From a unique patented dish to a taste of home, the new Goan restaurant — Unndo — offers it all.
It’s choris unlike any kind anyone’s eaten before. The staple Goan sausage, packed with flavour, now has a different ingredient vying for attention: Dried bombil. This bombil choris dish is to be found at Unndo, a five-month-old Goan restaurant in Benaulim. “It’s our signature, patented dish,” says owner Savio George, “You won’t find this anywhere else.” It’s a fair claim to make. But then, Unndo is different in other ways, too.
Unndo reveals a glimpse of the real Goa
Unlike your big chains and hospitality brands, Unndo is a small, family-run venture and, accordingly, relies on old school advertising: Word of mouth. I first heard about them when they just opened in June. Being friends with sociable and well-connected South Goans means I am updated on new launches (even before they are made public).
When two of them suggested Unndo, it went straight to the top of my list of must-visit restaurants in south Goa. The reason was simple: It is run by Goans and serves Goan food. I’ve been covering the Goan food space for a year now and it was nice to see someone taking a chance on Goan food (familiar as it may be) instead of treating it as an afterthought or a cursory addition to a menu. Unndo aims to showcase Goan food as it is, using recipes passed down generations, slow-cooked, and with masalas ground at home.
The George family launched Unndo in June, naming it after that Goan bread that’s a staple in most homes. Edric came up with the idea, his brother Savio bakes the bread, their mother makes the Goan dishes at home, and their wives help in the cooking.
Goa on a platter at Unndo
On a hot November afternoon, I decided to break bread at Unndo.
The restaurant is small, with just a few tables. It’s awash in yellow. The bright and summery colour finds itself in the wall lamps, chairs, and even the plates. To complement it are soothing grey walls, which hold a few framed colourful illustrations by Edric depicting old Goan professions. At one side, a chalkboard below a small altar announces specials and off-the-menu items. Near it, a stand filled with bottles announces their side offering: Homemade vinegar.
Unndo’s menu fills just one page and features your usual suspects: Xacuti, fish curries, choris pao, sorpotel, and more. Sunday is the day the family brings out the works — a special menu including dishes like sannas (made with toddy), beef stew, and patoleo.
On asking Savio about the catch of the day, he brings out a filet of konkar (long fin trevalla), a tasty fish similar to pomfret with a slimier skin. He prepares it the way most Goan fish, rava fried (here though, the fish is coated with a tangy masala).
Instead of the regular masala fried prawns, Savio offers something even better: Prawn/sungta bhaji. This is one of those tea-time staples, along with the regular patal, and sukhi bhaji, that can be found only in smaller Goan restaurants. It’s a mild curry made with shrimp and with the addition of potatoes, tomatoes, or greens. Unndo’s prawn bhaji is the highlight of the meal: Thin and mildly spiced with bits of carrot.
Simplicity wins the day at Unndo
The daily signature items are Sorpotel (made in advance and rested so the flavour is intensified), beef tongue unndo, and chicken xacuti. I ask for the tongue unndo, which treats the offal with respect, marinating it with spices and red chillies and cooking it till tender. My meal ends with a thali — it has rice, fried kingfish (a little too heavy on the rava coating), sungta bhaji, and salad.
The Georges’ wanted to create a space that only serves Goan food but changed the menu to include some tourist preferred dishes like butter chicken: “It made financial sense,” says Edric. “It is difficult to upsell an only Goan menu with beef and pork to tourists.” They have a cook who makes the non-Goan dishes.
Unndo is a simple, no-frills place offering a taste of Goa that is homely, familiar, and delicious. On the way out, I meet two other visitors: Neighbourhood dogs who’ve come for their own special Unndo treats.
Open Tuesday – Sunday; 6 pm–10 pm. Instagram
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