Welcome to another edition of Culinary Delights’. I hope you all had a great week.
As restaurants open back up on August 14th at 50 % capacity, I am very excited to share a spot that has easily become one of my favorite places in Lagos…
Before I tell you how amazing Godaif Village is, I think it is also important that I also share the experience I had the first time I went there and how incredibly impressed I am by how well they have taken feedback since then. I am starting to realize that perfect dining experiences are nice but what is even more amazing is when a restaurant acknowledges a negative situation and continues to improve each and every time you go. I can wholeheartedly say that this has been my experience at Godaif village.
I typically don’t write about not so great experiences at restaurants, because I understand that my interpretation of negative experience does not necessarily mean that the restaurant is bad. I also believe it is important to give people the benefit of the doubt and I am very much against the emerging “cancel” culture. I believe that even the greatest restaurant can have a bad day or moment, just like the greatest person on the earth can have a bad day. A bad experience can often stem from a myriad of factors and one of the ethos of my writing is to ensure to uplift entrepreneurs through the platforms made available to me so I hope you stick around to read how truly amazing the place is.
The first time I went to Godaif village I was with my friends Temi and Vivian, and I will never forget this day because it was a very rainy day and typically I don’t like to leave the house when it’s raining. I almost didn’t want to leave my house, but Vivian had been raving about this place on Banana island road for a while and we finally decided to all go there at the same time. When we arrived at Godaif village, I was enthusiastic because the space is reminiscent of a location you can easily find in the Caribbean, somewhere in the Bahamas or Barbados. Located in the heart of Ikoyi close to Banana Island road is Godaif Village a chic café/restaurant that encompasses everything I think a dining/ café experience should be. You walk in and you are greeted by a lush garden-like atmosphere, large, tall trees reminiscent of a tropical forest/ garden. I love the space because it is segmented into 3 main sections, the poolside bar/restaurant, the indoor café, and the jungle gym/park (perfect for children.) It is a serene environment and a great place to relax, get work done, catch up with friends, swim, walk around, and be surrounded by overall good vibes. We started out at the café, had some pastries and some delicious farm to cup tea. Godaif has a blend of tea from all around the world. You can choose from imported classic English breakfast, rooibos, chai, chamomile, Turkish apple blend, green, citrus, and much more. You can also get a great blend of coffee: espresso, cappuccino, latte, macchiato amongst others.
After about one hour in the café we headed to the poolside and It was such a good vibe. Relaxing with a great mix of music played in the background. The café menu and poolside menu are different from the café menu so as a culinary enthusiast I decided to order the grilled croaker fish. I had been craving fish all week so I was really looking forward to it. As always when you are out with friends, time passed by very fast and before we knew it a few hours had passed and our fish still hadn’t come. After making an inquiry about what happened it turns out there was a miscommunication and the order wasn’t placed.
My fellow foodies will understand… Can you imagine having such a great time, sitting for two hours dreaming about how great the fish was going to taste? only to find out the order was not placed. For lack of a better word, I felt defeated. We had a frank conversation with the management, and they were able to get our fish out in 30 minutes. They were very apologetic and tried to understand our frustrations to the best of their abilities and to be honest, I don’t think I have experienced the level of follow up and customer service after placing complaints at a restaurant. The fish was incredible by the way, marinated just right, not too spicy and soft.
We just wish we didn’t have to wait two hours to eat it… but was it worth the wait? Absolutely! their menu is diverse you can have anything from salads, light bites such as beef empanadas, grilled polenta cake.
Dishes such as grilled salmon, grilled croaker, tilapia, bbq chicken, beef and chicken suya, an assortment of past, injera, pizza, and much more.
I believe in second chances and I am so glad I returned to Godaif village the next week after that and have probably been there 10 times after that and will absolutely keep returning. I feel at ease knowing that feedback is important to the management and the staff as well. I would much rather go to a restaurant that acknowledges their wrongs and rectifies it, than one who messes up and doesn’t recognize their wrongdoing. Their staff is very well trained, pleasant, and helpful. They are willing to go out of their way to make the customer feel at comfortable and to ensure the experience is top-notch. You will not regret going there. Trust me.
Total
N22,500
Whole grilled croaker fish N 6,000
Hot cross bun chai N1700
Butter milk chicken wings N5500
Plaint croissant N 1100
Cheesecake N3300
Quinoa salad N 4900
Contact details
Godaif Village
+23409070042361
www.instagram.com/godaifvillage
