Cruz Cardozo is the President of Shack
Owners’ Welfare Society of Goa and the proprietor of Pearl’s Beach Café – a
shack in Cavelossim. But more importantly, he is a happy man. This is because
he enjoys the company of his beloved wife who painstakingly prepares fresh Goan
masala every day – something that is absolutely necessary to maintain the
authenticity of the Goan food that takes shape in the kitchen of their shack.
However, such examples are few and almost rare. Ask the locals and the
unanimous feedback would be that, right from the décor to the ambience, from
the service to the food – as many as 95% of the shacks in Goa do not have
anything Goan about them, except for the mere fact that they are built on Goan
sands.
With changing times, tourism seems to have
knocked Goan food off its deserved position in favour of what’s not even
regional. The possibilities of finding good ‘Rajma-chawal’ are far more than
finding a mean Chicken Cafreal. Traditional recipes still assert their
importance but one will have to try really hard to find places that serve them.
A few contemporary shacks also serve unorthodox fare (which isn’t necessarily
Goan cuisine) but a refreshing change from the usual junk. These places, to a
certain extent, deviate from the regular beach shack format, and, despite going
the non-commercial route, have a strong identity and loyal clientele.
The reasons for this are many. Cardozo
says, “The most prominent factor is the unavailability of Goan staff. Despite
putting out numerous advertisements, it is difficult to get Goan chefs and
waiters. And those few that we get, demand unrealistic remuneration – as high
as Rs 40,000 per month. Therefore, we have to make do with whoever we get.”
However, Dharmesh Saglani, President, All Goa Private Property shack/Huts
Owners’ Association, feels differently. According to Saglani, the number of
shacks that have to rely on non-Goan staff in the kitchen is as low as 35%,
whereas the remaining 65% of the shacks continue to serve authentic Goan food.
Employing elderly women may emerge as a
possible option – the women can bestow their culinary skills to the shack and
this would, in turn, serve as a means of employment for
them – making it a win-win solution for all. But according to industry experts,
this option is far-fetched and impractical. Cardozo says, “Managing a shack is
not an easy task and involves a lot of hardwork. It is impractical to employ
elderly women in the kitchen and ask them to toil from 9 in the morning to
10-11 in the night. The shack has to be open throughout the day, unlike
restaurants that operate on fixed timings. The ground realities are different.”
