When I think of African food, I immediately think of dishes that I ate on a regular basis during my time living and working in The Gambia.

This includes dishes such as Akara or Domoda (Peanut Stew), washed down with a Wonjo Juice (a sweetened chilled hibiscus drink served up an many hotels as a welcome drink), or a mint tea, unfortunately, when I went to check out Manchesters new ‘African themed’ restaurant, none of these were present.

Afrikana is located on Manchesters famous ‘Curry Mile’, but rather that being a restaurant of African dishes, it is more an ‘African Inspired’ establishment.

The decor and music was definitely African in style, and I even found myself having a little internal jig while waiting for the food to come.

A number of small plates are available to be had as starter, including Okra Fries, Hummus, Lamb Chops, or our choice of ‘Prawns to be Wild’ (£12.95). 5 large and well cooked prawns, served in batter and tossed in their own special sauce, which worked really well, although not what I would have called African.

Amongst the menus burgers and grilled chicken, I did see a ray of African sunshine, in the form of the South African favorite of Bunny Chow, a curry dish served in a hollowed out loaf of bread. Unfortunately, I was informed that they were out of the bread and therefore not available, so went for a mutton curry named ‘We Goat Your Back’(£16.95) instead.

The goat curry reminds me more of Caribbean cuisine, although of course, is African inspired. The dish was amazing though, full of flavour, with a real it of aromatic spices and served with rice and peas, with fried plantain on the side too.

Another African inspired dish was another of our choices, the Jammin’ Jambalaya (£15.95), a rice dish from America’s Deep South, which is not too different from one authentic dish that they did have on the menu, Jollof Rice, although the later was served as a side only.

The Jambalaya again was tasty, with a more than generous amount of spice, as well as an abundance of prawns, chicken and onion and peppers.

I also ordered a side of Jollof (£3.75) to check it out, and it was pretty good too, although a massive bowl of that also filled with chicken would have been very welcomed.

Whilst mainly not authentic African food, the African influences were there and they food was pretty damn good, we also were so full from a shared starter and main each, that we couldn’t even entertain the thought of dessert.

If you’re looking for something spicy, but a little different then Afrikana is well worth a visit.

Disclaimer

PR Visit – Manchester Food Tourist were invited to dine at Afrikana free of charge in exchange for an honest review, all thoughts and opinions are those of Manchester Food Tourist.