Foods from Abides West-African Restaurant
Comments
2009 Aug 17
I am so excited about this new restaurant! I know there are a ton of Ethiopian restaurants in this city already but until now, there weren't any restaurants representing traditional food from the sub-saharan.
This place has been open for 8 weeks now and it took over the haitian restaurant that was previously there (which moved further down on Mcarthur).
I ordered the fufu with peanut soup and chicken and a side of plaintains. I was quite surprised that the price was only $13+tax for all that food plus a can of pop. I will comment on the food separately.
I think it is important to note a couple of things, especially for those who have never been to an African restaurant before (again, excluding North African restaurants)
-Although there is an ample selection of items on the "menu", you should ask the lady what is available that day. There are usually only a select few items that the cook will prepare (i.e. fufu, kenkey/ gari, fried fish, grilled chicken, one soup, one stew)
-Even if something is on the menu for that day, you should probably call ahead to reserve it because food items tend to run out quickly. For example, I called at 11:30 am to request fufu and by 12:45pm, it was the last fufu that was available (perhaps because the owner was gone for the day).
I just wanted to make note of that for people who are not used to dining at African restaurants because I do not want anyone to get frustrated. That is just the way it is sometimes.
For people who don't like spicy food, don't be afraid to try the food. The owner has been nice enough to leave the hot peppers out of the food. Instead, she has pre-prepared small African hot sauces on the side (shitoh and some other hot sauce). I already have shitoh at home so I took the other clearer hot sauce, but I didn't find it that hot...however there is a slight fiery aftertaste.
The portion of the food was quite reasonable for the price I paid. However, a typical African who wants fufu might be a little dissappointed with the portion of fufu. We are used to getting huge heapings of fufu, so for those who have larger appetites, you may want to request two plates of fufu. I am a huge wimp when it comes to eating fufu and I finished all of it this time, so I can definitely see where other Africans might need to double the portion.
Other than that, the service was great and I am so happy that we finally have a west-african restaurant. I hope there is more to come! Welcome Abide!! :)
This place has been open for 8 weeks now and it took over the haitian restaurant that was previously there (which moved further down on Mcarthur).
I ordered the fufu with peanut soup and chicken and a side of plaintains. I was quite surprised that the price was only $13+tax for all that food plus a can of pop. I will comment on the food separately.
I think it is important to note a couple of things, especially for those who have never been to an African restaurant before (again, excluding North African restaurants)
-Although there is an ample selection of items on the "menu", you should ask the lady what is available that day. There are usually only a select few items that the cook will prepare (i.e. fufu, kenkey/ gari, fried fish, grilled chicken, one soup, one stew)
-Even if something is on the menu for that day, you should probably call ahead to reserve it because food items tend to run out quickly. For example, I called at 11:30 am to request fufu and by 12:45pm, it was the last fufu that was available (perhaps because the owner was gone for the day).
I just wanted to make note of that for people who are not used to dining at African restaurants because I do not want anyone to get frustrated. That is just the way it is sometimes.
For people who don't like spicy food, don't be afraid to try the food. The owner has been nice enough to leave the hot peppers out of the food. Instead, she has pre-prepared small African hot sauces on the side (shitoh and some other hot sauce). I already have shitoh at home so I took the other clearer hot sauce, but I didn't find it that hot...however there is a slight fiery aftertaste.
The portion of the food was quite reasonable for the price I paid. However, a typical African who wants fufu might be a little dissappointed with the portion of fufu. We are used to getting huge heapings of fufu, so for those who have larger appetites, you may want to request two plates of fufu. I am a huge wimp when it comes to eating fufu and I finished all of it this time, so I can definitely see where other Africans might need to double the portion.
Other than that, the service was great and I am so happy that we finally have a west-african restaurant. I hope there is more to come! Welcome Abide!! :)
2009 Aug 17
It may not be your mother's fufu, but it is quite suitable. Smooth texture, well mixed. I'm not sure which flour she uses as I have not had fufu from the box in quite a while. As I previously mentioned, it is relatively small compared to a regular plate of fufu you might get at home or in a native African restaurant - but the price is very reasonable so you can always request more if you are hungry. (Fufu plus soup and meat came to $12.50).
2009 Aug 17
**
I don't think this is prepared the same way as Ghanaian Groundnut soup (There was no stew meat and the soup wasn't spicy. I prefer Ghanaian groundnut soup with stew meat, garden egg and hot peppers). I think this is a Nigerian peanut soup. It simply tasted like ground peanuts, palm oil and maggi cube.
I had requested peanut soup with chicken (the only meat they had that day was chicken and fish) and I was dissappointed that the chicken was not in the soup. The server gave me two pieces of grilled chicken on the side - which was very tasty, don't get me wrong. This is not ideal for eating fufu...Plus, I think the soup would have been more flavorful had it had stew meat in it.
I don't think this is prepared the same way as Ghanaian Groundnut soup (There was no stew meat and the soup wasn't spicy. I prefer Ghanaian groundnut soup with stew meat, garden egg and hot peppers). I think this is a Nigerian peanut soup. It simply tasted like ground peanuts, palm oil and maggi cube.
I had requested peanut soup with chicken (the only meat they had that day was chicken and fish) and I was dissappointed that the chicken was not in the soup. The server gave me two pieces of grilled chicken on the side - which was very tasty, don't get me wrong. This is not ideal for eating fufu...Plus, I think the soup would have been more flavorful had it had stew meat in it.
Shag Me