Fish Thalis To A La Carte: 9 Restaurants That Do Goan Food Like A Boss

Set inside a Goan-Portuguese bungalow, Bombil, rightly named after one of the fishes they rawa fry best. It just melts in your mouth. Bombil allows you to immerse yourself in the authentic Goan meal, with the ambience setting the mood right for the experience. Flavourful and homely, the food here is definitely worth celebrating. Visit for the fish thali, curry of the day with rice, prawns rawa fry, sausage pulao, mussels rawa fry and fresh urrak.

Ritz Classic is a paradise for seafood lovers, and the fish thali is discussed fondly all over the country. Located in the heart of Panjim, this restaurant is always packed. We suggest you try their rice and fish curry, crab masala, fish thali, butter-garlic calamari, and if you want a bit of everything, their fresh seafood thali is one of the best we’ve had. The Signature Ritz Classic Thali includes four different preparations of seafood—along with fish curry rice! They also have an outlet in Porvorim in Mall De Goa that's pretty popular.

If you haven’t guessed already, it’s an obvious favourite because alcohol is always cheap and free-flowing here! Visit to celebrate drunken shenanigans with urrak and feni to keep you company. But the Goan fare here is definitely worth trying too. A simple restaurant that serves home-style meals made by recipes passed on by generations, Mafia Cocktail is a popular hangout spot for locals who enjoy their seafood. The pork sorpotel and sannas come recommended, and we suggest you also order the chicken xacuti and prawn curry rice. End the meal with a caramel custard.

The Fisherman’s Wharf is one of the must-try restaurants in Goa and thankfully has outlets in both North and South Goa. With its rustic charm, warm service and live music, it’s not surprising that it’s one of the most popular restaurants in the state. Get yourself king prawn recheado (they even do a potato version for the vegetarians), pomfret in butter garlic sauce, chicken cafreal, chorizo pao or our all-time favourite—a hot bowl of prawn curry rice.

Edward’s Yard is where locals like to bond with their loved ones over local comfort food. Goan food served at this restaurant makes for the perfect end to the road trip through sleepy village roads in North Goa. Head here to relish fresh catch of the day, and of course, Goan food. Try their mussels, crabs and fish, and even the chonak. The chonak recheado in fact is one of our favourites here. The prawn dynamix, chicken xacuti and rawa mackerel cannot be missed either. For vegetarians, there is bhindi aamchuri and Sri Lankan curry. Did we tell you it also does the best Chili Cheese Garlic naans?

Bhatti Village is another local secret, and a true blue Goan restaurant located in a Goan home in Nerul. Loyalists call this the seafood lover’s dream come true; this family-run restaurant has patrons who swear by the fresh seafood preparations. This is one of the few places in Goa that even serves ox tongue! We recommend ordering the homemade feni, white bait fry, prawn curry, tisryo masala, chonak recheado, clams masala and beef fry, to name just a few!

This award-winning restaurant has been around in Goa for over two decades now and is one of the most popular restaurants that serve Goan food. Loyalists swear by the fresh seafood preparations, and the food at this up-market Goan restaurant is enjoyed by locals as well as tourists. The vindaloo, xacuti and recheado masalas make for perfect meals at any time of the day. Try their butter garlic calamari, Goan sausage and raw fried fish too! And don’t forget the king crab preparations—even Sachin Tendulkar is a fan!

Anand Seafood Restaurant is a humble establishment who's home-style Goan food is a hit. Anand gives you the chance to choose from a wide array of local catch, and you can also devour some of the freshest fish fries in town. Try their fish thali, lepo fish and mackerel recheado. The veg xacuti and chicken cafreal are amongst the bestsellers. We also recommend the prawns rawa fry and the kingfish curry.

Chef Peter’s Kitchen is a hidden gem in Goa, a restaurant that serves authentic, home-style Goan/Portuguese food. This restaurant is in charge of bringing some traditional, forgotten recipes to life, so if you really want to go local, speak to the chef and try out his suggestions. The chef here has been given the ‘best chef of India’ award by the Department of Tourism in the non-hotel category, so you know you can expect some of the best Goan food to be served! Try their chicken cafreal, prawn curry, pork vindaloo with sannas, potato recheado and veg xacuti with poi. End this lavish spread with caramel custard and serradura.