Pavilion at the Village Square — Restaurant in Goa

We went for lunch at their restaurant Pavilion. Welcomed at the entrance by Goan musicians and a fantastic view of the sea. The spread was fantastic and more than 130 items in the buffet! Goan, Indian, Asian and Continental with live pasta counters too. It was just not possible to sample all so I stuck to some specialities and wasn't disappointed at all. I started with their fresh made poi and chicken xacuti - never had such a nice poi to be honest. Warm and chewy with the right mix of crustiness outside and soft inside - combined with the superb chicken gravy it tasted heavenly. I had the chicken soup too - forgot the name - the broth was rich and silky on the tongue! Then I shifted to the Indian section - the signature Dal was, as usual and as everywhere, just to die for! Each spoonful was a reflection of the tender love and care with which it was simmered for hours. Not rich in terms of being ghee laden, but rich in terms of texture and flavour. I had the alu Banarasi too - distinctive flavour there. Gravies in fact were all unique. The Sarai Biryani was awesome - so tender and flavourful mutton chunks enclosed in long yet firm grains of rice flavoured in the best of yakhni I am sure - Chef Riju Roy would probably be laughing at my attempts to decode the recipe! The sliced and de seeded green chillies in the biryani gave the occasional punch to tingle your taste buds and find new tastes as you savour some more mouthfuls. I chanced upon the baingan bharta - oh boy! How the humble brinjal had been transformed! Wish I had some additional stomachs to be able to do justice to all the items! From the continental shelf I tried the grilled vegetable sticks - uniform roundels of zucchini pepper tomato and few other vegetables grilled and dipped in a light sauce tasted great - cooked just right with the right bit crunch without being raw. The chicken steak was fabulous too - didn't want to waste food so shared with a friend. Tried some more bits and bobs but the highlights are as above. Next time I will try out what I missed due to capacity problems. The dessert section had a combination of Indian and international selections. For me, the standout dessert was baked yoghurt with apricot sauce (?). Wish I had taken some pictures but that is definitely something that everyone should try. Very close to Bhapa doi and Fresh cottage cheese mix in texture with the hint of sweetness coming from the sauce. It was just too good. I was hoping to get some Goan desserts like Bebinca or Serradurra or even a basic caramel custard but not there - don't want to nit pick though. Post lunch we took a walk around the property. It was coming to evening and nearing sunset - serene greens, tranquil seas, birds returning home, tandoors and grills being stoked for the evening parties at the beach side. What a wonderful atmosphere. Soaking it up a bit, till rudely brought back to reality by our extremely unhappy cab driver who felt that we should be leaving now so we started on the way back. Overall a very well maintained property. Very courteous staff. Welcome party of Goan musicians add to the vibe. Chef Riju and his Indian selection at the buffet along with all the other food selections just rocked. Maybe a bit more of choice in local cuisine would have been nice. Plus not much choice in sea food which was a bit of a surprise considering that it is a beach resort. But like I said, nit picking :-). Looking forward to the next visit. Service could be better - they seemed to be understaffed in the...

This place tries everything it can to make sure you get what you need to satisfy your cravings. From the head chef to the hard-working and courteous servers this place has been an delight. The buffet spread is vast but still as they don't change it up much it gets repetitive. Special shout-out to the Asian food made and the desserts which are to die for. Breakfast also met all of my expectations. Even after giving suggestions to the chef to change some of the items on the menu they didn't follow it up. The servers get lost when the place gets crowded. You have constantly remind them to get your things. Rotis and ice creams takes a huge time to come to your table. The italian/western dishes on the menu weren't great at all. They could've had pasta on the menu at least. Overall a decent...

We booked a breakfast buffet at ITC grand Goa. And by the experience, I would like to believe that they were having an off day. It’s hard to believe this kind of staff behaviour in an ITC property. On entering, we met Ms. Gagandeep from the staff who was not only extremely uncourteous and unwelcoming but also quite rude and nonchalant. It seemed as if the staff was doing a favour to us by taking a breakfast booking since we were not staying there but had made a reservation. The food afterwards was average and not even once did anyone from the staff passed a smile let alone exhibit the trademark hospitality ITC is known for. Quite surprised with this...