Some restaurants in Goa feel like an escape. Jugnu feels like a story. Tucked inside a 160-year-old Indo-Portuguese bungalow in Assagao, it’s part heritage, part tropical moodboard, and very much a culinary flex. Lush gardens, a waterfall that feels designed for Instagram, and spaces that shift with your mood. Private dining room, breezy al fresco, or an indoor bar that could double as your chicest living room.
This is Chef Ajay Chopra’s big Goa debut, and he didn’t come to play. Jugnu’s menu is bold, nostalgic, and a little unexpected. Prawns with thecha. Ghee roast that rivals Mangalore. Butter chicken as silky as memory, and nihari that tastes like Delhi at midnight. Then it pivots: watermelon som tam, harissa chicken popcorn, and even Neapolitan-style pizzas that somehow don’t feel out of place.
But here’s the twist: Jugnu is as much about the cocktails as the food. The founders, Sandeepraj Salian and Vicky Bachani, call the bar the “main act,” and they mean it. Designed with mixologist Mohammad Ali, the drinks are layered, memory-led, and deeply Indian in spirit. Mahua, kokum, curry leaf, paan—they show up in ways that feel clever, not gimmicky.
4 Cocktails Worth Booking a Flight For
- Indian Origin: Mahua + Alphonso mango + gold glitter = Goa’s most extra sip.
- Goan Bliss: feni, kokum, jasmine, and citrus bottled as pure Goa nostalgia.
- Jugnu Sour: whisky, saffron, cardamom. Warm, aromatic, and way too easy to order twice.
- Let’s Go to Mexico: tequila with celery + jalapeño brine, spicy minimalism at its best.
And because vibe matters: Jugnu has not one, but three bar zones. There’s the alfresco waterfall bar (nature’s ASMR), a cozy indoor crown bar for slow sipping, and a not-so-secret “secret bar” that rewards curiosity.
At the heart of it all? A firefly spirit (Jugnu literally means firefly). One that glows with nostalgia and burns bright with invention.
Jugnu Goa: 140, Bairo Alto, Assagao, Goa 403507. Ph# 097666 69304