When it comes to food, Goa is a hotpot of sorts. Centuries ago, the Portuguese sailed across oceans and introduced their cuisine leaving a lasting impression on Goa’s food scene. Years later, you find more than just Portuguese dishes in Goa, but dishes with influences from around the world.
All the way from the Land of Smiles, Thai cuisine has found a home in Goa with Fireback, a restaurant and bar from EHV International. Serving up authentic Thai flavours, the food and ambience of the restaurant simply puts a smile on your face.
INTERIOR INSPIRATION
Hidden behind an Indo-Portuguese bungalow in Siolim, Fireback catches your eye from a distance. With a modern glass house that steps down onto outdoor decks and a promenade overlooking the river, Fireback’s interior designing is simply captivating.
“The name Fireback comes from the National bird of Thailand, Siamese fireback,” informs Harsh Sen, the General Manager at the restaurant. Pointing out at the charcoal grey interiors, Sen explains the concept behind the designing saying, “All the colours at the restaurant are inspired from the bird.”
With a 80-person capacity, apart from dining inside, guests can savour their grills and curries by the fish pond or enjoy the riverside setting with a view of St Anthony’s Church.
THE MAN BEHIND THE MAGIC
Of course, there’s a dedicated and hospitable team at the restaurant that serves all the delicious food that comes to the table, but the man behind curating the special menu is multi award-winning chef David Thompson himself.
“Our team of chefs went to Thailand and trained with him (Chef David) for a month and came back and executed his menu,” shares Sen, adding that every three months Chef David visits the restaurant and adds dishes to menu.
Glancing at the menu that lists dishes whose harmonious flavours and textures blend well, you may find it difficult to select and order. But at the restaurant, the staff goes on to describe the dishes and are extremely helpful.
The Josper grill at Fireback offers a host of grills and skewers, and then there’s also a range of fluffy omelettes, small plates like salad of pomelo with toasted coconuts and shredded ginger on betel leaves and smoky grilled eggplant.
While some dishes are spicy and uncompromising, the aromatic Thai curries are particularly notable. These include Massaman Curry Lamb, Deep-Fried Pumpkin; Soft Shell Crab, Red Curry; Sour Orange Curry Of River Prawns With Shredded Green Papaya.
Guests can enjoy these while sipping their Thai inspired cocktails and beverages.
GOA APPROVES
Opening their doors to Goa in December 2023, the idea to bring Thai food to Goa came from studying Goa’s culinary landscape and finding the cuisine lacked representation.
“We (in India) are very good at making Indianised versions, for instance a majority restaurants serve Indianised Chinese and not authentic Chinese,” notes Sen.
“What we have faced as a challenge is to educate our customers that this is something from Thailand, and not just that, it's actually from Chef David Thompson,” says Sen, grateful to slowly build a base of customs who enjoy the meal and keep returning.
With their clientele slowly expanding, the restaurant also plans to expand to major cities across India. “This is the first that we’ve opened, now Fireback is moving to Bombay next,” announces Sen inviting people to come and have a great time at Fireback.
AVERAGE PRICING (Meal for 2): Rs 2,500 (excluding alcohol); Rs 3,500 (includes a cocktail each)
TIMINGS: 12 noon to 11 pm (Open 7 days a week)
CONTACT: +91 9209717970