Loud cries of fisherfolk selling fresh catch would greet a young Francis Fernandes every morning, as they’d row past his house on the banks of Sharavathi river in Honnavar, on the border of Goa and Karnataka. Often, while picking out surmai, rawas, kanne or bangda from the fisherman’s loot, Fernandes would chance upon a pelican or two near the river — head buried deep, also sniffing out its catch of the day. “The pelican only picks the cleanest, freshest fish. What better mascot can there be for a seafood restaurant?” Fernandes’s son, Adith, points out. Naturally, the not-so-feral pelican, which once stood outside Fernandes’ iconic Mahim restaurant, Fresh Catch, has now travelled to their new outpost at Bandra, guarding the late restaurateur’s 24-year-old legacy.

Sachin and Lara at Fresh Catch