You will agree with me that eating in Lagos can be life-threatening
There is food everywhere, depending on your income bracket, but quality and healthy food are another thing entirely
It was my daughter on her last birthday who said-Joe, I want to eat Asun Rice
What is that? I asked her and she said it’s a kind of rice you get at The Place Restaurant
I was happy, cos all day I had been wondering what I could get my 16-year-old beautiful daughter for her birthday
A decent meal in any restaurant in Lagos today is equivalent to what we used to buy land in Shomolu those days
So when she said Asun Rice and The Place, I smiled
She said she liked the outlet near the Lekki Phase One main gate, and I asked Mbok, Why drive all the way from Yaba to Lekki for a plate of rice
Well, it was her birthday, and it was her wish
We walked in with her friend Ade, and she ordered three plates of Asun rice
Let me describe what was brought for me
The rice didn’t look aggressive as the ingredients didn’t hit your eyes with that look at me, I am here, look that too much stew does on a plate of rice
The colouring was subdued with lovely tomatoes sliced elegantly peeping from within the fine blade of rice at you
Then, as you delve in with your fork, you hit on well-grilled goat meat cut and diced and evenly spread all over the rice
Then, as u take a shovel, you notice that the rice is not clingy to the fork like all these other plastic rice that forms a patchy mould on the fork
The rice this time jumps eagerly into your mouth, landing on your tongue with a soft thud and daring you to swallow without chewing
As you chew, the mellow round of the well-garnished ingredients, spills out into the back of your tongue, giving you a satisfied feeling and a need to shovel more into your mouth
The taste is sublime, and even with all the ingredients, it dilutes into a marshmallow of convivial culinary experience.
The team work of all the ingredients work like a well curated symphony without any one standing out and messing with the rythnm.
By the time you are finishing, you’re asking for ‘take away’ with a faux frown at Zara, questioning why she didn’t mention this earlier
Ever since that day, my love for the Asun Rice has grown in leaps and bounds, as it not only deliciously engages me, but it also satisfies my need to eat healthy at a reasonable cost.
Meet The Place Asun rice at my stage Plays – Asaba and Obey on the 23rd,24th,25th and 26th December at the Muson Centre in Lagos
But don’t wait, rush to the nearest The Place and ask for Asun Rice and if you don’t eat two plates, come and slap me
Thanks
Duke of Shomolu
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