Oven-fresh Pride of Goa: J J Bakery, Calangute

Drive down the busy Calangute stretch in Bardez and you'll pass umpteen gloss-powered café chains, neon-lit dessert bars, and shops with Instagram-ready interiors. And then you'll find J J Bakery.

No fancy décor, no clever branding. Only super hygienic glass counters full of fresh bakes, and a steady stream of 24-carat bakery loyalists among locals and tourists.

The J J saga of founder Alexander finds its roots in Mapusa of 1998. The original shop still stands in the heart of that busy market town, and over nearly three decades J J has quietly grown to six branches, Calangute among them. It has grown by word of mouth and repeat customers, not billboards, and that says a lot about what comes out of its ovens.

There are soft sponge cakes and rich celebration cakes, and pastries lined up in neat, colourful rows. Flaky puffs sit next to golden pattice, all crisp on the outside and available in veg and non veg varieties, in line with your tastes and preferences.

The service is quick and unfussy, and the focus is squarely on the food. If you're in North Goa, J J Bakery at Calangute should be on top on your must-visit list. You now know why.

PS: The smiling gents in the pic comprise the service staff, all nameless by choice. The narrator of the J J saga is the guy in the middle who looks after the logistics. The one on the left does the billing and hails from Chennai, and the other on the opposite end was too busy to share his details.

The three musketeers tell you all employee engagement and retention that HR departments of most organizations can't ever, despite the tons of round table meets, grand off-sites, branded conclaves, and what not.