Restaurant Fri Sep 26 2008

New Friends, New Flavor

I know a group of really great people who get together twice a month for dinner. The dinner club was formed two years ago and anywhere between four and 20 people show up at each gathering. A new person "hosts" the dinner each time we go out so we're always exploring new neighborhoods and new restaurants. However, the food is usually ethnic, usually cheap and the restaurant is always BYOB.

Last week we went to Vee Vee, an African restaurant in the Edgewater neighborhood. Immediately after walking in, I felt a strong sense of friendship and community among the patrons. A group of five or six men were sitting at a table, clearly having a great time and enjoying their food. The comradery these men displayed was infectious and, combined with the welcoming atmosphere, made the experience extremely enjoyable. For most of us, this was our first African cuisine experience and our waiter gave us really great recommendations and was excited to share his favorites with us. We tried the meat pies and soup (really, really spicy) to start out with - both of which were great and unlike anything I had ever had before. For dinner, I had the jerk chicken with rice, black beans and plantains - the meat was really tender, there was so much flavor and just the right amount of spice.

The service here is also fantastic - everyone was friendly and shared the same enthusiasm that our waiter had. A little slow at times, but that goes along with the culture and I definitely appreciated it. It was nice to have a slow meal and enjoy each others company.

— Kaitlin Olson / Comments (0)