They say 13 is an unlucky number.
To the Vaz family, it is anything but. It is the anniversary date of the launch of their liquor store (Vaz Enterprises) and the birth date of three of the women in the family.
It somehow made sense that when they started their own space, it highlighted the number 13. Hence, Treize.
The newest bar to open in Goa, Treize occupies a small portion of Vaz Enterprises’ liquor store in Anjuna. The liquor store is a meandering and well-stocked space with neatly designed areas and bottles that go up to a lakh (but more on that later).
Treize is Donovan Vaz’s fourth go at a bar after the popular Firefly, Tesouro, and SoGo. This time, it is on his own turf—literally—with no partners and no investors. Everything at Treize is his vision, and he takes the number seriously: there is seating for 13 people, and 13 cocktails on the menu. Treize is also the first bar to offer liquor tastings.
Now let’s rewind a little.
The Vaz family was one of the first to open a liquor store in South Goa, in 1977 in Margao. They were also the first in Goa to introduce the concept of a liquor supermarket. It started with Margao, then Colva and, finally, Anjuna. The Anjuna branch of Vaz Enterprises follows the same layout as the others: visitors can wander through neatly demarcated sections of alcohol with a basket and pick their favourites.
This background is important, because the store and the bar are closely intertwined.
I first heard about Treize through Hansel Vaz (Donovan’s brother and owner of Cazulo Premium Feni); he is part of my Goan grapevine comprising friends whose opinions on new places I trust. I was intrigued because, barring an Instagram page, there was no publicity or fanfare around the launch. In fact, only people linked to the Vaz family know about the place.
My visit to Treize begins with a wander around the two-storey (ground and cellar) store at Anjuna. Treize occupies a front-facing corner of the store, to the right; it has a separate entrance. The USP of Treize is that it allows you to try (almost) anything in the store. You can quite literally point at a bottle that catches your fancy and say “I want to try that”. Rest assured, it comes at a price. But, if you like what you taste and wish to buy the bottle, they will deduct the amount you paid for the tasting from the final bill.
Treize is built for conversations around the bar. There is indoor and outdoor seating; the latter is surrounded by greenery and looks out onto the main road. It is best to sit indoors and at the bar, where mixologists Shubham Singh Rawat and Saurabh Bisht hold forth. Donovan’s friend, mixologist Devi Singh Bhati, is the beverage consultant.
A metal cellar wall holds precious bottles. Natural wood and lime-finished walls pair with soft lighting and low music to create a space that is intimate yet social, depending on how you feel that evening.
The cocktails, all priced between ₹700 and ₹950, use premium liquors and liqueurs—everything, essentially, available at the store. Against each description are symbols indicating the drink’s strength, spiciness, sourness, and sweetness. Every drink comes with an edible garnish, which actually makes sense and isn’t just decorative.
