Foodateria Kenyan & Nigerian Kitchen — Restaurant in Columbus

Front desk attendant was not very helpful. I asked for more hot sauce for samosas and was told I couldn't have more but it was for sale! When I asked the price he replied I can give you 2 more. So I mentioned that I used to work with Wycliff and asked if was in? He said yes but is very busy which I found funny because I know Wycliffe and he is never too busy to speak with a friend or customer. So another worker came out the kitchen and I said can you get Wycliffe I would like to tell him hello which he said he is somewhere on the premises, so who is telling the truth? Anyway I don't think I will be coming back soon as I live pretty far and usually have a large order of samosas which I ordered 26 today. Sorry Wycliffe.

Update- Wycliffe contacted me personally and apologized for the service (which wasn't bad) and them not checking to see if he was available. He explained the gentleman was fairly new and only wanted to do a good job. We discussed working out a deal when I place my next order. Thanks for taking the time to make this small...

I had wanted to try Nigerian food since seeing a participant make egusi on a PBS cooking show, and then I discovered Foodateria (formerly Wycliff's Kitchen) on the Eater Columbus list. Easy to hop there off 270, easy to park in the shopping strip mall, we got a table no problem walking in early on a Saturday night. The food was delicious - the owner and staff were so kind and helpful to us navigating the menu. We loved everything we ate - egusi, fufu, jollof rice, coconut beans, plantains. It was all terrific. We did the vegan versions because I am a vegetarian - incredibly flavorful and filling. They treated us to delicious cookies for dessert and we packed all our leftovers to enjoy at home tomorrow. Will definitely go back again to explore more of their offerings and take my parents (who are in their 80s) for their first taste of African food and our foodie friends- there is also a Kenyan side of the menu to work our way through, how exciting! I know this will become a new favorite...

I don’t usually write reviews, but the incredible service and amazing food at Foodateria Kenyan & Nigerian Kitchen truly deserve five stars. The son who took my order was so friendly and helpful—even when I wasn’t sure what to get, he made the experience easy and enjoyable.

Today, they had sold out of samosas, but the mom, who also owns the restaurant, kindly made a fresh batch just for me. I waited about 20 minutes, but the time flew by thanks to a great conversation with her son. He was genuinely excited when my autistic son shared that he had scored his first goal and encouraged him to keep playing hard. That moment absolutely made my day.

They even let us sample a spicy dish suya—it was so delicious I couldn’t stop eating it! This wasn’t my first visit, but today sealed it for me: I’m a customer for life.

Odabo ("goodbye")—a beautiful new word the owner taught me today.

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