Hady's Restaurant International Cuisine — Restaurant in Raleigh

Its a shame I have to write this review due to customer service, as its the first negative restaurant review I've had to give. We always support local and have lived in Raleigh for over 15 years, but the experience we had here was absolutely terrible. We ordered the PB Chicken, the stew, and Jerk Chicken ($75 total... pretty steep for three entrees). Unfortunately, when the food arrived, it was packaged poorly in a plastic bag, with the heavy weighted food stacked on top of the styrofoam box, in turn smashing all the food in the bag.

All the plastic lids were not secured tightly, which caused the oils to leak all in the bag and created a mess. On top of it all, we called in ahead of time to ensure the meals were not spicy. After telling us there was no "kick" at all to the food, it turned out we couldn't even eat the entrees, due to the spiciness level. Not only did we feel that we were ill-informed, but when I called back up to the restaurant to explain what happened, the employee told me this was not his fault and to take it up with DoorDash (we didnt order through doordash to begin with...).

In the end, we just felt like we were not treated with any respect, and after spending $75 on food, you would think the restaurant owners would reach back out to try and make their customers happy, but clearly this is of no concern to them as they were trying to get us off the phone as soon as possible, not caring about any of the aforementioned issues. Stay away if you can, as you can spend all your hard earned money at Ellle Et Moi, which is not only better quality, but has much nicer...

The atmosphere was welcoming, the music set a good vibe, and the hospitality and service were both solid. However, I did have some concerns about the food. No napkins. Plantain fufu was over priced one box of planting food food should only be $10 and shouldn't make at least 6 to 7 servings.. I originally was served a serving that was frozen in the middle the planting food flow was made with a lot of powder and fufu doesn't require a lot of powder and it's a certain way. To make it The plantain fufu appeared to have been frozen for a while—it had a pre-made texture that didn’t quite hold up. Similarly, the corn fufu had a skin on it, suggesting it was made in advance and left sitting out. The egusi soup was very smooth and blended, not in the traditional style, and had a noticeable nutty flavor—possibly from peanut oil no tomato test at all, as if there was a peanut butter red stew added. The plantains seemed to have been fried in oil previously used for fish, which affected their taste. The grilled tilapia filet we ordered was very tough, and the fries were overly hard and dark brown from over-frying.

While the menu features dishes inspired by various African cuisines, there’s a clear Senegalese twist throughout—not necessarily traditional to each dish's origin. It’s not quite international cuisine, but rather a unique fusion attempt. I respect the effort to branch out and try other cultural dishes, even if it didn’t fully land for me.

It’s always interesting to see culinary experimentation across cultures, and I commend that spirit, even if the execution wasn't fully...

I’m a restaurant professional/ foodie visiting from Seattle and anytime I’m in the south I try to get as much real, southern food as I can eat. I was looking for “soul food” specifically and the place we were aiming for was closed so we wound up at Hady’s. The detour could not have been more fortuitous! Talk about soul food! The love and soul at Hady is spilling over the plates! Hady’s exterior is a little rough but DO NOT let that stop you! Our Host greeted us so beautifully and warmly, we immediately felt at home. The menu is very diverse. We ordered brown gravy chicken, curry goat, and peanut soup w/ lamb. The sides were collards, cabbage, red beans and rice and we added some Mac& cheese. Everything was AMAZING! The brown gravy chicken and curry goat tasted as if they had been braised for hours and hours! The flavors were so rich and complex, I’m still thinking about them two days later! I had an amazing ginger/ pineapple drink as well. As a white guy from Washington state I don’t get a chance very often to taste food like this. Soul food is really just a name for food that tastes like it’s been made with love. There’s no doubt that at Hady’s the food is made with love and care and the owner/ operator knows how to run a good restaurant. I feel as if my understanding of African culture has been expanded just by that one meal. I can’t wait to explore more but I’ll never forget Hady’s and I can’t wait...