A Trip to Godaif Village
FOLLY: If you want to feel like you’re not in Nigeria for a hot second (literally), the garden at Godaif village is good place to start. You may have to wear ear plugs so that you don’t hear the noise of the car horns and possible nose pegs for the smell of Nigeria but honestly, visually it’s an escape.
NOSA: The instagram pictures really do not do it any justice. It looks like one of those villas you find in telenovelas, but a bit smaller.
FOLLY: The inside as well is tastefully furnished, cozy and relaxing.
FOLLY: The menu says an increased offering is coming soon but until then we have cafe staples - sandwiches, salads, and pastries.
NOSA: It’s a standard cafe menu with some wine added and an extensive tea selection. To be fair, I wouldn’t come here primarily for the food because that’s very much WIP. You should definitely come here for the space. It’s an absolutely wonderful space to work out of.
NOSA: Picking the right sandwich to order was a bit of a challenge. I really wanted to try a bunch of the paninis, but they bagel sandwiches too.
FOLLY: I don’t like paninis that much. I find that there’s always too much bread and not enough of the stuff in between (fillings) so I opted for the Ham and Cheese Bagel Sandwich.
NOSA: While I settled for the Avocado and Chicken Panini
FOLLY: Bagels are still quite rare in Lagos so I never pass up the opportunity. Everything had cheese so i decided to risk it all in spite of my intolerance and go for it. I was already planning to have the cheesecake later so a little slice of cheese in my sandwich was not going to be my undoing, the cheesecake would be.
FOLLY: The bagel sandwich was good - it was a simple coffee shop sandwich. No frills. A chunky homemade spread or house sauce could have made it more interesting, but for a sandwich that didn’t announce itself to be more than a “Ham and Cheese bagel sandwich”, it was enough and delivered.
NOSA: The avocado and chicken sandwich was very much a chicken salad sandwich so I have no idea why I asked for it to be toasted. Chicken salad sandwiches are infinitely better when cold, but like a dunce, I got mine toasted. I definitely liked it, but it could’ve been a lot more enjoyable. Like, as enjoyable as the Quinoa Salad I ordered as well
The quinoa salad reminded me of those cute little salad things you get with dinner when you fly long haul and I really love those. It had quinoa, peppers, cucumbers, raisins and walnuts in it and it’s very vegetarian friendly
FOLLY: The cheesecake was absolutely fantastic and possibly the best cheesecake I’ve had in Lagos. Craft Gourmet and Maison Kayser were previously tied in my “little black book” but Godaif Village’s blueberry cheesecake has likely dethroned both.
NOSA: Very very bold statement there.
FOLLY: I don’t want to make a hasty conclusion so I need to go back and try the cheesecake again. Once I’ve done that, I promise to report back with an update.
NOSA: It might be nostalgia tainting your judgement. Or maybe you’re associating the good vibes of the space with the cheesecake.
FOLLY: It’s only fair because I’ve tried the cheesecake at Craft and Maison multiple times, it’ll be unfair to dethrone them on a single taste alone.
POSTSCRIPT
NOSA: Will definitely return
FOLLY: Highly recommend for the cheesecake. I can’t wait to try it again soon.
VERDICT
DAMAGE
Latte - N1500
Quinoa salad - N2300
Caramel macchiato - N1600
Ham & cheese bagel - N2600
Blueberry cheesecake - N2600
Chicken avocado panini - N2600
PARKING
Small parking lot for about five cars