Mama Foo Foo — Restaurant in Daytona Beach

A group of us girls have visited Mamma Foo Foo on a few occasions and I am writing this review based off First Impression, Service, Food & Drink and my Final Recommendations as this is long overdue.

First Impression: When you first walk in, it’s like a imaginary theme from a story book. It’s as if you are on a huge ship that is about to set sail to your dream destination. The very detailing of the twisted ropes, the accentuated vintage lights that hang atop each table, the plush blue sofas, the garage doors-oh my goodness- they open up to gaze over the river and sabotages your every weakness as you fall into the most spectacular hands of the sunset.

Service: Myself and the other ladies have been to alot of other places because we mostly travel as a group but let me say this, there was this particular young lady who stood out to us. I think her name was KAY (hoping I got her name right). This young lady is a gem! She made us feel welcomed the minute we walked in by keeping us engaged about little details of the restaurant to putting up with all our shenanigans. From all my years of traveling to different countries, experiencing different cuisines, hospitality and service including bad ones, not being compensated or apologized to- you name it I have seen it! She waited until we all were sat then she eloquently said: “Thank you for making Mamma Foo Foo your place of entertainment, your home away from home. I am so delighted to have met your acquaintance. My name is Kay and have an amazing evening”. I know it might sound like a simple thing to someone else reading this but I personally have been through the gamut of bad and good experiences with restaurants and I know great hospitality when I see it!

The other girls and I were left with our jaws dropped to the floor. I remember this so well because this was the highlight of our evening so I immediately wrote her name down because we have never experienced such gracefulness, such level of service and in the Daytona area? No way!

Food & Drink: We had different plates of food at the table as we wanted to try them all. The rice balls were very delectable as they came marinated in a red pasta like sauce. Our server’s name was JILL as KAY had already told us her name before she left, ( I also wrote her name down hoping she would have given us the same impression). She was very educated about the different varieties of food. She smiled with us gracefully indeed and was so very patient because we couldn’t make a hasty decision on the food choices. Jill gave us exceptional service from the very beginning to the end!

We also had the linguine and clams. It was a little bland to say the least but it was still great. The grilled octopus was a very tantalizing and tasty dish. It was very tender and done to perfection. The salmon was a game changer because I remember we were almost cat fighting over it haha. That was actually served with couscous I believe in a kind of white sauce. Most of us had the Sheila’s escape to drink and we also had some house wine as well which was very crisp delicious.

Final Recommendations: Based off our experience, the aesthetics, such a beautiful hidden oasis, a five star is truly deserving! The food is very affordable and one will expect this coming from the level of service to the quality of the food. This place in a few years will be the Mecca of haute cuisine in Daytona if they keep the level of service and hospitality. You can tell that the staff enjoys what they do and the girls and I would 100% recommend Mamma Foo Foo to every...

This was our family’s third year in a row coming here for our daughter’s birthday dinner (she always requests Mama Foo Foo). I’m never extremely impressed by the food but I will say this time was better than last and everyone seemed to thoroughly enjoy their meals. Service was fairly spot on with a few minor exceptions and unfortunately one upsetting last impression. The only one out of our party of five who ordered a cocktail had to wait almost 40 minutes for it to arrive (well into her meal). And my husband’s fish and chips came out well after everyone has else had been served. We waited for him before we ate so at that point most meals were luke warm (not a biggie). LastIy…I wanted to let our server know secretly that it was our daughter’s birthday and see if maybe she could have something sent to the table just for her. They have done this every year without us even asking. I couldn’t find our sever so the hostess passed on the message. He came to the table a little while later and uncomfortably announced to everyone that “yeah, we don’t do that” and “we don’t really have cake or anything but you could order a bread pudding I guess?”. Really?! Firstly, I would’ve gladly paid for anything and maybe a scoop of ice cream (knowing they have that and several desserts). It wasn’t about the cost but now he seemed he needed to maybe embarrass us by making this announcement. After an awkward pause I said that’s fine, no worries, it’s just they’ve done it every year and was nice touch. In my old server days many moons ago I would’ve paid myself for the damn dessert in an effort to make a good impression and get an even fatter tip. Even if it’s not “a policy” anymore, making the effort to make an announcement and leave everyone with a bad taste in our mouths (pun intended) was unnecessary and kinda ruined it for me. We’ll probably look elsewhere for our special occasion dinners next time. What was already likely a 30% tip on a large bill (if I know my husband well enough) could’ve been even more and we would’ve been there again in 2 months for the next...

If I could give this place 1 star I would. I was celebrating my wedding anniversary with my husband and decided to try this restaurant. The reviews looked great at the restaurant was beautiful so we thought we were in for a treat. We went during the week in the early afternoon. We were led to outdoor eating area where there was a bar. The view was beautiful. Unfortunately, we were racially profiled and received subpar service because of it. We were the only guest when we arrived to the area. Naturally we made our drink and appetizer orders first. After 20 minutes other people began to arrive. After almost an hour, we realized that we were in a crowded room, the only people of color in the place and had not even received our drinks. When we looked around the room everyone else had a drink and or food. I was confused because isn't it supposed to be first come first serve? When we asked where our drinks were, the waiter pointed to the bar where he left them. The waiter refused to bring our drinks to our table. I asked to speak to the manager and explained that I didn't appreciate receiving subpar service due to my race. All of a sudden, as we are about to leave, our food suddenly ready in a to-go box and "they decided not to charge us for it". I believe it was done intentionally to make us leave the restaurant. Dont worry me and my African self will never step 1 pinky toe in your establishment again. I DEFINITELY DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS restaurant to anyone BLACK..... They almost ruined my anniversary. Luckily we were welcomed with open arms at Caribbean Jack's. We went there afterwards and enjoyed wonderful food and their live band was amazing. Black people stay away from Mama Foo Foo!!!!Anyone who is against discrimination, I strongly discourage your support of this...