Mystery of Lemon Chilli

Mystery Of Lemon Chilli

Mystery of Lemon Chilli, located just behind Casino Motel at Pilerne, is one of the many new restaurants that have cropped up in Goa over the last few years. The restaurant, which started operations in December 2020, specialises in offering fusion food. The kind of food and drinks offered at Mystery of Lemon Chilli is something you won't find at any other restaurant in Goa. The venture is the brainchild of Mayur Shirodkar and Ranjit Thakur, two very seasoned individuals who hold years of experience in the hospitality industry. Ranjit specialises in preparing unique fusion dishes at Mystery of Lemon Chilli while Mayur specialises in making his own unique set of cocktails. The floor operations of the restaurant are handled by Mayur while Ranjit mainly oversees the operations of the kitchen.

About The Founders

Ranjit, who is originally from Bihar, has been living in Goa for the past 35 years. He holds a degree in hotel management from IIAS, Goa. After completing his course, he pursued a one-year diploma in kitchen operations in France, specialising in French cuisine. He then worked for three years in a Michelin-star restaurant in France, and then for one-year in another Michelin-star restaurant in Belgium. He has been working in Goa for the last 13 years as a chef. This includes an 8 year stint working at the Black Sheep Bistro in Panjim. Mystery of Lemon Chilli is his first venture in the culinary sector in Goa.

Mayur holds a degree in hotel management from Goa. After completing his graduation, he worked at JW Marriott Mumbai for about 18 months and then joined Goa Marriott Resort and Spa where he worked for about two and a half years.

Seared chicken leg (Boneless seared chicken with fresh green pepper sauce)

After that, he went abroad and worked for about four years in the Gulf where he was involved in managing the launch of restaurants. He used to train a team of people involved in the opening of restaurants in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain and Kuwait. He also used to train the staff of the restaurant and used to also do the setup for the restaurant according to the desires of the client.

In 2018, he met Ranjit at Black Sheep Bistro, Panjim. Ranjit had joined the Black Sheep Bistro as an Executive Chef and he had his own unique culinary creations over there. Over a period of time, he and Mayur became good friends and in 2020, they thought of starting their own venture which led to the birth of Mystery of Lemon Chilli

The Story Behind The Name Of The Restaurant

Explaining why he and Ranjit decided to name their restaurant ‘Mystery of Lemon Chilli’, Mayur says that lemons and chillies are two ingredients which are used in almost all types of dishes. “We also use lemons and chillies in many of the cocktails we serve here at Lemon Chilli”, he says.” It is also a name that is very catchy and easy to pronounce. So we decided to name our enterprise as "Mystery of Lemon Chilli”.

Dishes & Drinks Offered At Lemon Chilli

The menu at Mystery of Lemon Chilli features a wide range of fusion-styled dishes and drinks. Mayur and Ranjit prepare various dishes and drinks using their own unique set of recipes. These recipes are a fusion of Indian and European cuisines. ”You won't find the flavours offered at Mystery of Lemon Chilli anywhere else in Goa'' says Ranjit. We mix different types of ingredients and create our own dishes and drinks”. It's like a combination of various cuisines together," he says. “We also make our own masalas by combining different types of spices'', he adds.

One of the most popular dishes offered at Mystery of Lemon Chilli is their fresh Raw Banana Fries. The restaurant also offers veg starters like lotus stem and in non-veg, they offer different varieties of puris, like golgappas stuffed with either vegetables, prawns, pork, or crabs.

In their main course menu, they mainly focus on seafood. One of the many unique dishes on their menu is their Gnocchi, an Italian-style dish finished with aloo methi. ''So basically, it's the idea of Aloo Methi in a Gnocchi version made with sauteed vegetables and carrot puree”, says Ranjit. “We have also created a dish called Mutton osso buco, which is an Italian dish", he adds.

He goes on to talk about the unique desserts offered at Mystery of Lemon Chilli which include Smoked Coconut Bites finished with beetroot reduction sauce, White Chocolate Lava made with orange reduction sauce, and Baked Yogurt Brulee with orange confit. “We use a lot of local products, and we create our own homemade spices and mixes according to the requirements of the ingredients of the dishes,” says Ranjit.

Popular Cocktails Offered At The Restaurant

Talking about the various cocktails offered at Mystery of Lemon Chilli, Mayur says that one of their best selling cocktails is the Spicy Kokum cocktail which is served with fenny. “ It is a Kokum drink mixed with fenny and chilli”, he says. Another drink which is very popular among patrons is the Cucumber Swirl, which is composed of freshly muddled cucumber and mint mixed with gin. Also, the Dragon Eye cocktail, which is made up of pineapple, cranberry and olives with vodka, also features on their list of best-selling cocktails. Mayur adds that since it is currently the season of Urrak, they make different types of Urrak and a lot of other drinks which are their own creations.

Public Response

Mystery of Lemon Chilli received a very good response from the public when it opened its doors to the public in December 2020. “The response was very good because people were looking to try out something new and different from the same kinds of dishes offered at most restaurants”, says Ranjit. A majority of the patrons who dine at Mystery of Lemon Chilli are from Goa and other parts of India. “Indians prefer a little bit of spice in their food and a majority of our patrons enjoy our food because most of our dishes have a touch of different Indian spices added to them”, says Mayur. He goes on to add that almost every fortnight, he and Ranjit introduce something new on their menu so that people do not get fed up with having the same dishes again and again.

Major Customers

A majority of the people who come to dine at Mystery of Lemon Chilli are from Porvorim and surrounding areas. Occasionally, they do get patrons from Margao and Vasco, but otherwise, the bulk of their customers are from nearby areas.

Mystery of Lemon Chilli provides catering for small parties of up to 40 people. They have indoor seating as well as outdoor seating. They don’t cater for big events because the restaurant has limited seating space. They also do catering for outdoor events. However, it is more of an a la carte-styled catering. They do not offer buffet-style catering. They have done outdoor catering for a few French delegates who had come to Goa for an event. They also receive orders from a lot of locals for outdoor catering.

Mayur and Ranjit plan to start another outlet of Mystery of Lemon Chilli very soon. “We are going to commence work on it in the middle of May," says Ranjit “It should open sometime later towards the end of this year and we are hoping for the best”, he says.

Mystery of Lemon Chilli

Address: Behind Casino Motel, Govekar Nagar, Porvorim, Pilerne, Goa 403501

Hours: 12pm–4 pm, 7pm–11 pm (Mondays Closed)

Phone: 084110 31614