Mia Cucina (My Kitchen), this new-ish Italian Bistro at Pali Naka, has this very earthy, vintage, Goa-meets-a-tiny-charming-cafe-in the Italian countryside (like in the movies), ring to it.
The food has flavour, which is such a relief. Most restaurants offer food that has a wonderful flavour at the cost of be rather expensive. And if it is affordable, then the food will definitely be doused in oil and spices, to give it some semblance of taste.
The service is swift and the waiters are a friendly bunch. And the prices are decent (between Rs 95 and Rs 300 per dish). No alcohol is served. But the kiwi slush was nice; sour and not saccharine sweet.
And the chef-cum-proprietor of the place, this strapping, 30-something chap, seems very hand-on, donning a white apron and chatting with guests between his bouts in the kitchen. Pop would brand this experience as ’simple and good’.
