19/05/2026
Last weekend, The Goan Kitchen, in collaboration with the moca_goa, hosted what may have been Goa’s first-ever curated heritage mango tasting experience - set in the mango grove of the Royal Chapel of St. Anthony on Monte Santo, Old Goa.
An intimate 22-seater table explored 14 different varieties of Goan mangoes, including rare and lesser-known names like Collaco, Udgo, Sakri, Furtad, Carreira, Bishop, Fernand, Ball, Hilario and Jesuit. Some sweet, some fragrant, some fibrous, some almost forgotten — each one sourced from heritage farms across Goa after months of conversations, research and tracking down growers who still preserve these varieties.
Beautifully researched and curated by and Charles Victor, the evening went far beyond tasting. It opened up conversations around Goa’s mango history, farming traditions, colonial influences, naming stories, and the incredible biodiversity hidden within a fruit most of us think we already know everything about.
And somewhere between the discussions, note-taking, comparing textures and passionately defending favourite varieties, everyone became a child again around mangoes.
A fitting tribute to the king of summer. 🥭
