim-Ashvem Beach ; tel. +919822347462 +919822347462 >>>>; [email protected];www.myspace.com/pinkorangegoa >>>>3. Chocolate fondant at Sur La Mer, Morjim >>>>This Italian style villa, with hints of Spanish and Moroccan influence has >>>>rooms >>>>that open out onto a large swimming pool and courtyard is perfect for those >>>>looking to get off the beaten hotel and shack route. Tastefully done up, >>>>the >>>>retreat’s excellent cuisine comes courtesy of food aficionado owner Aneel >>>>Verma, >>>>who spent years travelling the globe taking fancy cooking courses. The >>>>military >>>>like attention to detail of the food is countered by a flexible >>>>eat-where-you-want rule in the rest of the resort. Sur La Mer serves what >>>>could >>>>be called a rich, brilliantly textured chocolate fondant and filo pastry. >>>>Precede this with the escargot, clam chowder, beef carpacio, lobster >>>>thermador >>>>or baked goat cheese salad with balsamic sauce, ruccola and cherry >>>>tomatoes. All >>>>with fruits, herbs and vegetables that are grown organically on this >>>>property. Morjim-Ashwem road, Morjim; tel. +91 9850056742 +91 9850056742 >>>>, >>>>9811253521 >>>> >>>> Eat: Grilled ham and cheese and milkshakes at Sharewood Treehouse Cafe in >>>>Vagator. >>>> >>>4. Hot ham and cheese croque-monsieur at Sharewood Treehouse Café, Vagator >>>Put me in a tree house, and you have a winner. Put me in a tree house with >>>orange-pineapple juice and the best ham and cheese and I’ll never leave. >>>Every >>>tree has a tree house and sunlight streams into the bamboo environs of each >>>magical floating room, where round tables painted in monochromatic Zebra >>>stripes >>>add a dash of funky colour. Your state of mind will be as if a magician is >>>holding you hostage. And it seems he may be holding the staff too. Despite >>>the >>>fact that they seemed to be constantly dashing in and out, we waited 45 >>>minutes >>>for each juice, ham toasty ham sandwich and chocolate banana pancake to >>>come. >>>But we couldn’t complain. Chapora Vagator Road, Daul Vaddo, Vagator, >>>Bardez; >>> +91 9881832230 +91 9881832230 , 9767019248 >>> >>>Eat: Gourmet Greek at Thalassa in Vagator. >>>5. Greek food and profiteroles at Thalassa, Vagator >>>In the Aesops fables, Thalassa appears as a woman formed of sea water rising >>>up >>>from her native element. An eerily similar vision is formed as you enter the >>>muslin-curtained, mirror-filled, all-white Grecian restaurant near Nine Bar >>>in >>>Vagator. The welcome from the proprietor Mariketty makes you feel like >>>you’re in >>>her home. Amongst patrons, who looked like they could be at any voguish >>>carefully laidback restaurant in Mykonos, low key waiters hover, taking >>>orders >>>of prawn or chicken souvlaki, mousakka and greek salad. End this mythical >>>evening with plates of the deliciously addictive profiterole balls. Little >>>Vagator beach, near Nine Bar, Vagator; tel. +91 9850033537 +91 9850033537 >>>; www.myspace.com/thalassagoa >>>6. Beef burgers at Salt and Pepper, Vagator >>>A glorified Goan dhaba, a father and daughter team run Salt and Pepper -- a >>>simple bamboo shack with orange-yellow walls and a couple of archetypical >>>Goan >>>plastic beach chairs. The only reason we flock here year after year are the >>>beef >>>burgers made by Pepper the elder daughter. Without any decipherable >>>signboards, >>>the place is hippie and makes no pretensions about it. Aside from personal >>>favourite of the homemade burgers, try their pepper steak, and chicken >>>escalope. >>>7. White Nigger chocolate soufflé at Zooris, Anjuna >>>It doesn’t really get more old school than Zooris, and its proprietor Mr >>>Zoori. >>>Both have been around for longer than even the most wizened hippies can >>>remember. The big “no drugs" sign, garishly landscaped faux fountain, big >>>chillum-smoking mural of Mr Zoori himself, all precariously overlook Anjuna >>>beach. Fantastic for a chilled out sunset, sprawl out on the worn out >>>cushions >>>or lie inert on the bed this balcony restaurant serves excellent staples. >>>The >>>humus pita bread, a delicious gooey mousse hidden inside a chocolate cake >>>(with >>>the somewhat controversial moniker White Nigger), crunchy tostadas topped >>>with >>>Gouda, olives and fresh veggies, washed down with a chocolate milkshake -- >>>just >>>keep coming, in no particular order, accompanied by glass after glass of >>>mint >>>tea. >>>8. Mustard Fish at Sublime, Saligao >>>After moving from the forests in Anjuna to a house in Saligao, resto-bar >>>Sublime >>>has reinvented itself with a subliminally more sophisticated, high-end >>>avatar. >>>Owner Christopher Agha Bee and his trademark faux-hauk (whose other claim to >>>fame is being the son of comedian and actor Jelal Agha) runs a tight ship at >>>the >>>recently taken over house, that is a restaurant downstairs and lounge bar >>>upstairs. Dinner can be had downstairs under a thatch and coconut >>>tree-enclosed >>>area, on simple rustic minimalist chairs, at dining tables strewn with >>>flower >>>petals, or you can make do with a drink upstairs on lounge beds. Their menu >>>is >>>as simple and classy as the interiors. Highly recommend are the Greek Pastry >>>Filo with olives and sun-dried tomatoes in a ruccola based sauce and the >>>mustard >>>fish with baby potatoes, asparagus and dil sauce. Get plastered by their Goa >>>Blast, a fenni and aarakh concoction.H No 1/9-A, Grande Morod, Saligao; tel. >>> +91 9881154892 +91 9881154892 >>> >> >>Eat: Sesame grilled tuna at La Plage in Ashwem. >>9. Sandwiches, Shawarma, Steak and fresh Strawberry juice in Chapora >> >>Ganesh Fruit Juice Centre, Chapora >>Despite the lack of a beach and shady by lanes, Chapora is quiet a hub for >>tourists. A little red wall is home to a no-nonsense juice stall dhaba style, >>where shoulders rub -- from the fancy Prada bag ones to the dreadlock framed >>leather pouched ones. Though juice is pretty much the Goan tourist’s staple >>diet, we put out for the undeniably best juice in Goa at Ganesh Fruit Juice >>Centre. The fresh strawberry and avocado juice is pulpy and smooth all at the >>same time, while the more conventional mixes of beetroot and carrot, or >>pineapple and orange are just the right consistency without even a hint of >>artificial sweetening, flavor or thinned out with extra water. >>In Chapora, the two other places that captured our imagination and our >>stomachs >>are both little, inconspicuous stalls. La Befa’s sandwiches made by the owner >>himself are addictively popular. And anyone can tell you addictive sandwiches >>have secrets in them that even the most effusive chef won’t part with. At >>this >>small four or five table sit out, the owner places delicious bits of parma >>ham, >>or aubergine seasoned with olive oil and his other secret ingredients in >>between >>slices of fresh locally made French bread. Toto are we in Goa ? >>Clara’s Shawarma and Falafel in Chapora is recognized as the best, most >>authentic shawarma in North Goa . Here you only get two things as the name >>suggests, and the stall, run by a French lady, has no place to sit. Ask for >>the >>spiciness according to your palette, and chose between the vegetarian or >>non-vegetarian shawarma envelopes, either in local Goan poie bread or >>traditional pita. >>Post the Ganesh Fruit Juice Centre, Clara’s Shawarma and Falafel is on the >>main >>Chapora street right after the fork, while La Befa is on the left just after >>the >>fork. Chapora Market road, Chapora. >> >> >>Eat: BBQ meats at Lloyd’s Steak & Grill in Candolim. >>10. Barbecue and steak at Lloyd’s Steak & Grill, Candolim >>Lloyd’s proves that good things come in small packages. In this >>blink-and-you-miss-it garage by the side of the road, a five-foot something >>Goan >>is busy over the tiniest grill ever. Always packed with everyone from >>tourists >>to locals, and even other restaurant owners, Lloyd’s Steak and Grill is >>almost >>like eating steak by a roadside stall. A one-man army, Lloyd manages all his >>clients like a tiny illusionist. Conjuring steaks out of previously marinated >>meats, the jovial, cheery atmosphere won’t let you ever feel you were kept >>waiting for your meal. Without a doubt this garage serves the best beef, >>chicken >>and pork steaks in Goa and maybe even the country. It’s a no fuss, no sauces >>kind of place. Only good old, manly meat eating. The secret is in the way you >>cut the meats. The only problem you might have is in finding it. We could >>give >>you hints, like spa, hotel and the only vegetarian restaurant on Candolim but >>that would really spoil the fun. Saipem, Candolim, Near Candolim Church ; >>tel. >> +91 9823032273 +91 9823032273 >>11. Burma Tea Leaf Salad at Bombras, Candolim >>In the hustle-bustle neon lit brightness of Calangute, the understated >>elegance >>of a little Burmese restaurant does threaten to get overshadowed. Yet, >>Bombras >>mud floor and walls and low bamboo seating have withstood the assault of its >>louder neighbours and come through a winner. Mostly because the chef Bawmra >>Jap >>is simply a genius. Gushingly called the best Burmese restaurant in the >>world, >>its basic tree and sky-lined ceiling is coupled with some divine Chinese and >>Thai inspired Burmese cuisine. Favourites here are the beef salad with >>cucumber, >>crackling pork pomelo and the very Burmese Tea Leaf Salad. For your main >>course >>check out the softly boiled snapper with lemon grass, chili, fish sauce or >>the >>slow cooked belly pork cashew nut crust, lentils, spinach apple chutney, and >>end >>this with a sinful not–so-South-Asian chocolate fondue. The Bombras special >>cocktail is a weirdly tasty mix of lemon grass, sugar cane juice, ginger >>juice >>and vodka. 247 Fort Aquada Road, Candolim; tel. +91 9822106236 >>+91 9822106236 >> >> >>Eat: Pad Thai with caramelized prawns at Republic of Noodles in Candolim. >>12. Pad Thai with caramelized prawns at Republic of Noodles , Candolim >>Despite the manufactured, chain restaurant feel of Republic of Noodles , we >>actually stumbled across it while walking down Calangute. So, given the >>excitement of a Columbus-like discovery, the food was way more than just a >>pleasant surprise. What it lacked in personalised service or ownership it >>made >>up in the quality of the food. Republic Of Noodles is where Goa ’s best South >>East Asian food is to be found. In the very Balinese interiors, you can >>either >>choose to sit at the bar of a Tepenyaki kitchen or amongst the black >>sandstone >>décor with little Zen fountain areas. The noodles are a satisfying bowl of >>stir-fried vegetables with a plethora of sea food to choose from, the pork >>ribs >>are succulent and juicy and the Javanese duck dish >>curry scrumptious. Amarante >>Beach Resort, Vadi, Candolim; tel. +91 832 3988188 +91 832 3988188 >>13. High Tea at Café Chocolatti, Candolim >>Searching for in-between meal munchies in Goa is never really a problem. Just >>off the main Candolim road, a small garden path leads you away from the >>hustle-bustle of Candolim to a tree-enclosed, white umbrella-covered garden >>bakery, café and chocolatier. Run by the London born Nazeen Sarosa Repelo, >>who >>after 15 years in Goa considers herself a local, the café’s homemade >>sweet-tooth >>satiating menu is pretty sinful. It includes brownies that are just the right >>consistency of chewy, gooey and sweet, a carrot cake with a cinnamon aroma, a >>ginger cake with lime icing that explodes in your nose and the special >>chocolatti cake that is a multi-layered chocolate heaven. For days when you >>feel >>especially royal come in for Nazeen’s high-tea spread, complete with a tea >>cozied tea pot, scones, strawberry jam and fresh bread. Everything, says the >>matronly Nazeen, is made in limited quantities and hand made at home. Yes, >>even >>the bread. 409A Fort Aguada Road , Candolim; tel. +91 9326103522 >>+91 9326103522 >> >> >> Eat: Grilled fish at J&A’s Little Italy on the Baga River . >14. Grilled fish, potatoes and vegetables at J&A’s Little Italy, Baga River >Along the edge of the beautiful Baga River, upon a bed of gravel, sits a >Portuguese cottage that greets you with softly lit sandpaper textured walls >and >rustic wood beam-enclosed corners where you sit. Host couple and owners >Jamshed >and Ayesha, who set up this Mediterranean-style restaurant with an extensive >Italian menu in 1995, might not be around all the time but the warm staff make >up for it. The best place to praise this place is in the loo. We're serious! >The >guest book placed in the all-white toilet is where guests jot down feedback >notes. 560, Villa Rodrigues, Baga River Road , Baga-Calungute, Bardez, Goa ; >tel. +91 9823139488 +91 9823139488 ; www.italyingoa.com > > >Eat: Breakfast at Lila Cafe on the Baga River . >15. Croissants at Lila Café, Baga River >Breakfast is a very important meal in Goa . That’s why it’s only here that a >place can do fabulously well, open only between 8:30am to sunset. Along Baga >River, just past the bridge, the tiled roof and white billowing canopies that >cordon Lila Café off from the road, are succour for the late night revellers >coming in search of morning munchies, the business patron who comes for a >quick >deliciously healthy breakfast or lunch, and for anyone else who generally aims >to sit around aimlessly. Sink into a wicker chair and keep your shirt on (as >politely asked to by a shirtless muscleman painted on a sign outside the café) >and make your way through a veritable smorgasbord of European breakfast foods. >Try the apple pie, Rösti, liver pate, pumpernickel bread and for the main >course >check out the beef goulashes with pasta and smoked fish. Along the Baga River >, >Arpora-Baga; tel. +91 832 2279843 +91 832 2279843 > > >16. Lobster at i-95, Calangute >For Goa’s chic, i95 is perfect. Hosts Tina Dehal, Sunil Singh and chef Sumera >Bhalla met on the Royal Carribean Cruise, from where their common love for >great >food and personalised service led them to the shores of Goa . A bookings-only >place, the open air, moonlight lit restaurant is rustic in its red stone, >waist >high mud wall partitions and bamboo covering. Dinner comes discreetly, the >hosts >without being intrusive constantly check in on diners and I revelled in the >modish, well-heeled crowds that trickled in. The cuisine is amalgamated from >all >over the world, and the grilled meats have a smoky taste enhanced by lava >stones. The tangy beef carpaccio melts in your mouth, while the lobster is >spiced simply with salt and pepper, and the grilled tuna and cilantro risotto >are also delicious. They also have some of the best house wines. Castello >Vermelho, behind the Art chamber, 1/115A Gauravado, Near Kamats Holiday Homes, >Calangute; tel. +91 832 2275213 +91 832 2275213 , 9881301184, 9823128567 > > > Eat: Salads, juices and spinach lasagne at Pink Orange in Ashwem. >17. Prawn curry and crab xacuti at Souza Lobo, Calangute >Souza Lobo is a Goa institution with spicy coastal food to satiate both a >local >and traveler’s desire for authenticity. Patrons have been coming here for >generations, to this long restaurant with glorified dhaba interiors, plastic >chairs, cheap table cloths and faux garden scenes painted on faux windows. The >one obviously aesthetically pleasing bit is its sea-facing seating area. After >the mandatory long wait be prepared to scarf down some subliminal prawn curry, >fried fish, Goan sausages and crab xacuti. We’ve heard the occasional >complaint >that the turnover causes them to have to re-heat already prepared dishes, and >the blips of the microwave that occasionally filter above the dining chatter >should act as a warning for the fussy. But the quality, as far as we could >tell, >was as good as ever. Calangute beach, tel. +91 832 228 1234 +91 832 228 1234 >18. Burgers at Travel Bar, Calangute >Travel Bar’s innocuous name suits its innocuous front façade. Driving past >you’d >be forgiven for assuming that the long bench outside a door and window simply >opens into someone’s house. It’s a nice surprise to walk through the frugal >chapel like reception which is actually a travel desk and emerge into a fully >fledged restaurant. Hosts Vinay and Angelique are as eager to discuss the >seasoning of your fish as they are to help you plan your next road trip to >Hampi. The hosts wanted an atmosphere of travel story telling, that is if the >average Indian traveller does decide to get off his high bar stool and mingle. >A >big plus is that it’s also open in the off-season. Opposite Tarkar Ice >Factory, >Calangute, Bardez; +919845400223 +919845400223 , +919850471639 >+919850471639 >19. Prawn and crab curry at Brittos, Calangute >Eating at Brittos, especially during peak season means having to navigate the >muck that is Baga -- the crowds, the dirty beach, smells of a brackish >seaside, >traffic jams and if you’re a woman lots of groping hands. But for the >institution that is Brittos we’ve braved all that and more, time and again, >just >for the extremely spicy crab and prawn curries. Set up in 1965 by owner-chef >Cajie, Brittos is the oldest restaurant in Goa and is now run by his son >Cajeten. Its very basic feel has been spruced up over the years and now has >elements of a resto-bar type shack. The best seats in the house are still the >sea facing ones, and the pork vindaloo is almost as much a reason to come here >as the prawn curry. For the weak hearted, you can choose the coconut milk >based >prawn curry, or dry your tears after the spicy dishes with a strangely >out-of-place sounding Alpine chocolate mousse. >20. Pizzas at Fiesta, Calangute >Sitting on a sand dune, Fiesta has been touted as the most romantic restaurant >and by some, one of the best in India . Just opposite the once very happening >Club Titos, we do give Fiesta full marks for its amorous Portuguese inspired >décor. The expansive foliage covered restaurant has seating arrangements all >different from one another, intersected by gravel pathways or coloured clay >flooring that merge into either mud benches or those seemingly carved into >singe >tree trunks all subtly overlooking the Arabian sea. It attracts a clearly >well-heeled crowd, not just from its haute décor, but also because of its >steep >prices. Mediterranean cuisine includes some excellent salads, delicious thin >crust pizzas, parma ham and fungi and a wide selection of meat and sea food >platters. 7/35, Sauntavado, Calangute; tel. +91 832 2281440 +91 832 2281440 >21. Finger foods at Infantaria, Calangute >Not really the haunt of the young, upwardly mobile tourist or the hectic rave >scheduled hippy, Infantaria is the one-stop-shop for the locals and older >hippies. Sans the Goa vibe or the beach, locals come here for breakfast and >post >work meals. A wide gamut of food hunger pangs can be satiated here, with a >menu >that starts at an excellent breakfast of juice, scrambled eggs (in butter) and >meats to breads (that are more than full dishes), chicken in European sauces, >excellent pastas and even a delicious selection of local dishes, like the >seafood curies. The service leaves much to be desired but that’s typical in >Goa >, it’s the yummy foods and dessert counter that bring the regulars back time >and >again. Old school music and a mostly day menu, makes this place a landmark >food >pit stop. Umta Vado, Calangute Junction, Calangute; tel. +91 8323291290 >+91 8323291290 > > >Eat: Himalayan Trout at A Reverie in Calangute. >22. Japanese style tuna with sesame at A Reverie, Calangute >As fine dining gets increasingly reinvented in laid back Goa , A Reverie puts >a >new twist on holiday dining. A Reverie’s unexpected décor is slightly >decadent. >Huge pillars support the lounge and dining areas. Both are individually >covered >to give you the option of sitting inside under chandeliers or al fresco, with >unusual chairs, plush sofas, weird lamps and even disco balls -- all, somehow, >creating a hauntingly beautiful ambience. Run by a young couple Aakritee and >Virendra, food is an eclectic mix of international cuisines from local >ingredients with a smattering of global spices. French smoked duck, mushroom >cappuccino soup, prawns in Wasabi and Himalayan Trout are some of the >delicious >main course suggestions, while the desserts range from a spicy berry sorbet to >chocolate mousse. Jazz sessions warm up the weekends. Next to Hotel Goan >Heritage, Holiday Street, Calangute; tel. +91 9823174927 +91 9823174927 >23. Goan sausages at Mom’s Kitchen, Panjim >The team at Mom’s Kitchen have a cause. Ronzy and Suzette Martin are dedicated >to reviving the cuisine of Goa lost to fusion bastardisation. Walking into >Mom’s >Kitchen the décor actually recreates the feeling of sitting in someone’s >house. >The walls are like a Goan kitchen and the tables are topped with local tiles. >Amongst their local fare their prawn hoonam is exactly what you would get in >local Goan homes and the delcious harem mas is similar to what you’d get in >Catholic Goan homes, but the marinated Goan sausages are legendary. What makes >Suzette’s Goan food different is her absolute obsession with keeping spices >and >recipes authentic, sourced as they are from mothers’ cook books across the >state. Of course if you aren’t feeling the local vibe, their regalo di mare >(prawns and squid in a tomato vinaigrette dressing served) and crespelle con >gamberi (crepes stuffed with seafood) are pretty delectable too. 854, Martins >Building , DB Street , Panjim-Miramar; tel. +91 9822175559 +91 9822175559 >24. Chicken Xacuti at Hotel Venite, Panjim >The centre of Goa ’s commercial capital Panjim, in the hustle and bustle of >traders, government officials and office goers, Hotel Venite looks into the >street from quaint Portuguese style balconies. From these wooden sit outs you >can watch passers by and take in the colourfully roofed buildings. A versatile >menu ranges from pepper steak to fish Portuguese, fried fish with spicy, >home-made chips, the fish balchao (fish in coconut and feni, the local brew) >to >chicken xacuti (chicken with roasted spices). Aside from their local cuisine, >even their global dishes have a touch of local Goan spice. Hotel Venite, 31st >January Road, Sao Tome ; tel. +91 832 2426637 +91 832 2426637 >25. Pork Ribs at Ernesto's, Panjim Under the heritage protected zone in old >Panjim, the 400 year-old houses that make up this neighbourhood make you feel >like you’re part of a Gabriel Garcia Marquez novel. And amongst the red tiled, >wide courtyard and pristine white facade is the house inside which Ernestos >Alavres runs his bistro. Ernesto’s menu has an interesting array of >international dishes, made famous by his barbeque skills. There are even some >Brazilian dishes here. You can choose to sit inside or al fresco on Vietnamese >garden furniture courtesy of an Italian lady who sells her furniture under the >same roof -- all Euclyptus wood and wrought iron. The laidback, non-commercial >atmosphere allows you a genuine foodie experience as you start off with their >batter fried squid or fusion oriental prawns with Thai chillies and tempura >vegetables. Main courses can flow into pork ribs and steaks, while to-die-for >desserts include the caramelised banana with rum and apple juice reduction >with >pannacotta on the side. House No. 49, Mala, Fontainhas, Panjim; >+91 9823015921 >+91 9823015921 > > _/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/ _/ _/ tambdimati: the Goa review is a community blog of original _/ art, writing, music, news and commentary from and about the _/ smallest state in the subcontinent. check out the newest _/ member of the Goanet family daily at _/ http://www.tambdimati.com. _/ _/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/
