An Unforgettable Meal at The La Plage, Goa

Some meals you never forget. There are many factors to that- 

- the process of getting to the meal

- the company

- the meal itself

I think each of the above factors played into making my dinner with Mr. Fox at the La Plage, Goa the most memorable meal of this year and I can safely say of last year as well. The La Plage came recommended by a couple of friends as a must go. Since it was supposedly only a 30 min walk from our hotel, we decided to walk along the beach and work up an appetite for dinner. Little did we know that the beach walk was not as simple as it seemed. What started out as a romantic, virgin sand, beachy walk soon got interrupted with fresh water lagoons that seemed too deep to wade through. At one point we were almost waist deep in water (not very romantic but still fun).  We worked our way to the road and what seemed like a never ending trek we finally arrived at our destination - The La Plage. It is located by the water next to the Amarya Shamiana on the gorgeous Ashwem Beach of North Goa. We were both exhausted but hungry. 

It also was a dry day in Goa because of the elections. So no wino for us. We went through the menu and ordered the calamari in cream sauce. My friend Anjalika sent me a message recommending the chicken pate. I have my reservations with pate. If done wrong it has a bile inducing effect. I did not want to throw up in front of Mr. Fox. But we ordered it anyways. This pate luckily was the most delicious creamy paste served with a sweet and tangy onion jam. It came with a basket of breads to spread on and play with. We were both delighted. 

For the main course we ordered a tuna steak- rare with wasabi potatoes and a serving a tangy squash and the special of the day- a jumbo prawn carpaccio with a generous drizzle of olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Both dishes were beautiful. I really enjoyed the sesame encrusted rare tuna steak and Mr. Fox the prawns.

For dessert we ordered the Chocolate Thali another recommendation from Anjalika. This was a surprise and slightly overwhelming. Served in a traditional Gujarati Thali format - each bowl was filled with a chocolate preparation. Chocolate mousse, chocolate ice cream, molten chocolate cake, a chocolate ganache pie, strawberries with chocolate, nuts with chocolate, almonds with chocolate, a chocolate drink with whipped cream. This variety was quite astounding. There was also a bowl of vanilla custard to interrupt the chocolatey flavours. We were in chocolate heaven.

Such gastronomically delightful food was also accompanied with super conversation. I am clearly quite smitten. It was also quite a turn on watching Mr. Fox enjoy his meal. There is so much you learn about a person over a meal. Such mirth hanging out and letting loose with a fellow food lover.

 

The gorgeous beach that we stayed at- Mandrem. We walked along it for at least 2kms in the night till we hit the deep lagoons. 

The lessons learned:

1. Walking on the beach at night though romantic is not always a good idea

2. The correct way of holding the fork- ask Mr. Fox

3. Goa has some of the best cuisine in the country

4. Always stay on the main road

5. Always walk facing traffic

6. Military walk vs a gaiety stroll when on a mission.

Clearly it was a fun night - Mr. Fox made a super date.