SAFI Lagos Pushes the Envelope in LekkiPosted by Folayemi A on April 30, 2018SAFI Lagos 33 Jay Jay Oladimeji Close, Lekki, Lagos NOSA: You would be forgiven for thinking you're at the wrong place when you're at the gate to Safi Lagos. It looks like the typical Lekki "apartment" complex. FOLLY: On arrival, Safi appears like a restaurant that's located in a sectioned out portion of someone's house, a la Cafe Jade, but on further inspection it's actually a small restaurant within a boutique hotel - I dig that. They had a quiet opening last month and have been hosting happy hour every Thursday for a minute now (gleaned from Instagram). I imagine the purpose of which is to get the word out and drive traffic. NOSA: The menu at Safi is pretty straight to the point. No messing about at all, which is how I like it. Five appetizers, seven mains, and a couple items in the dessert section. I absolutely hate when restaurants in Lagos have super extensive menus because, more often than not, they either don’t have all the items available or don’t have the range for all of them. FOLLY: We arrived at Safi from the Hans & Rene 7 opening where I had stuffed myself silly so I needed to be quite measured about my approach. 
Coconut Crusted prawn
NOSA: To start, we got the Coconut Shrimp. Per the description: “coconut crusted shrimp with a sweet mango mayonnaise dipping sauce”. We ordered this because it looked really good on their Instagram page - a decision we'd soon regret. I mean, N3500 for that thing above is daylight robbery. FOLLY: It was disappointing. This was particularly stressful because the approach we took to ordering at Safi was actually based on the items that were featured on Safi's Instagram. NOSA: In their defense, the caption says "Coconut crusted prawns with a mango aioli" so maybe it's our fault for not reading. FOLLY: Fair enough. Taste wise, I found the shrimp to be a tad overcooked - it wasn't fleshy mostly chewy. However, the coconut was toasted and crispy on the outside which I quite liked. NOSA: The shrimp had a little too much crisp to it. Probably should’ve taken it out the fryer about a couple minutes earlier. They’re onto something with the mango mayo though. You put that in a burger and you might have something special. FOLLY: A la Mama Rocks. Moving on to our mains, we ordered the Cajun Mac & Cheese with Shrimp and the Plantain Lasagne. NOSA: We also planned to split the Bourbon Honey Glazed Ribs. “Planned” because we were done with our mains when the ribs arrived. Not sure if it was because the waitress forgot to place the order, but it took an inexplicably long time for us to get served those ribs. We got it to-go and I completely forgot about the ribs until I left the house today. Probably not fair to judge the quality of their ribs after they sat in my fridge for a day, but that’s SAFI’s fault and not mine. TL;DR - The ribs were serviceable and I didn't get a picture. 
FOLLY: The Mac & Cheese was very simple. Like a no frills version - the cheese isn't the fancy stuff and the top is not crusty with breadcrumbs. Goes straight to the point, neither disappointing or impressing. NOSA: The mac and cheese had nothing Cajun about it, to be honest Cajun food is known for it’s liberal use of bell peppers, onions, and sometimes, celery. In fact, if you look up any “Cajun Mac & Cheese” recipe, bell peppers are a key element If anything, the “Cajun Mac & Cheese” at Safi is like a Nigerian take on mac and cheese because it tasted like they used a bucket load of crayfish. If you look at it from that lens, I guess it’s not all bad. In fact, you could say it’s pretty decent. FOLLY: So the plantain lasagne was something I was really looking forward to after seeing a Twitter user share a recipe last year. I saved the recipe but I, obviously, have never used it. I expected the plantain lasgane to be a perfect balance of sweet (plantain) and umami (the beef) but the most dominant flavor profile was saltiness from the cheese (mozzarella). 
NOSA: It wasn't for me at all. Like, I get what they were going for and the execution was pretty good, but I don’t think I like plantain that much for it to work for me. FOLLY: The execution could also be improved because most of the beef was concentrated at the bottom of the bowl - it could have done with a bit more even distribution. POSTSCRIPT FOLLY: I'd like to visit again for happy hour and maybe try a couple more starters. NOSA: I like how adventurous the menu is. The execution might fall short at times, but it definitely feels like they're trying to push the envelope a bit. VERDICT 
DAMAGE Plantain Lasagne - N3000 Coconut Shrimp - N3500 Cajun Shrimp Mac & Cheese - N3200 Bourbon Honey Glazed Ribs - N3800 PARKING Narrow and a tight squeeze. |
EDL Weekender: Injera and Possibly the Best Mojito in LagosPosted by Nosa O on April 27, 2018NOSA: Does it count as a long weekend if Monday is not a public holiday too? I honestly don't think any work is getting done on Monday so they might as well give us that day off too. FOLLY: I just wish they mistakenly declared it a public holiday and then couldn't take it back so we'd have double the time off. Remember they mistakenly did that once? NOSA: Anyway, playlist for the weekend: NOSA: ...and here's what to do this weekend (minus the obvious glaring omission because we don't promote terrorists)
EATTry Injera for the first time at Kaldi House
NOSA: Injera is spongy flatbread that's super popular in East Africa. Much like intra-African trade, there isn't a lot of cultural exchange within Africa. Minus Nollywood and P-Square obviously. Ghana is literally next door and it's easier to find pasta from Italy than waakye in Lagos. A lot of work needs to be done on that and Kaldi House is a proper step in that direction. FOLLY: A lot of readers were so excited when we shared this find (Injera) on our Instagram page during the week, so do check it out if you want to explore East African cuisine. Ps. Our full review of Kaldi house is here. DRINKA mojito that doesn't suck at ShiroNOSA: Apparently, the Secret Garden is the best mojito you'll find in Lagos. Christina, from the #DrinkLagos crew, swears by it in her review so you might as well take her up on it. FOLLY: There was a period where I'd order a mojito at every restaurant we'd go to because I wanted to compare it against the last. I didn't write about it on the blog for whatever reason - I just kept on trying mojitos at a bunch of different restaurants. 
LAGOSOHL TourEMEKA: Open House is Back! They show you cool spaces around town that are usually not accessible. And ITS FREE! 
“Explore the home and studio of famous artist Rom isichei with Open House Lagos this Saturday! Located in Ilupeju, Lagos, Isichei commissioned the architect Sola Adesina of Interstate Architects in 2016 to provide designs for him. The resulting building houses a home in front and a 2-level studio approached from a side street. The building sits on a corner piece of land.Untypical of Modernist homes, there is not the abundant glazing seen in living spaces, even though the space is an open plan into the dining area and kitchen. This space is large and acts as a gallery for artwork and large canvasses are easily accommodated here. Join us this Saturday as explore this unique architectural piece.” Time - 10:00AM - 4:00PM // Location - 2, Kujore Street, off Olowogbowo, Street, Ilupeju, Lagos. You can either join the OHL Tour bus or meet us at the building |