06 Jun WHAT’S ON YOUR CHRISTMAS MENU?
Is it turkey or roast pork, gingerbread houses or chocolate santas? There’s one thing that the festive season brings out in Goa, and that is an exciting range of special Christmas themed menus. Whether it’s Christmas eve dinner, drinks and dancing, Christmas day brunches or even after parties, Goa does it in style.
Christmas marks the beginning of the peak season this year after a lukewarm start with only a smattering of foreign tourists seen in the tourist capital of the country. So expectations are high that this season’s marker will open the floodgates to a steady flow of domestic visitors in early 2015. Here’s a selection of events that are superb enough to lure you away from the Christmas tree and new gifts under it.
A new destination for a traditional Christmas meal with a creative twist is ‘Shamba,’ overlooking a wide spread of fields in Anjuna, as its name hints at, in Swahili. Chef couple Evan and Shaana have both brought their creativity and experience together to offer a special christmas brunch with a buffet with a live grill churning out free flowing starters like seafood and veg skewers, and mains like Turkey with Cranberry dressing, Pumpkin Ravioli with Candied Zest and salads. They’re also putting a new spin on the Christmas-themed beverage by serving ‘Mulled Sangria’ and creating a cheerful ambiance with a veritable wonderland of baked Christmas goodies like a gingerbread house, cake pops, cookies, cupcakes, tarts and marshmallows, that kids will love. Priced at Rs 2000 per head or Rs 1500 for teetotalers, although the complimentary bottle of bubbly for every table booking of four, might influence your decision.
For those looking for a great meal before hitting the big electronica parties on Christmas eve – ‘One Degree,’ overlooking Ozran beach is a hot new destination. With a live BBQ serving up whole legs of lamb, exotic seafood and roast pork, and their eclectic menu that quickly gained a reputation as the best sushi and Vietnamese food around; this is a wonderful place to congregate with friends and usher in the holiday spirit.
In Panjim, the Black Sheep Bistro, renowned for its theme menus will create a special four-course meal for Rs 1100 spread right from December 24 all the way until December 26, so you can take your pick of when to go out to celebrate with family or friends. If you’ve been saving all your calories to let loose over the holidays, Route 66 may be where you should end up. Their four-course Texan styled christmas dinner paired with wine or imported beer starts at Rs 1299. And Italian favourite Baba’s Wood Cafe is pretty much sold out with their special a la carte menu featuring Linguini with Lobsters, Panettone with Mascarpone Cream (a special sweet bread loaf from Milan) and a festive selection of wines. But maybe you can try and sneak in.
The Marriott has a whole host of events at their different properties starting with a Christmas Eve gala dinner and following with a Christmas Day Roast Turkey Brunch. Their cake shop is already known as being a great place to pick up hampers filled with wine and an assortment of sinful treats like the Marzipan Stollen, Dundee Cake, Chocolate Yule Log, Date Pudding, Cinnamon Star Cookies and hand-rolled chocolates, Chocolate Santas or Snowmen. Of course, the five-star hotel lobbies are always a joy to visit at this time of year and the Marriott will have a ‘magnificent’ Santa Claus and reindeer display.
The Park Hyatt by the pristine Arossim beach in the south has an interesting theme of circus celebrations, their annual Christmas tree lighting ceremony and carol singing. The highlight is the Christmas Eve Dinner at the ‘Village Square’ comprising multiple eating spots Da Luigi, Casa Sarita and Village Café, featuring chef crafted preparations and live entertainment by ‘The Ventures’ at Rs 7500 all inclusive. The Italian-themed Christmas Day Lunch, on the other hand, is priced at only Rs 1500 plus tax.
There is also a wish list board for guests to share their Christmas wish so that the hotel can try and make it happen for them… Now that’s five star service! And since Christmas is a wonderful time to give to those less fortunate, it’s great that the Park Hyatt encourages guests to buy special Christmas cards, the proceeds of which go to charitable organisations.
And if you aren’t so much of a foodie as one who gets high on good music, Teso is where it’s at on December 26 as Prem Joshua is back in town. If you’re not familiar with the world-famous icon of Indo-Western fusion, the best description of his music is hearing Indian temple chants with reminiscences of urban jazz; Sufi poems set to reggae rhythms; raw and complex Indian classical music on sitar and tabla, apart from the soaring melodies on the bamboo flute over trance loops. Enough to keep his hundreds of followers enthralled for sure.
Located in Siolim village, Tesò is fringed by the Chapora river. A perfect escape owned by T-Series Principals, Kishan and his wife Tania, they have been hosting concerts for their favorite artist, Prem Joshua & Band since the past two years.
So whether you are a resident or tourist, it’s likely that you will be well fed and spoilt for choice as far as party options go this Christmas. We wish you the cheeriest start of this holiday season, but remind you to drink responsibly and stay off the main roads, to get to your venue of choice quickly and safely. Have a merry one!
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