Edible Archives — Restaurant in Goa

Ambience was good - simple but elegant. The staff were prompt and courteous. We had booked a 4 course curated lunch - they gave us a glass of white wine followed by a tomato salad, appetizers, an entree and dessert.

The food was average, the flavors weren't outstanding.

The tomato salad was nice, but it felt basic, like something you'd put together for a chaat snack but with a few sesame seeds and fried garlic chunks thrown in. It actually had onions and peanuts, and reminded me of the chakna platter we get in shacks - if that was the intent, it really didn't match my expectations from a fine-dining, curated experience.

The appetizers were only slightly better, 3 of the 5 items were fried, which masked the actual flavors quite a lot. The other items were interesting but seemed strange - we had a chicken and a fish kebab, which were decent and then had some kind of chilly chicken on a bamboo skewer, with some julienned carrots in a fennel-based dip. I could not see how these were a good combination of flavors, it made no sense to pair these together and the food didn't taste extraordinary. Putting kebabs, fried corn and chilly chicken on a plate doesn't make it "fusion cuisine". If that's the case, please give me my Michelin stars cos I'm a culinary genius too.

The main entree was bad. The veg option got a skilfully done pan-fried eggplant slice but I guess they forgot the salt (so it looked good but tasted bland) and it was served with dry rice with no gravy on the side. The non-veg entree was chicken cafreal, which had a flavorful gravy but the chicken was overcooked and chewy - so much that most of us could not finish the pieces we were served. Seeing this common Goan dish on our "curated and elevated" menu was already disappointing enough - they went ahead and botched the execution too. I expected something more authentic and connected to Goa's rich culinary heritage. It felt as if someone went to Delhi and was served mediocre butter chicken. If this is what they're storing in their edible archive, I guess it's time for a little spring cleaning.

The only saving grace (and the reason this isn't a two-star review) was the dessert. We were served serradura and it was amazing! The right texture and sweetness, presented in unique little glass jars at the right temperature.

Overall, this experience was underwhelming and honestly wasn't worth the time, effort and money.

I really wish someone had come over to our table to talk through the courses and the flavors. Maybe give us a little insight into why these combinations were selected for us. After all, they did inform us that they had specifically curated a menu for us and had started the preparation a couple of days in advance. If someone had given us a few tasting notes or even a little layout of the "culinary journey" they had in mind for our menu, that would've helped a little - I felt like I watched a movie but I missed the first 15 minutes, so a lot of things were just not...

Having known Chef A since one November afternoon where I went for a birthday meal to her small restaurant at Hauz Khas Village, aptly named the Big Bongg Theory, I was super excited when Edible Archives decided to open its doors in Goa. I remember discussions from the past where Goa was contemplated upon as a possible restaurant locale. Having partaken of Chef A’s delicacies, and having moved recently to Madras, I took the earliest possible opportunity to book flight tickets to Goa! And, I landed up on the day of the opening.

Let’s start with the ambience. It’s all white and green, and you feel like lounging around and relaxing with friends and family over food, drinks and conversation. The atmosphere is such that you find yourself smiling at the other guests around and eavesdropping into several lively and animated conversations. The servers are extremely professional and a sight to behold with ready smiles and a warm demeanour. They will help readily with the menu, even offering to let you speak with the chef. And they are happy to make adjustments to the menu to suit various dietary requirements as well.

The food, ah, the food! If the photos are any evidence, you’d know that I am a huge fan of the food they serve. The pork with dill is my absolute favourite, and I’ve been known to order multiple servings, any time of the day! The meat is well done and includes the fatty portions that I love! The simple combination with rice fills up the belly and the soul. The butter garlic prawns are a delight - I strongly recommend it to anyone who loves prawns. Another strong contender for food heaven is the grilled beef salad with pineapple and sprouts. The other dish that was a very pleasant surprise is the Shanxi style brinjal and long bean stir fry - a must try if and when you visit. One must also try the pumpkin and kokum pulled rice and the prawn and pork pulled rice. You myst also try the mustard coconut prawns with sannas! Finger licking delicious! And, you cannot leave the table without having the serradura!

Long story short - I cannot wait to go back! Good show,...

Last year we visited The Cochin Biennale and came across a pop up restaurant which was part of the biennale. The food there was very good, innovative and unique. So when we heard that the same person opened a new place in Goa we made sure to go there and expose ourself to this unique gastronomic talent and we were not disappointed at all. The space itself is shining in its simplicity and good taste which provided a good canvas to the symphony of flavours, texture and colour which we experienced. We had two starters which we enjoyed very much. One was beetroot arancini with two chutneys and the second was a rice roll with pumpkin and kokum along with red chilli sauce. We really enjoyed these starters. For the main we had green small aubergines and green beans with peanuts and grains in a light tasty soy sauce. This dish was just incredibly tasty. The other main dish was rice topped with a slice of aubergine with spicy gourd, sweet potato and plantain balls and a simple dal. Along with this dish there were also light pickled vegetables which were just beyond amazing. Every item in this dish was so well made and considerate forming an extraordinary composition of texture and flavours. We also had a green leaf salad which was delicately dressed with a crunchy Parmesan disc. That was a tasty side dish. For dessert we had a black rice pudding and a Goan creamy desert which kept us scraping the dish for more. The entire amazing meal was very reasonably priced which only added to the experience. After the meal when we chatted with the two ladies running the place we learned that the restaurant had just opened. They were committed to using local products and training local people. They also had started growing their own vegetables. We were excited to hear that behind this place there is such a strong commitment to quality, freshness and developing strong connections with the local community. We cannot wait for our next visit to Goa to dive again into this...