Blog 13, N&N - Gripping Goa – 22nd to 25thJan 2023

Jan 31, 2023
8 min read

Updated: Feb 2, 2023

Goa is a place, which every Indian plan to visit once in their lifetime. Namrata’s first-ever personal solo trip was to south Goa in Betalbatim way back in 2018. Nitin himself had been there a dozen times from work, mostly towards Panji. Exactly 5 years later, N&N planned a Goa trip as a couple again to south Goa, it being less crowded and more serene compared to north Goa. They chose Fairfield by Marriott at Benaulim as their perfect destination, which is closer to Benaulim beach as well.

On Sunday 22ndJan23 morning 7.30AM, they landed at Dabolim airport and headed towards the hotel, which was around 25KM distance from the south of it. Closer to the airport is the prestigious BITs college, which brought back memories for Nitin, he being studied at BITS, Pilani. There is no online cab booking in Goa, unlike other cities, so they hired a govt regulated prepaid taxi and enjoyed the view, covered with greenery and narrow beautiful roads. Exactly after 45mins, they were at the hotel reception, where the staff warmly received them serving Kokum drink. Kokum/aamsol/aamsul is the dried fleshy skin of Garcinia indica whose anthocyanin pigments provide a deep purple-pink color. Kokum Sharbat is a summer coolant and is a popular Goan beverage, which helps in digestion and improving appetite too.

After having breakfast, they took a quick stroll towards nearby Benaulim beach which was only 200mtrs away. Returning from there, both decided to get inside the vast swimming pool on that sunny day. They both played water volleyball like two teenagers. At 3PM, there was a cute ice cream cart inside the hotel lawn opened up for ice cream, which they devoured while skipping lunch. That day being Sunday, a pottery session was organized at 5PM and the couple tried their hands at it. After one day of frying in the sun, the pots were packed to be taken back to their home. Starting 5.30PM till 7.30PM, was Namrata’s favorite time of evening lounge service for elite guests; which the hotel arranged inside the bar section of the main restaurant. The staff was welcoming and they brought in both vegetarian and fish dishes of the day. There was a rotating menu for the week, curated by the head chef consisting of 2 veg and 2 non-veg starters daily. Namrata thoroughly enjoyed the local Goan delicacy of rava fried fish, while Nitin was giving company for the vegetarian starters. They both tried a few mocktails with local kokum syrup, which were quite tasty. Both being light eaters, the dinner was skipped after eating much starter and drinks. They took a short walk, in front of the hotel and ended the first day of their trip listening to live music near the swimming pool till 10PM.

Monday started as beautiful as the first day for N&N. Nitin headed to the yoga lawn close to their suite, for his routine morning meditation. They both enjoyed breakfast at the open space of the restaurant, where Namrata tried a Ros omelet with the local Goan bread/pav. Her palette being flexible to try other cuisine and local food, wherever they travel; was enjoying the gravy made from coconut milk and curry leaves. After resting for a few hours, they headed to the beach for a bath. Benaulim beach is clean, serene and has water sports and many food shacks. There were quite a few tourists, but still, the beach felt so much better than north Goa beaches. The couple jumped into the waves and spent the entire noon hour in the sun and sea. Returning from there, they both ensured to have a glass of kokum juice available all the time in the reception area. This became a ritual for them during the stay, to have the amazing kokum juice throughout the day, rather than having any packaged drinks or soda etc. The afternoon time was spent lying on the lounger near the swimming pool area, listening to Goan music and watching other people and children enjoying themselves in the pool. The evening lounge was equally good that day and they also spoke to the restaurant manager and the staff there. The staff prepared Solkadhi, especially for Nitin; which is a spiced beverage made from kokum juice and coconut milk. At the night, N&N visited a nearby local bakery called “Hari’s German bakery”; where Nitin had a caramel cappuccino and veg puff. Even the basic local eateries in Goa are expensive, however, the local vibe and ambiance are something to experience for. N&N explored the nearby area within a km or so radius on foot, before returning to the hotel for a peaceful night’s sleep.

Tuesday started with the usual meditation for Nitin, followed by breakfast having exceptionally fresh juices from locally produced fruits like pineapple, watermelon, and sweet lime. After a bit of rest and noon hour sea bath, they decided to have lunch and started on foot to explore the nearby eateries. Initially, they had planned to visit the famous Ritz classic restaurant and visit around Madgaon market, which was later dropped. Around 1.5km from the hotel, towards the Benaulim bus stop; they entered a restaurant called “Vicksunn food point”, which sold authentic simple Goan lunch thali. Namrata had fish thali with rice, mackerel rava fry, seafood curry with coconut milk, etc. Nitin had the vegetarian thali with 2 dry vegetable preparation, rice, roti, raita and so. The owners were found to be from Namrata’s home state Odisha, who had recently taken over the restaurant. On the way back, they bought some local kokum and cashew nuts. Nitin had a scoop of Baskin Robbin’s ice cream from the cart that afternoon and N&N also explored the hotel library and indoor games zone. They met an NRI couple visiting from Singapore, who was coincidentally returning to Bangalore on the same flight as N&N.

That evening in the lounge, Namrata had Chicken cafreal and Goan chicken cutlet. Later, they both walked along the Benaulim beach towards trinity beach, where Taj resorts Goa is situated. The night view of the beach was stellar and the waves were pushed much behind providing a wide walking path. The beach was completely isolated with the lights from the shacks illuminating the area a bit.

Wednesday was the last day of their trip. Hence N&N had a hearty breakfast, and some sandwiches, muffins, fruits were packed for lunch as well. After a quick walk on the beach, they packed the suitcases and headed back to the airport by noon. A fulfilling trip together energized their minds and body.

Goan cuisine consists of Rice, seafood, coconut, vegetables, meat, bread, pork, kokum, and vinegar. Goan food is considered incomplete without fish. The cuisine of the Goan people is mostly seafood-based; the staple foods are rice and fish. Kingfish is one of the most commonly eaten varieties of fish. Other fish varieties include pomfret, shark, tuna, sardines, and mackerel. Among the shellfish are crabs, prawns, tiger prawns, lobster, squid, and mussels. It also includes vegetables, such as lentils, pumpkins, gourds, bamboo shoots, and roots. The medium of cooking is mainly coconut oil. Goan Catholic cuisine in Goa is a fusion of Goan Hindu and Portuguese cooking styles. Vinegar (made from the toddy of local coconut trees) is used to give a zingy taste to the meat dishes.

Popular Goan savory dishes include:

Cafreal – Cafreal was introduced into the Goan cuisine by the Portuguese and the African soldiers serving under the Portuguese. "À Cafreal" means "in the way of the Cafres" and cafre was the designation of the inhabitants of Cafraria, the region of Southern Africa. The generic preparation for chicken cafreal involves marinating the chicken in a thick paste of green chilies, fresh coriander leaves, onion, garlic, ginger, Indian spices, lime juice/vinegar, and then shallow fried.

Ambot tik – A spicy and sour curry prepared mainly with oily fish like shark. 'Ambot' means sour and 'tik' means spicy

Balchão – A curry made with prawns/shrimp

Vindalho – A spicy curry traditionally made with pork. The name is derived from the Portuguese term for a garlic and wine (vinho e alho or vinha d'alhos) marinade. Contrary to popular versions made outside Goa, a traditional vindalho does not contain any meat besides pork. It also does not contain any potatoes nor is its name related to aloo.

Xacuti – A type of curry made with roasted grated coconut and pieces of chicken or lamb

Caldine - The Goan Caldeen is a yellow-coloured mildly spiced coconut milk-based curry/ stew usually made with fish or seafood.

Xec Xec - Crab Xec Xec is a very fragrant and scrumptious Goan crab curry. Crabs are cooked in roasted spices and coconut paste-based curry.

Sorpotel – A very spicy pork dish eaten with sannas or pão (Goan bread – spelled the same way as in Portugal). 'Soro' is a Konkani word that translates to alcohol or liquor.

Fish Recheado - 'Recheado' means 'stuffed' in Portuguese. Another Portuguese influenced dish, this dish consists of pomfret stuffed with tangy masala and onions

Ros omelette – An omelette drowned in spicy chicken or chickpea gravy and served with pão (Portuguese-Goan bread)

Goan Khatkhate - Is a Goan vegetable stew. Toor dal and Channa dal are mixed with various vegetables like carrots, potatoes, green beans and drumsticks.

Sorak - Sorak is a simple vegetarian curry made especially during the monsoon season in Goa. Curry consists of spicy masala with onions and tomatoes.

Some of the well-known Goan sweet dishes:

Bebinca – A multi-layered baked pudding traditionally eaten at Christmas. Considering it has just four ingredients that include egg, coconut milk, flour and egg, it is certainly not a piece of cake to prepare a multi-layered Bebinca. Traditionally, it has seven layers and is served with vanilla ice cream, which makes for a delectable combination. Namrata had once prepared this.

Kidiyo or Kulkuls - These cute, crunchy, and sugar-glazed curly delights are fun to savor. Kulkuls are golden brown, buttery sweets that can satiate your craving for something savory yet sweet.

Kokad or Cocada - Goan desserts have a slight touch of coconut in them. One of them is Kokad or Cocada, which is a cookie cum barfi-like dessert made using coconut with hints of vanilla essence. It tastes heavenly when dipped in a bowl full of hot chocolate.

Perad - Also known as guava cheese. This dessert has a nice brown hue and is made from guavas and is unimaginably soft.

Patoleo - Is a unique, soft, aromatic, and steamed sweet made by spreading rice paste over turmeric leaf and stuffed with jaggery, cinnamon, and freshly grated coconut.

Nevri - Also known as Karanji, Nevri is a popular dish prepared in Goa, especially during Diwali and Ganesh Chaturthi. These are sweet dumplings made of Maida and further stuffed with coconut, sugar, poppy seeds, cardamom and almonds.

Bolo De Rulao - Is a coconut and semolina (sooji) cake which is also called Bolo De Batica. 'Bolo' is a Portuguese word that translates to cake.

Channa Doss - Doce is a Goan sweet that requires Bengal gram dal or channa dal, scraped coconut, sugar, and cardamom. However, it requires a lot of patience and a tremendous amount of stirring.

Fairfield by Marriot Benaulim, a perfect destination in South Goa