If there ever was a
culinary tsunami and a churning which pushed
the best of Goa’s chefs and restaurants in one direction and keep them
there, each doing their own thing and putting food on plate for which you
either need to take a plane out of the country or pay serious money to fly in,
the news is that it has indeed happened.
The tectonic shift
towards the northern fringes of Goa, of food, foodies and the fanatic chefs,
most of them from abroad, and each eccentric
and completely in charge is worth sampling. And after the travel and the
time, not to mention money spent, two things are and will be consistent. a)
What comes on your plates is as good or even better than most places east or
west of the Suez canal. (The Chapora river doesn’t even count) and b) The
characters who make these places are in charge. They rule and let you know so
quite clearly.
If that’s sorted,
let’s travel to a Goa which, as it changes still stands in time. The ugly 2016
does give way to patches of 1960, for which most of us came to Goa for, and
Gome Galily the world travelled Israeli chef is spot in the middle of that 1960
patch.
When he is in Goa,
Gome parties and cooks. When he is not, you’ll find him in Monaco- yes Monaco,
cooking for the world’s most high heeled in their mansions and elsewhere. Among
his other pit-stops were at Bangkok’s Nahm, the world’s 22nd ranked restaurant
by The world’s 50 best restaurants” where Gome was coached by David Thompson,
an Australian in Bangkok, who has been recognized by the Thais as the best Thai
chef in the world.
In Goa, Gome is found
four kilometers inland of Arambol and runs his “restaurant” at the Samta
Holistic Center surrounded by paddy fields and trees. And no you can’t walk
into his restaurant and order. Actually you can’t even order. All you are
allowed to do is to call him half a day in advance and tell him you wish to
dine at his place and pick between a four course and seven course meal. Gome
Galily, then goes to the local market to buy fresh veggies, fish and meat. He
has a regular source of exotic vegetables coming in as well, all of which goes
into making caviar and mussels, red snapper ceviche with yuzu ( a cool fish
with yuzu dressing), beef tataki a fully Japanese influenced preparation with
the meat marinated and sliced like
sashimi and served with a citrus and soy sauce. But Gome adds a twist at times
with Jerusalem artichokes. If he’s in the mood he might serve you his pickled
zucchini and goat cheese mousse and mushroom ragout. When he’s not here he
could be at any of the party hotspots, singing dancing and playing music.
In the same zone, the
much loved son of actor Jalal Agha, Chris Saleem Agha Bee has reinvented and
kicked off another one of his speciality restaurants after a not to happy experience running a fine dining place
at Fontainhas. With Chris, the steaks will always be perfect, the fish fresh
and the ambience and the laughter flowing.
Moving away from the
big names, the mavericks and the heavy duty Chefs who wear their greatness on
their sleeves, Deee Kaffee right next to Café Lilliput in Anjuna is getting an
identity of its own. And while its limited but great mix of quick to eat stuff
is impressive, the chicken curry with crisp dosa is a first anywhere in the
world, we reckon. No this is not chicken dosa. This is chicken curry which is
served with dosa on the side and if this sounds like an inter cultural
marriage, it has all the flavour and the sauciness of such pairings.
Amidst these gems, is
another little one, the Burger Factory which without any argument, is the Novak
Djokovic of burger joints in Goa. The buns hold, the patty is fresh flavoured
meat and it makes no effort to get into this pseudo vegetarian mode for vegans.
If you want a burger, eat meat and that’s the bottom line.
And yet, for two
Sundays in a row, your’s truly and friends drifted to the new Baba Au Rhum, in the back lanes of
Anjuna overlooking an expanse of verdant green surrounded by the soon to be
threatened coconut trees. Baba is a perfect antidote after a night out. The
perfect morning pill is a walnut salad with parmesan before you graduate to the
spicy chorizo pizzas and beef burgers. It’s out in the open with fresh air and
the fields, with someone strumming the guitar and the aroma of freshness
wafting from the kitchen interrupted only by fresh coffee brewing.
Who needs tourism
consultants with such characters and their places and what they create.
