Hello readers, hope your weekends going great. I got back from Lagos, Nigeria a few days ago and have spent that time pretty much thinking about how to compose a blog post detailing my final week in Lagos. Lagos being one of the most populous cities in the African continent as a whole has a very wide range of restaurants that caters to soo many different tastes. Do I write a blog about the various very cheap roadside eateries, focus on Lagos nightlife? Or just compose a general blog about the various places to eat in Lagos. After careful consideration I opted for the latter, so a blog about the various places to eat in Lagos (e.g Yellow chilli and Angle villa ) it is, with traditional dishes being the main focus.
Lagos Mainland : Fancy some rice and tomato based stew?
The first roadside eaterie to feature on the blog has to be a roadside shack that served rice, plantain and peppered tomato based stew in the Lagos mainland area next to Sangrouse bus stop. The stew was spicy and flavourful. Although might be a tad too spicy for some i reckon. Forget health and safety. Close your eyes and just savour the taste of the dishes I say. They laughed at the fact that I was taking pictures. I was definitely a first I reckon.
Ikoyi : tasty catfish coming up.
The second roadside eaterie, better known as a beer parlour was in an area of Lagos called Ikoyi. They served some of the biggest catfish have seen in a while. The catfish itself was moist and slightly sweet with a very succulent texture. It was immersed in something in a soup called pepper soup and as such with each bite of the fish, you can taste the pepper soup mix used to create the soup. The mix made up of a combination of ingredients such as cumin, coriander, all spice, anise seeds, cloves, ginger, etc is added to some stock , bitter leaf and maggi cubes to create intense flavours that really baffle the senses. I had to wash it down with tons of beer and water, but i loved every minute of the sweat fest. I got a few glances because I had my socks on as protection that night due to the mosquito bites. Must be done when you choose not to take anti malarial pills.
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| Road side fishing: Catfish in pepper soup |
Ikoyi : Deliciously spiced grilled meats at Glover court.
Akin to kebabs, this delicious quite spicy grilled meats known as suya is possibly the most famous street food in Lagos. The various selection of meats ( tripe, chicken, beef etc ) are grilled, dipped in hot oil, grilled again , soaked in home made mixed spices and served garnished with onions. You invariably have to queue but that’s totally fine. As they say, good things come to those who wait or a heart attack where all this cholesterols concerned…but less not worry about such stuff. That grilled meat smelled divine and tasted as good also.
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| Barbecued grilled meat: Suya |
Victoria Island : fancy a pizza?
Whilst am on the suya theme, a spot that deserves a mention has to be pizzeria. Delicious pizza with various toppings. I totally enjoyed their suya beef pizzas.
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| Pizza with a Beef suya topping |
Lekki : lovely outdoor vibes
Angle Villa hotel in Lekki has to be one of the most chilled out of places to spend the evening at in Lagos. The comfy chairs, good music, decent food and star spotting makes this bar a nice place to spend the evening. The only slight issue I had was with their whisky selection as they were out of a few different choices on their menu. That’s just me being picky however.
Victoria Island : fancy some yellow chillies ?
Based in Victoria Island, this restaurant serves continental and traditional Nigerian dishes. They have an extensive menu that covers a wide range of dishes from different parts of the country. If you’re travelling to Lagos and you want to know what Nigerian foods all about, a visit to yellow chillies is a must.
Spicy snails covered fried tomato based sauce. No escargot here, am talking about snails as big as my fist. Simply delicious.
Edikang Ikong , a Nigerian soup from the south eastern states ( cross river ) made with leafy vegetables such as pumpkin leaves, water leaves and Spinach with copious amounts of dried fish and assorted meats. I had this with some white rice and plantain ofcourse. Quite yum I have to say.
A happy man indeed.
Banga soup : enjoyed by the people of Delta state, this soup is made from juices squeezed out of a Palm kernel fruit. This dish is definitely my new personal favourite. I loved it so much I gave my friend an evil stare / Jedi mind trick that told him the best course of action was to eat only half and give me the rest.
The whole meal came up to almost 8,000 naira ( £22 ) This isn’t bad at all. Have been to a few Nigerian restaurants in the UK and this meal would have probably set you back about £26 I reckon.
Speaking of friends, it was nice meeting up with Bamidele for the first time ( courtesy of Facebook ). We share the same some of the same views so it was nice catching up over this meal. Thanks for the restaurant recommendation.
Victoria Island : Spice route
I spent an hour at the bar of an interesting restaurant in Victoria Island called the Spice route. I went around closing hours and totally had a nice time talking about whisky with one of the managers. I would have loved to go back if I had more time, so check up on this place if you can. They have some of the best restaurant decors in Lagos.
The blog wouldn’t be complete without mentioning the main reason I travelled to Lagos. It was for this lovely lady below. My granma’s ( Jumoke Odutola ) birthday.
Happy 80th gran.
Massive thanks to my aunts for the awesome birthday planning. It was a nice time indeed and well appreciated
So there goes my time in Lagos. Hope you enjoyed the blog post. If you have any other restaurant ideas, let me know. I am hoping to visit again in August 2017.