Omlette like never before

As you drive down from Coquiero circle in Porvorim towards Calangute you pass through villages of Sangolda and Saligao. The beautiful drive takes you through these sleepy villages in narrow road with old houses on both sides. After you cross Sangolda comes the village of Saligao which has one of the most photographed churches in Goa.

Just before the church is Samrat Restaurant.

A very small restaurant similar to a tapri, the restaurant has just 4 tables and 6 items on its menu. Rus Omlette is the star of the show here. Rus omlette is nothing but a regular omlete with chicken gravy on top of it. It is spectacular in taste. The chicken gravy is of the famous Xacuthi which is made of coconut paste and whole load of different spices, blend together in the right consistency to form a delicious dish. Chicken Xacuthi in itself is extremely tasty and famous export from Goa but when it comes to a perfect breakfast nothing to beat the Rus omlette. The omlette itself is very well cooked and the gravy over it forms the perfect add on. The different spices of the gravy and it’s consistency just carries on in your mouth when you suddenly discover the omlette which is just perfectly cooked to be fluffy. The onions and chilies in the omellte gives a nice crunch.

For over a decade I have been feasting on this lovely dish. When everything seems to change around you and within you, Samrat restaurant is a place which is stuck in time. Everything from the tables, benches, plates, spoons, cups, to the cook and the kitchen have never changed. The taste and the no frills service has been extremely consistent over the years.

The best time to go to have Rus omlette is in the morning by around 1000hrs, this is the time when Andrew the village baker comes with his freshly baked bread. Bread in Goa is not just bread, it comes in different shapes, sizes and forms. There is the regular pav which we all know, then there is katranche pav which looks of the shape of a butterfly, there is unne which is very hard local bread, there is sweet bread for the children and many more. The timing mentioned above is perfect as Andrew brings his different types of bread which are freshly baked and are hot. There is nothing like hot bread. You could have just the bread by itself when it is warm, I guess that is the way we are supposed to have it. Bread when gets cold looses its texture and taste. For your perfect experience at Samrat restaurant I strongly recommend you the katarcance pav with ras omlette.

There are few options available here other than the tasty rus omlette, you can opt for the tamat bhaji (Tomato bhaji) or patal bhaji ( channa bhaji) served again with pav. For breakfast’s you have omlette and then for the lunch you have chicken Xazcuthi. The restaurant opens from 0830 to 1730 hrs. They also have Mirch bhajji, samosas and batata vaddas but they are all out sourced. These are the only items that you will get in this tiny restaurant. They also do not serve rice, chappati or puris as accompaniments; it is only the diefferent types of Pav that you can choose from. But when you have a dish as tasty as the rus omlette why would you order anything else. In the past so may years I do not remember ordering anything else.

Sunday mornings is something I and my wife look up to. A lazy drive through the villages in your bike with the wind blowing through, the freshness and the greenery around with normal morning routine of the village activities finally takes you to Samrat restaurant, where we have been having this great dish regularly. As we just finish with our breakfast and have a cup of hot tea to complete the experience the church bell rings in the vicinity and then Samrat gets full with men and women dressed in formal shirts, trousers, skirts and gowns. Greeting each other and having fun.