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Goa on a Plate
Among the world’s first fusion foodS, authentic Goan cuisine is getting harder to find these days.
Thankfully, a handful of restaurants are committed to preserving the cross-cultural flavors of India’s smallest state
Two years ago, I wandered out of my hotel in Panaji, the snail’s-pace capital of Goa, and down 31st January Road into the old Latin quarter of Fontainhas. I passed villas enshrouded by bougainvillea and a procession of Catholic schoolkids skipping home in neat uniforms. A lonely chapel framed an empty alleyway. Then I spotted a sign: an inelegant, fluorescent thing that pointed me down a lane toward the hum of contented chatter. I would follow that sign for each of my four remaining dinners in Panaji. The restaurant it advertised, Viva Panjim, was just that good. I’ve been yearning to return ever since.
I’m back in Goa now, here to spend a week in and around Panaji eating my way through the local cuisine, and Viva Panjim is my first stop. Things haven’t changed a bit. Dressed in a prim brown blouse, the owner, Linda D’Souza, is presiding over her cheery little dining room with proud concern, like a schoolteacher watching her students on the first day of exams. I study her face for a flicker of recognition—two years ago I fawned over her food, took lots of pictures, and swore to return and write about it. She doesn’t seem to remember me, but she’s still an eager host, and promptly ushers me to a corner table.
“So what will you have, young man?” she asks. “How about the chicken cafreal? Oh, it’s very good today. I grind the spices myself every morning, you know.”
“Actually, I was thinking of having some seafood …”
“Of course—excuse me for being so dull!” Linda says, blushing. “Of course you want seafood. It’s Ash Wednesday!”
Story by Jarrett Wrisley Photographs by Christopher Wise
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