Akara Restaurant — Restaurant in London

Akara does live up to the hype, at least for some dishes. We started off with the plantain chips and 2 mocktails, Chapman and Scotch Bonnet & Peach. Plantain chips were nice and crispy but what made it pop was the aubergine yassa dip., it was smoky and packed so much flavour (8/10). The mocktails were also delicious, what surprised me the most was the peach mocktail, the scotch bonnet was not a joke, don’t try it if you can’t handle your spice level or you can ask to make it less spicy (which was offered by the bar staff after) Although the more you drink the less spicy it becomes but regardless it was an amazing drink.

Unquestionably Akara was on the list to try, and we each had a prawn one, to be honest although I enjoyed it especially the flavour of the prawn and the sauce, I found the dough too dense for my liking, maybe it was suppose to be this dense (Ive had “Fat Cook” which is a similar fried dough from Zimbabwe and it was lighter in texture and in my mind would work better, 7/10)

We then tried quite a few meat dishes with the efki rice and without a doubt the standout dishes were the poussin and the rice. The flavour of the prawn really shine through the rice and every grain of the rice was an umami bomb, consistency of the rice were perfect too and 100% my favourite thing of this meal (10/10)

On top the Poussin was perfectly cooked and seasoned, juice was bursting and the meat was so tender and succulent, however the skin was not crispy which was a shame (9/10).

Now on to the of nice but nothing memorable list, the beef Kulikuli Yaji (6/10)was nicely cooked but it was simply some good pieces of chargrilled beef, lamb Dibi (6.5/10)also tasted great and was cooked to fall apart in your mouth but nothing special about it. I had looked forward to try the Grilled Pork but I think it was dquite disappointing, although the yam sauce was super smooth and tasty. I was a bit put off by how rare it was, especially the rib piece was very pink inside so I had asked one staff if this was suppose to be served like this but he was not helpful and just said we can cook this more if you prefer and didn’t bother to explain if it was safe to eat it like this. (5/10).

Overall, I would go back but I would only try the poussin, rice and give the fish...

I went to this restaurant based on what I saw on social media. I booked my table online and was told it would take up to 2 hours for the service of 4 people. On entering the restaurant, it had a good vibe, and the decor was modern. The lady who welcomed us had read my dietary requirements for my guests and answered our questions about the menu. We ordered the various versions of the Akara for our starters. Odered 2 Lagos BBQ chicken with crispy skin, the sea bream, the grilled pork, and versions of the rice dishes. For dessert, we had the three deserts on offer. The Akara tasted good, but I found some of the other food underwhelming in flavour. For example, the chicken skin had a good chard on it, but the skin wasn't crispy as advertised. The grilled pork with yam sauce and farmented chilli was tasty, but I felt the flavour of the farmented sauce clashed with flavour Efik rice and sauce. The guava sorbet with mirenque was a sorbet with a mireque shard and not what it said on the menu. If you are serving shards, then say that on the menu so the customer knows what to expect. I also think the main plates should be advertised as a complete dish rather than just the protein. As the side dishes on offer didn't provide enough variety to make up a complete dish. The overall service was good. The waiter who took our desert orders wasn't aware of the nut allergy we had discussed with lady earlier but served us our food and we were almost going the share the deserts amongst us when we asked again if any of the deserts had traces of nuts which he then went to ask the kitchen just to told the cheesecake had nuts in it. We were served and had our food within the two hour window without feeling rushed. The waiters were respectful of our space, and we didn't get the interruptions you have in some restaurants where you asked too many times if you were enjoying your food. I loved the drinks we ordered, the beer and especially the Chapman. In terms of value for money, I think the food is slightly overpriced and the starter portions are a little on the small size. I spent £274 but I wasn't that full. I have spent similar amounts in other modern restaurants in the west end for 4 people and thought I had more...

African - Brazilian for a Western palate. Not authentic flavours. Focussing more on the modern, fine dine experience for charging more money rather than on serving good, flavourful food. I have eaten quite a bit of West African food in London, at the more humble places and the now uber upmarket Chishuru. Been to Bahia in Brazil and tried the West African - Brazilian fusion cuisine including acaraje there. And the friend I was with, actually lives in Africa and has travelled around, so knows the cuisine quite well. We went, mistakenly, thinking that a place that had named itself after the dish (akara) would at least strive to come close to the real McCoy from the streets of Bahia. However, sadly that was not to be. With each acaraje priced at 11/12 each - it can hardly fill your stomach, unless you eat at least 3-4. We didn't go for their set lunch as the main choices were very limiting - just chicken or mushroom. Opted for a la carte with an acaraje each. The fritter was on point - crispy and well-seasoned but the filling was a smooth emulsion and not enough of a kick ( a la fine dining places) and accompanied by a sauce which was nowhere like the spicy dried prawns that are stuffed into each acaraje along the coastal streetfood stalls in Brazil. Though, given how bland and underwhelming the rest of the food was, it was the best dish, followed by the efik rice. Because the sauce they gave us with the fritters just didn't cut it, we ordered the shito ( extra charge). Again, while that had a chilli kick - there was no seasoning or sourness to balance. The mains were a whole butterflied seabream ( good size), and well cooked but again, not enough seasoning and the greenish marinade was sparingly applied. For £37, considering sea bream is such a cheap fish. The Lagos chicken was a whole grilled Poussin, again same problem - bland, and dry inside. We both felt so let down and disappointed. Given how expensive everything was - came to 54 per person, and not even feeling happy after eating. Glad I never went to their flagship in Central London, to spend...