A dash of flavour, a pinch of creativity and ounces of passion for food! This is the recipe that created DIVA – a chain of restaurants, offering flavours from around the world. And now, Goa gets a taste of it!
Speaking on the Goa launch of DIVA at Andores Resort & Spa, Calangute, Goa, an excited and enthusiastic
Chef Ritu Dalmia said, “I’m delighted to launch DIVA in Goa and very excited with the very good response it has received. Goa has always been my favourite destination, and now I have a legit reason to come to Goa and experience its business with DIVA. The support of the team is very encouraging and I would say so far so good. Our best is yet to come.”
The Goa signature flagship of DIVA – a premium Italian trattoria which boasts a 64-cover capacity; centrally located inside the property of Andores Resort & Spa, Calangute. Open throughout the season, it will offer lunch, apertivo and dinner experiences for guests with an authentic Italian menu curated for Goa, keeping in mind the State’s vibrant multi-cultural tastes, local flavors and ingredients.
A plush indoor seating with a vibrant outdoor terrace overlooks the resort’s pool perfectly complimenting an outdoor pizzeria in full view of the guests, so diners can enjoy a true Neapolitan slice whilst sitting beside the pool. A fully operational bar with a special menu of cocktails and a wide selection of wines and beer aims to enhance discerning tastes, for an experience that reinforces the award-winning brand philosophy of DIVA – that is, respecting and celebrating authentic food by combining clean, simple and fresh ingredients to create rich and unique dishes that promise to give your taste-buds an unforgettable experience.
There’s nothing in her lineage to explain why Ritu Dalmia is the brilliant chef and restaurateur that she is. And yet, there she stands, in her mid-40s, as one of India’s most celebrated chefs and co-owner of nine restaurants in Delhi, Milan and the UK; and a catering division that caters worldwide.
The story might well have gone some other way. Born in then-Calcutta to a Marwari business family, Dalmia joined the family stone business when she was just 16. Her work kept taking her to Italy, where she developed a liking for the local cuisine and learnt how to cook it proficiently. In 1993, at age 21, she set up Mezza Luna, a Mediterranean restaurant with an Italian accent, in Delhi’s Hauz Khas Village. The food was excellent, Mezza Luna’s fortunes weren’t. An undeterred Dalmia moved to London, where she opened Vama, an Indian fine dining restaurant. The restaurant was a big success and won rave reviews.
But Delhi beckoned, and in 2000, she came home to open her first DIVA. The fine dining restaurant was an immediate hit with food that Delhi had never encountered and a Wine Cellar that had no parallel. Dalmia never looked back, going on to open one winning restaurant after another and managing a staff of 200. 
With Cittamani, her new eatery in Milan, Dalmia has come full circle. She started her restaurateur life trying to introduce India to genuine Italian food; now she’s getting Italians to taste and enjoy the flavours of the Indian sub-continent. Cittamani’s menu is a fusion of Indian and Italian elements; with Dalmia cooking locally-sourced Italian ingredients with Indian techniques. Dalmia most recently inaugurated her second international venture Stella, at Linthwaite House, Lake District, UK.
Dalmia’s entrepreneurial spirit and contribution to the hospitality industry has been recognized by many institutions, including Forbes which put her on its W Power Trailblazers List in March 2017 and the Indian Federation for Culinary Association, which in 2016 recognized her as one of India’s 25 biggest Chefs. Last September, she was awarded the Ordine della Stella d’Italia, the highest civilian honour of Italy. Dalmia has hosted Italian Khana and Travelling DIVA on NDTV Good Times and authored three cookbooks, Italian Khaana, Travelling DIVA and DIVA Green: A Vegetarian Cookbook.
DIVA at Andores Resort and Spa, Tivai Vaddo, Calangute, Bardez, Goa – 403516.
http://www.divarestaurants.com
Reservations: 0832 -6654400
Sinéad McManus 