How often do you find a restaurant that shares the same compound as a research centre? Well, count on Goa to celebrate the most unconventional set-ups and this time, we witnessed some real food geekery at Edible Archives in Anjuna.
A restaurant that carries a beautiful raw energy, this one works with only indigenous varieties of rice, and if you’re confused about what that entails, chef Anumitra will gladly tell you. The chef's journey in the kitchen has traversed different nations and thanks to her experiences, you’ll see that the menu defies the boundaries of a particular cuisine to bring in influences from Japanese, Bengali, Goan, Thai and Northeastern food. What else can you expect from a chef who’s worked in kitchens as varied as Big Bongg Theory, with Ritu Dalmia at Diva and creating heirloom rice dishes at Kochi Biennale?
In the midst of all this seasonal, experimental menu, they also switch up their Chaat Of The Day and From The Lab (just a section to showcase everything the chef is creating at that moment) every other day. We went with Anumitra's recommendations and got a Grilled Beef Salad with Pineapple and Sprouts and Aran-cini with Kuler Achar. The beef was a chunky, grilled, generous portion with a drizzle of chili, garlic and lemon dressing while the Aran-cini was a crunchy beetroot nugget with our favourite chutney. Both ace starters we wholeheartedly recommend. We followed this with Prawn & Pork Rolled rice (they also do a veg pumpkin version) and Korean Egg with Rice. The egg rice was subtle and satisfying while the deconstructed sushi was quite a memorable addition to the carnivore’s dinner table.
In between petting a really friendly pup and polishing off our big and small plates, we were torn between ordering a Serradura and Black Rice Pudding for dessert. Eventually we decided to go with the latter and boy, it was pure love with berries and chocolatey Burma rice.
We could try and decode the menu but we weren't sure that we'd do it justice or could explain what makes the strangest freshest ingredients just work together. A few things we're keen on trying next though include Choriz and Chocolate Bruschetta, Root Vegetables with Poi, and Baked Cauliflower with Goji Berries. Rest, you're going to have to let your taste buds find out for themselves.
