The food at Avanilaya is excellent, with a repertoire that includes European, French, Thai and Goan dishes. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are all served, although prior notice for the latter two is requested. Some of the produce is organic, sourced from the vegetable garden on the property, the rest is as fresh and local as possible.

The cooks are very creative with dishes thoughtfully prepared and exquisitely presented. Lunch and dinner are normally four course affairs eaten in the open dining room that overlooks the rolling countryside at Padimunu, or in the long, shaded verandah that runs along the back of Panchavatti.

Our giant breakfast came with fresh fruits, freshly baked cupcakes, smoked salmon, ham, sausages, eggs cooked to order, muesli, juice and coffee. A real treat.

A sample lunch would be cold beetroot soup followed by a tangy mackerel carpaccio and a lemon sorbet to cleanse the palate before a main course of honey-glazed prawns with vietnamese rice paper rolls, followed by cheesecake or hot chocolate souffle.

Dinner is similarly elaborate, with chilled avocado soup followed by a stuffed calamari salad and a main of the local fish Modso with vegetables in a mulberry sauce.

The choice of drinks, considering the cuisine on offer, is rather disappointing with just a small selection of domestic beer, wine and spirits available, and with the unavailability of fridge space for guests there’s little scope for bringing your own. One could reasonably expect some degree of access in this regard.