Oh Gosht! Try 7-Course Thaals & Yum Biryani At This Bohra Restaurant

Thaal, an outdoor restaurant in Reis Magos' got Bohra food cooked and served in a homely fashion. The idea of the place is to remind people of the way Bohra meals are supposed to be had — together with the family, from a gigantic thaali.

Rumana, the woman behind Thaal, ran Eden in Calangute and Candolim for years but the plan was to have a cafe overlooking the river and serve food that came naturally to her. So, it had to be Bohra cuisine with lots of mutton khichda, bohri cutlets, gosht, raan and moong dal samosas. She’s grown up eating these delicacies at home and knows that the devil is in the details (read in the homemade ghee and the way the whole spices are ground). And this focus on going back to age-old recipes makes each dish on the table have a distinct flavour.

On the evening we visited, we were treated to live retro music along with a selection of authentic food. We tried the chana batata salad which was a yummy medley of sweet and sour chutneys and Bohra cutlets that were soft and delectable. If you’re a vegetarian, get yourself the gulab jamun ki sabzi with parathas, we say. Another valuable pick: Naram dil ke kebab which is now our regular order. 

The meat eater devoured mutton nihari that he confirmed was a wonderful marriage of tender meat in a delicately spiced gravy. Oh, and the accompanying laccha paratha sealed the love affair with the cuisine for both the vegetarian and the carnivore. After a hearty meal, the sheer khurma (vermicelli and dry fruits in sweet milk) was just the sweet ending we needed. 

The menu's also got roghan josh (quite the star here), Bohra dum biryani, masoor pulao sarki, kokum ke alloo and other intriguing dishes that you wouldn't find everywhere. So, if you're all about experimentation and big, lovingly served portions, you've got to head here. To wash all this heavy duty gluttony down, order their signature cocktails without a doubt. 

The Thaal folks deliver within a 4km radius but will go up to a 10-12km distance for an additional delivery charge of INR 250. 

By the way, if you really want to enjoy the best of the restaurant, you'd better try the 7 or 8 course veg and non-veg thaal that's priced at INR 600 onwards per person respectively. And, for this, you have to be seated inside, on the floor, surrounded by fluffy cushions and an unmistakable Bohra household vibe.