Amongst the vibrant and Portuguese influenced structures, she stands tall hidden in the narrow lanes of the Fontainhas. At first I found it very difficult to locate Viva Panjim but when I finally did, it was a tremendous amount of bliss. I entered into the slender lane as I saw the big red Portuguese home with people lined up to have a seat. ‘Thursday closed’ read the banner at the entrance. “I’m hungry”, my friend said to me as the waiter came up to us immediately asking us to follow him to the table.
As I looked around, I noticed that they had an outdoor setting which was like a balcony. When we entered, it was a non-AC room which looked like the hall of a home and I and my friend immediately felt comfortable. The waiter then lead us into another room after opening the shut door and the AC immediately hit the coolness on us. “Where is he taking us?”, I muttered to my friend as I continued following the waiter, climbing steps. He showed us the table on the first floor and gave us a menu card each.
It wasn’t my first time at Viva Panjim yet the Portuguese heritage house didn’t fail to impress me. The structure of the rooms, the interior decor and the vintage feel of a Portuguese house can be felt at the family restaurant and bar. It does feel a little congested inside as tables and chairs are closely set up. In the interiors of the ground floor, I would say the lighting is a little bad as it gives the room a dull look when it’s not, with the new beautiful paintings. In the pictures, it does look like the place is well lit but during the day it isn’t.
So here’s what we tried,
I love Paneer, I mean who doesn’t? Right? Paneer 65 at Viva Panjim is delicious. It has huge cubes of paneer which is coated in a semi- spicy garlicky gravy with contents of capsicum and onion found. The chilli flavour isn’t too much hence it is a very good dish. As I took a bite of the paneer, the flavours all hit me directly and I just enjoyed it with my eyes closed.
Moving on, we’ve all heard of Chicken Lollipops so much that we try to compare the Chinese food item from one place to another. Viva Panjim gamed up their uniqueness with their new and special fish lollipops. My first impression when I saw the starter wasn’t that impressive as the sauce was entirely drowned in oil. The outer coating was perfectly crispy as I took a bite and it crunches into my mouth. The tender fish melted in the crunchiness of the outer layer. My friend loved it extremely but I found it okay, nothing too special but definitely something different.
Every Goan needs some seafood in their daily life, so here’s what we tried to please our Goan taste buds. Squids Recheado Masala Fry is one of my favourite Goan food item at the heritage house. The masala is spicy yet the most popular and very very appetising. The quantity of this particular product is quite good and is enough for 2-3 people. The squids are cooked well and have a very spicy and flavourful touch. Believe me, at the end of it, I was gobbling down some cold water to get rid of the spicy taste.
For our main course, we ordered my favourite prawns biryani. I’ve never had prawns biryani anywhere else since I fell in love with this one, the moment I took a spoonful of it in my mouth. The onions in the biryani aren’t caramelised but instead are made crispy by deep frying in oil. The rice was perfectly cooked with a pop of yellow and orange colours which gives a visual appeal to the food item. As the waiter got the steel bowl towards us, we could get the divine smell from a distance. The gravy along with the tiger prawns are at the bottom of the bowl and layered with a huge amount of rice. Once you mix the gravy with the rice, I must say, every spoonful of it which I took in my mouth was heaven.
Well, Viva Panjim is a home to someone and the owner has shared it with customers like you and me. It’s a must go-to restaurant to get the feel of a Portuguese Influenced Goan home with extremely delicious food and cuisines that will meet your needs while being pocket friendly.
Ratings: 4.5/5
Location: Fountainhas, Panjim- Goa
Delicious Deluxe 