Home / Eating is Fun / Eating is Yuck! - A variety food column / Feb 14- Feb 20, 2026 / Life & Living / EATING IN PEACE!
EATING IN PEACE!
No Comments on EATING IN PEACE!

EATING IN PEACE!

Eating is Fun / Eating is Yuck! - A variety food column, Feb 14- Feb 20, 2026, Life & Living February 13, 2026 , by

HEY, my usual New Year resolutions in recent years is to reform my lifestyle and begin by eating only what I need and want to eat! Don’t laugh, you’ll be surprised how difficult it is to that when in a family of two people only one wants to eat like this and the other like that; of course, the status of our health decides what we put in our mouth morning, noon and night.
Although nowadays I hear it only too often that really we should eat just eat one good meal a day and many of our health problems will be gone – for the body back in full fighting mode is a miracle to see, and I’ve seen this happen often enough.
Friends of mine, a couple, down in the dumps because of health issues, heart disease, cancer, post-mainstream treatment…they turned to dramatic lifestyle changes. Six months down the line the results were dramatic. Another example, a serious one time patient was telling me how he stopped going for his “khao-piyo-maja karo” business parties and just spent a month at the best Ayurveda wellness retreat in Kerala – money being no problem he and wife could afford to pay Rs16,000 for a villa, and the Ayurveda treatments plus, plus a couple of other therapies – he return back home like he’s newly born or so to speak.
He said at least for a month (and his wife) were eating like we’re meant to eat – freshly made sattvik food complete in protein and complex carbohydrate values. Say a herbal tea in the morning, then a millet pongal or tomato omlet for breakfast, a little bowl full of sprouted green moong salad… sometimes judiciously in combo with coconut, cucumber, tomato, green coriander leaves, tossed in a bit of black salt and lemon juice…it is so heavenly in flavors. With a such a breakfast there are no hunger pangs seeking quick fix sugary snacks. Lunch is jowari roti, a lightly spiced sabzi of one of the gourds, bottle or even bitter gourd, or ribbed gourd or ash gourd…dal, some unpolished rice (ukde tandul in Goa), sweet would be just a good quality date with the stone within removed! Of course, the thin, tart, curry leaf spiked buttermilk down south India is yummilicious. Supper or dinner was before the sun set.
All this in between the treatments of panchakarma (detox regime), hot steam baths, mud baths, sun baths, oil massages, etcetera. In a fortnight’s time there’s rejuvenation and joy in the body enough to feel that they’ve spend a couple of lakhs wisely – instead of that holiday in Las Vegas, USA!
WELL, on to another subject. I’m constantly looking for new places to have a bite to write home about. And recently in the courtyard garden cafeteria of the Heritage Bistro tucked away in the old enclave of old world villas opposite the Mahavir Gardens down the Campal in capital city Panjim or Panaji…I discovered a lovely peaceful place for a bite or a drink. The menu lists some interesting things I’ve not seen elsewhere, for example, you may sit here forever over a hibiscus,chamomile or green tea…they also have hot chocolate, I wish somebody would think of adding on hot cocoa too, everybody forgets cocoa is a super drink hot or cold.


 Then let me see, what did eat for lunch: We ordered a fish thali meal, a veggie thali meal, and the gentleman with us said order him potato wedges or potato and leek au gratin…he is a potato man. The thali meals I won’t write home about although the potato kappam of a Goan meal are superlatively good here. The leek au gratin was good and so was the crème brulee…most thali meals are now in the range of Rs500 or so and desserts Rs250 or so. The Continental menu is superlative here I think although I still have to try many things…and a friend praises the prawn curry-rice, and I asked Chef Madan here why he doesn’t serve “ukde tandul” … he said they do on special request. Sorry, they don’t do the jowar or nachne roti…nobody likes them! A real pity.


But I would go time pass at this Heritage Bistro courtyard café just for the lovely star fruit or “carambola” tree here, the exquisite flowering is over and it is sporting baby green starry fruit…star fruit fattens into a tart sweet fruit and is delicious. It features in a Malaysian salad street fruit salad I remember called “rojak” – a tantalizing favorite of mine. Rojak is a mélange of tropical fruit like pineapple, guava, Chinese pear, chunks of star fruit of course, half ripe mango and so on, and so on, all tossed up in a tangy dark sweet soy sauce redolent of “belachan” (prawn infused palm jaggery, tamarind and sesame seed crumble). Rojak is a most yummilicious and nutrilicious south-east Asian street food fruit salad…if you’re ever in that part of the world, remember to look for it and enjoyyyyy. Rojak.
Postscript: Starfruit is carambola, the fruit of the Averrhoa carambola tree, a species of tree native to tropical southeast Asia. It is a ridged translucent green fruit which turns wonderfully golden when ripe…cut it and you get slices like stars. Locals use it in sauces, pickles, jams, curries, garnishes. Reportedly, it contains oxalic acid and a neurotoxin called caramboxin and one may not consume too much of it if one kidneys are in bad shape. But don’t let me frighten you! Star fruit is one of intense vitamin C rich fruit and C is one of the ACE vitamins we need daily. Better to eat gloriously than pop cold ugly colored shiny capsule pills morning, noon and night.

Related posts:

  1. OH, TO BE A FLY ON THE WALLS AT ANANT AMBANI’S SHAADI!
  2. SEEKING `FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH’ IN SUPERFOODS!
  3. FOREST EATING AT SERENDIPITY’S FOOD COURT…
  4. “MOTHER OF NUTS”: ALMONDS!

Search

Back to Top