The Damada Experience!

Adamawa is a state that doesn’t have many upscale hang out places, but Mr Sai’du T. Baba-Bikoi’s Restaurant Damada, Located at No 30, Atiku Abubakar road, Jimeta, is a place to go. With a variety of cuisines and impressive environment, you couldn’t find anywhere better to eat in Adamawa than Damada. Restaurant Damada’s slogan promises an “unforgettable experience”, and after our visit (Amina Kollere, Haneefah Adamu, Halima Olajumoke Sogbesan, and Prof. Samuel Tesunbi) they have kept that promise. This is a collective report on our (the students’) experience at Restaurant Damada.

The grounds of the restaurant, which seem to be still under construction, are wide and spacious enough to park up to ten cars. Without the valet services and parking shades, we have the opportunity to pick a very convenient parking spot.

RECEPTION:
The reception at Damada is a tiny booth-like corner by the entrance of the restaurant. It has a well-polished burgundy table and two chairs. On the reception table is a telephone, stacks of menu with two unfriendly receptionists busy writing checks for patrons.

DÉCOR & AMBIENCE
The décor of the restaurant is très magnifiqué. It is what we imagine an African-themed restaurant would look like. In place of the expected chandeliers are wicker lamps that hang from the roof. The ceiling, on the other hand, resembles the long forgotten thatched roof. The place mats are made from raffia and on the walls hang really beautiful African paintings. The impressive artistic representation of a calabash is a view.
There is an array of well-polished burgundy tables and chairs. These are very comfortable and they allow for free movement. The plasma television is on a minimal volume, not too loud to interrupt patrons’ conversations or too low for one to hear what is on. The air inside the restaurant is cool and fresh, despite the heat outside. Thanks to the 6-split air conditioners and 2 industrial size standing fans!

STAFF & PROFESSIONALISM:
The waiters are not professionally dressed, and guests are not ushered to their seats. However, after we are seated, a waitress, who looks like she’s having a bad day, walks over with the menu and hands each of us a copy. She makes no attempt to smile, as she answers our questions half-heartedly. We request that she give us some time to go through the menu; while at it, we order for three cups of medium sized chapman and a bottle of water. She leaves promptly to get our orders ready. The table already has placemats, salt and peppershakers, serviette, as well as an empty tooth pick case on the table.

MENU:
The menu has over a dozen entrées. Savory and taste bud awakening as they seem, the entrées range from local dishes to oriental meals, continental and gourmet meals. The menu consists of appetizers, such as soups and salads. There are main course meals made from rice, spaghetti, potato, couscous, chicken, fish and beef. That’s not all. There are oriental and Nigerian dishes, as well as desserts, sandwiches and pizzas. The vast selection of juice and drinks is definitely eye-catching; they vary from natural juices, to artificial drinks, yoghurts, wines, cocktails, mock tails, beers and table water. The menu caters for all individuals with a particular eating orientation.
In a state like Adamawa, where there are people from different parts of the world, it is important for a restaurant to offer different kinds of entrees; Damada does a good job of it.

FOOD:
On the day of our visit, the owner is present. As a result, he offers us complementary appetizers. These snacks are delicious samosas and spring rolls, which are served with chilly and garlic sauces. This is one appetizer everyone should try. Not only is the presentation spectacular, the samosa and spring rolls are searing and crispy; the sauces are really spicy so much so that they [can] cause some sort of explosion in the mouth, awakening taste buds in the process.
   

About an hour after the order is made, the food are ready. We all eat different meals, and so we have different recollections of taste.
For instance, the person who eats Couscous and lamb chops with green salad remarks: “The couscous is nicely done, cooked with minimal water but soft enough. The lamb chops is well cooked in a sweet and sour sauce giving it an edgy taste. The salad was an absolute bliss! The lettuce is so crispy, and the dressing is so alive. This is another meal that does wonders to the taste buds.”
While another person who prefers  jollof spaghetti and chicken says: “The food’s aroma is appealing. The presentation of the jollof rice and chicken is also very good. The food is garnished with cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, and green pepper. The jollof spaghetti is good. There is a subtle garlic taste; the spaghetti and the chicken are soft, spicy and searing.”
The third customer, whose meal is spaghetti al tonno with chicken, says it is “awesome, searing, and well spiced. The spaghetti is well cooked so that it comes out in attractive, slim, and long strands. The meal is garnished with green peppers, and red peppers. The chicken is well spiced as well and the sauce is amazingly tasty.”

CONCLUSION:
There you have it! The Damada environment allows for relaxation, and it complements the Adamawa culture especially by the décor. The restaurant clearly has trained chefs as is apparent in the taste of the food.
However, the service is slow and is kind of a turn-off for customers wishing to drop in for a quick lunch.
The waiters also need to improve their customer services in order to attract customers.
Restaurant Damada--except for the momentary flies that slide in when the doors open--is certainly a place worth visiting for a second and a third time. Though the food is expensive by Adamawa standards, it is worth it.
However, for a standard and proclaimed restaurant, such as Damada, we expected everything to be properly spelt out and easy to locate. For instance, there is only one visible exit leading into the restaurant. If there is another one, then customers need to be told so that in cases of emergencies it would be easier to evacuate customers from the restaurant.
Overall, we award restaurant Damada two stars for the good services and amazing food.