Review - Gato Loco Restaurant Candolim Goa

Gato Loco is part of Villa Sol Areia, a fifteen bedroom B&B with two restaurants Gato Loco serving European cuisine and Mughal Darbar serving Muglia cuisine.

Situated on the main Candolim Road, near Delfinos supermarket this charming looking restaurant, with its blue and white theme makes it have a continental alfresco feel, to accompany its European menu.  The tables were set wonderfully, and the cleanliness of the restaurant and the washrooms was flawless. 

Having had good, authentic food at Mughal Darbar, I was thrilled when our friends suggested we try Gato Loco. 

I was so excited to see Bouillabaisse on the menu.  Bouillabaisse has to be one of my all- time favourite dishes, I love to eat and cook.   Bouillabaisse is hearty fish stew made up of chunks of white fish, mussels, prawns, squid and crab, with  vegetables of leeks, onions, tomatoes, celery and potatoes all simmered together in a broth of Provençal herbs and spices. Served with a rouille - a mayonnaise of olive oil, garlic, saffron and cayenne pepper on grilled slices of bread to dunk into a rustic fisherman’s stew to die for.  I just had to have it. 

This is what I was expecting from the menu and my experience of Bouillabaisse.

This is what I got

Bouillabaisse 350 Rupees /£3.59/ €4.68/ $5.23/₽365.43

A bowl of spiced, thick tomato soup, that was tasty, but sadly not authentic, and certainly not the five head fish stock as stated on the menu. The hero’s, of the dish, chunks of white fish, mussels, prawns, squid and crab, a big disappointment.  The amount of fish was no more a trimming than the main component of the dish.  There was no vegetables at all.  As for the breadbasket.  A slice of stale baguette and two small slices of bread with a single potion of butter. 

 Fish Tikka. 

This cost 500 rupees £5.28/ €6.69/$7.47/₽ 522.04  Come one!

The price was on market price of the day, when told it was 500 rupees we imagined a fair sized portion of fish.  Asked if this came with anything, it was then explained it came with salad and a dip.  My guest wanted to order a jacket potato, that they would pay extra for.  A simple question, a simple request, how difficult is it to add an extra jacket potato to the meal?  There seemed to be a lot of debated, asking other waiters, and then finally going to the kitchen the wish was granted, like we had asked for something out of the ordinary. When the meal came to the table after my disappointment, imagine how I felt when this was placed in front of them.

The upside to the night was the other two guests ordered from Mughal Darbar menu.  

Chicken Afghani 280 rupees/ £2.95 / €3.75/ $4.18 /₽292.34

Instead of the traditional tandoori paste, Afghani chicken is coated in a paste of cashew nuts.

Four good size pieces of chicken. In all fairness, the menu said half a chicken and that is exactly what was on the plate. I say this because most restaurants say half chicken, but there is no breast. As you can see here, there is plenty of breast meat.

Veg jalfrezi 180 rupees/£1.90/ €2.41/ $2.69 / ₽187.93

A good sized portion of marinated vegetables in oil and spices to produce a dry, thick sauce. As the dish includes green chillies, a jalfrezi can range in heat from a medium dish to a very hot one. Asking for a medium the jalfrezi was cooled down by combining it with cream, to make a delicious creamy sauce.

Service

I would like to say that the service surpassed the food, but unfortunately, when MR R and I arrived to an empty restaurant, we stood like limpets waiting for the waiter sitting at the bar to approach us. Eventually we had to ask him for a table of four, which seemed to be a difficult question as he shrugged his shoulders not sure if he had a table at all.  Our guests were about to arrive, and still we stood there, when a young woman approached us. We said we wanted a table for four; yet again, it seemed a problematic request, when by pure luck, a waiter who knows us from Mughal Darbar came over and seated us without any question.

NOTE YOU ARE CHARGED A 5% service charge.

 A very disappointing - 2/5 Chilies for COCO LOCO  

I say disappointing because as I have said before my guests and myself have been many times to Mughal Darbar next door and had great food and service.

Address:  Villa Sol Areia, Fort Aguada Road, Near Health Centre, Candolim, Goa

For Info and Booking call : 8326515322

Timings :  All Days -- 8:00 AM - 9:00 PM