Verified Company
My other half and I visited here on a Saturday evening. There are 2 sitting an evening and the menu is a set 4 course menu (which you don’t see beforehand and is regularly changing). You also have to prepay the $85 per person when you book so just be aware of that. The restaurant is BYOB, something which we knew from reviews but was only shared with us by the restaurant about 60 minutes before our reservation.
We arrived promptly for our 6pm reservation and had our pick of seats on the communal table. The setup is one communal table and a few bar seats so if you are particular on where you want to sit then arrive right at your reservation time. Annoyingly someone was late to our seating so our service was delayed by about 25 minutes (by which point the person still hadn’t arrived) and this did result in the meal being slightly rushed.
We started with the Pepper Soup, which was out highlight of the evening (I would return just for this dish). The fish was perfectly cooked and the pepper soup had a good kick to it, a really well balanced dish. The next dish was a Nigerian cheese dish, I am not a cheese fan so can’t fairly judge this but the tomato sauce it came in was lovely (I just hated the cheese). Next we had Herring and Yams, I found this dish a little stodgy and the picketed herring flavour was slightly overwhelming. I enjoyed a small amount of it but found the dish difficult to finish. The meal ended with caramelised plantain, which was very sweet but a nice way to end the meal.
I really enjoyed the experience and the chef coming out and explaining each dish was a nice touch. Overall we had a nice evening but not sure we would rush back. The portion sizes were pretty small (although the yams were filling) and for the price point I think I would rather visit somewhere else. However I do encourage people to try Dept of Culture at least once.
A prix fixe Four course menu, served at a communal table. Loved, loved,loved the atmosphere and service. Only the 1st and dessert courses were dishes I would order, but that’s the risk with any set menu. It is definitely worth going at least once. I would definitely go again if I knew the menu included dishes I liked.
I had high hopes for Department of Culture, but overall it didn’t quite live up to the hype. While the food was good and had a comforting, home-cooked feel, it didn’t justify the steep price tag. It reminded me of the quality you’d get at a spot like Accra in Harlem — solid and flavorful — but dressed up with fancy French plates in an attempt to appear upscale, which felt a bit forced.
The communal table setup wasn’t really for me, and the pacing of the meal was painfully slow — four dishes stretched out over two hours. When each dish was finally presented, the chef spoke so softly that it was nearly impossible to catch the explanations, which took away from the experience.
In the end, it felt more like a casual dinner with a drawn-out timeline than the refined, contemporary dining experience it’s trying to achieve. Not a bad meal by any means, just not worth the premium or the hype.
This was a fun evening and I absolutely applaud what the chef aims to do here to in a communal setting, shine a spotlight on
Nigerian cuisine in an elevated manner while sharing insights into the culture there in a fun way. We had a fun evening chatting with the neighbors at our table while enjoying our wine (it’s BYOB) and sampling some very unique dishes. There were four courses in all - the highlights for me being a homemade Nigerian cheese dish and a goat pepper pot. The only issue I had, which others have also raised, was the price. For four small dishes, the price felt very much on the high side. Nonetheless, it has encouraged me to seek out more restaurants featuring food from this part of the world which feels underrepresented.
Grateful to have this experience. The food was wonderful, and enjoyed learning about each dish from Ayo. The vibes were immaculate. The kitchen, is an essentialists kitchen - words I never heard before. To me this approach is rooted in sustainability in many senses. By only using what we need, we sustain. Wish more businesses had this approach. Can’t wait to go back.
