Alcove Restaurant & Bar

Critic´s Review

• Food: 3 / 5
• Service: 3 / 5
• Decor: 3 / 5

-By Odette Mascarenhas

This alfresco-style restaurant is housed in a resort and alongside a swimming pool with small bridges linking the pool. Visited by the dashing Indian cricket captain M S Dhoni and Bollywood celebs, Alcove is a popular place with some wonderful views from the Vagator Cliffside, on which it is perched. The vegetarian and non-vegetarian fare here is really good. Try their Prawn Avocado Cocktail Salad, Baked Rock Crab, Prawn Peri Peri and Tom Yam Goong. Their strength lies in the palak and Tandoori items and rotis. The cooks here clearly know how to put their tadka right. You cannot go wrong if you opt for Chicken Kadhai, Chicken Tikka Masala or Chicken Tandoori, both rich and succulent, though the prices are a tad on the higher side. The La Crepe Fruit de Mere, Dutch Apple Pie, Chcocolate Mousse and Lemon Cheesecake are good for desserts. They open for breakfast and have a long bar menu.This is the place...for mind, body and soul. Nestled up on a hill with the breathtaking view of the sea and swaying coconut palms, is the picturesque Alcove. The ambience is sophisticated yet rustic. You can sit there breathing in the salted sea breeze as your mind reaches into its inner recesses and finds peace away from the hectic pressures of day to day living. And when your body craves some nourishment, start with a simple Mojito - great muddling to whet the appetite when your physical state surfaces with its 'pangs of hunger'. Then dine on Chilled Avocado and Prawn Salad, or get stuffed with the Prawn Stuffed Calamari. Want something lighter? With the Batter Fried Calamari…the airy feeling between the batter and the squid could leave you feeling 'suspended'. There is no rush, no pressure in a hurried meal. The husband and wife team Milton and Vanessa have ensured that. They also have a wide range of multi-cuisine delicacies to tempt even the most fastidious palate. Diners of all nationalities feast on Baked Rock Crabs, Alcove's speciality or perchance the Kingfish in white wine sauce. But if you are in the desi mode then Alcove has old favourites too, like Mutton Kofta Roll or our very own Prawn Caldin. And when your body has had its fill, tempt your senses with a sweet finale. Let your soul find fulfilment in a choice of Dutch Apple Pie and Lemon Cheese Cake...it is heaven on earth. Why wait for an 'after life' if you can do it here. This place has worked on the right combination for mind, body and soul....it is a 'heavenly' cove for rejuvenation.