In the heart of St Cruz, a once-closed restaurant has reopened, carrying forward a legacy of flavours that locals have cherished for decades. The Goan explores how Cocochin, now run by the family behind Vailanki Caterers, combines the warmth of home-cooked Goan meals with the expertise of a seasoned catering business
For two decades, Anthony Dias ran a thriving catering business in Goa. His food had a reputation; weddings, communions, and feasts across the state were incomplete without his touch. But there was always one dream lingering at the back of his mind, a restaurant of his own.
That dream took shape this year, when the long-shut doors of Cocochin, a well-known restaurant in St Cruz, opened again under the banner of Vailanki Caterers.
Blessie, Anthony’s daughter, explains how it all came together. “We had the catering business for years, and my dad always wanted a restaurant. But it just never worked out; either the right place didn’t come along, or we couldn’t manage both catering and a restaurant at the same time. Then one day, while joking with the owners of this building after catering for their family event, Dad asked if they’d rent it to him. They said yes. Within a month, we cleaned it up and opened Cocochin- By Vailanki Caterers.”
The original Cocochin had once been a popular spot, then faded into being just a bar, and finally shut down completely. When word spread that it was reopening under the Dias family, locals were curious. “Everyone in the neighbourhood remembered this place, even if it had been closed for years. People would stop and ask us when it was opening,” Blessie recalls.
At its core, Cocochin now carries forward the dishes that made Vailanki Caterers famous. Every plate of sorpotel, beef roast, or tongue chilli is Anthony’s cooking, recipes perfected over years of catering. “Most people come here because they’ve eaten Dad’s food at weddings or parties,” Blessie says. “Now they don’t need to wait for a big event. They can just walk in and order it.”
But the restaurant isn’t only about serving the catering menu. The family has built something more personal. One of the main draws is the Bhikareanche Jevonn thali, a traditional Goan Catholic meal that is usually served only during a month’s mind or first-death anniversaries. It features samrachi kodi, chana with jaggery and coconut, seasonal vegetables, bhangra fry, and sweets like godshe.
Blessie explains why they decided to put it on the menu. “I always told my parents that these dishes are disappearing. Growing up, I loved them, but I used to feel sad that I’d only get to eat them when someone passed away. So we decided to bring that thali here, to make it something people could enjoy any day. For me, it’s food that connects memory, tradition, and home.”
Anthony traces his love for cooking back to childhood. “When I was small, my grandmother used to tell me to sit and grind spices or help make sweets in the evening after school. That’s when I started loving cooking,” he says. “And my neighbour taught me everything about keeping the place clean and organised. Those lessons stayed with me. Even today, cleanliness is my first priority in the kitchen.”
Alongside the thalis, there are weekly specials, sausage-stuffed squids, butterfly prawns, and desserts whipped up by Blessie and her sisters, Grace and Mercy. “Every week, we try something new,” she says. “It could be one of dad’s experiments or a dessert my sister and I make. It keeps the menu alive.”
Walk into Cocochin, and you’ll notice that the Dias family isn’t just behind the idea, they’re in the kitchen and on the floor. On quieter days, when some of the staff have gone home to their families, it’s Anthony, his wife, Luisa, and their daughters who are running things.
Anthony admits the jump from catering to restaurant work has been an adjustment. “In catering, you cook in big quantities, and everything is planned. Here it’s all about small portions and constant orders. It’s different, but I enjoy it.”
The catering business hasn’t stopped. Once wedding season begins in October, Anthony and Luisa will be back on the field, leaving Blessie and her cousin to manage the restaurant. “Catering needs more attention,” Blessie says matter-of-factly. “Here it’s straightforward, you get an order, and you serve it. Catering is balancing food for a thousand people.”
What keeps Anthony steady through it all? “I just love cooking for people,” he says simply. “That’s what has kept me in this business for so long.”
Cocochin has only been open for two months, but the response has been encouraging. Weekends are packed, with locals and tourists filling up both floors. “We can seat about 50 people,” Blessie says. “There have been times we had to turn people away.”
The family is also strict about staff hours. Lunch runs from 12 pm to 4 pm, dinner from 7 pm to 11 pm. Last orders are taken at 10.45 pm sharp. “We didn’t want the staff to burn out working from morning till night like in other restaurants,” Blessie says. “When they’re rested, the food and service are better.”
Best-sellers so far? The Bhikareanche Jevonn thali, sausage-stuffed squids, croquettes, rissois, and Anthony’s signature Goan roasts. “It’s always Dad’s food that flies out of the kitchen,” Blessie laughs.
Looking ahead, Anthony still dreams bigger. “Right now, this place is on rent. In the future, I want to find a spot by the roadside and build something of my own. A proper Goan restaurant, maybe even with fine dining, with my daughter Blessie’s training from Paris.”
For now, Cocochin feels like what the Dias family always wanted it to be, a place where Goan food is cooked the way it’s eaten at home, and shared with warmth.
As Anthony puts it, “Cleanliness, good food, and love for people, that’s all you need.”
