Diveagar is a small coastal town in Shrivardhan taluka. Local businesses are coconut and betelnut farming, fishing and home-stays / khanavals for tourists. It is one of the cleanest beaches and not very crowded too.
I had first visited Diveagar with Rushikesh Kulkarni from Breakfree Journeys in 2014. It was a memorable road trip and for a long time, I was waiting for my next trip.
Incidentally, Diveagar is also home-town of Gaurav and Deepti. They were kind enough to invite me over to their ancestral home in Divegar in November 2019. While they drove down from Pune, I chose a different route this time on my solo travel. Gateway of India --> Mandva Jetty --> Alibaug --> Revdanda --> Agar Danda --> Dighi --> Borli --> Diveagar (Catamaran / ST Bus / shared Vikram). This took a bit longer then expected due to bad road conditions. I reached Diveagar around 13:30 hours (total cost of travel < INR 350)
Being in a coastal village, Bapat Khanaval stands out distinctly as a one of the few pure vegetarian eateries. The only address that is needed to reach the place is Suhas Bapat, Near Marathi School, Diveagar.
However, please note that you cannot walk into the Khanaval for a meal. They prepare meals only for pre-orders so you need to reserve your meals at least 3 hours in advance. (Contact +91 90285 24271) The place is nothing fancy - it is a typical Konkan house with a coconut and betelnut plantations. The dining area too, is outdoors with a roof.
The food at the khanaval is freshly made - it is a bliss for those who love home-style simple food. It consists of solkadi, fresh local vegetables, koshimbir, chapati, dal and rice. There has to be a special mention for the Ukadiche Modak at the Bapat Khanaval. These are very well made and served with tup. Unfortunately, these modaks do not last for long so you cannot carry them back home. Have them fresh during your trip. Incidentally, Deepti also makes amazing modaks at home. Check out the recipe on her food blog at www.thefoodiefun.com
After a delicious lunch, we rested for a while and then had some sweet tender coconut water at the ancestral home. The coconuts were harvested right there and we drank directly out of the coconuts.
We walked around the beach for a while, watched the beautiful sunset and returned back to Ekvira Khanaval (Potnis) for dinner. Extremely refreshing trip for a weekend, away from Mumbai, yet not too far from Mumbai.
Address: Suhas Bapat, Near Marathi School, Diveagar, Maharashtra 402 404