Happy new year guys!!!

Apologies for being MIA… Been so busy on instagram and twitter instead.

A number of new places have opened up in Lagos and hopefully FIL can bring you reviews this year to help you make better choices on where to eat. In case you aren’t familiar with the score system here, do check  here to view the break down of what FIL will be looking out for regarding reviews.

Over the weekend, my friend and I went to what is now known as Sip & Bite. This place used to be called Paris Deli which was the lower part of popular Lagos club – Sip Lounge. I think the last time I was at Paris Deli was probably a year ago or two years (not even sure anymore) and I remember Paris Deli being a Bistro/Cafe but Sip & Bite is on a totally different level even though its same management. I remember Paris Deli being so popular for its free wi-fi and its coziness and calm and being able to work from there. I asked for the Wifi password and dude never just came back with it (LOL).

Sip & Bite recently re-launched in December 2015 and December in Lagos is IJGB season so perfect timing for them.

When I walked into this place, its totally different from what Paris Deli used to be and has this very loungy feel, dim lights, illuminated bar, mismatched chairs etc. The decor I must say is lovely and ambience is alright as well. Different seating exists here from proper dining sitting to round sofa’s and 3-seat sofa’s and bar seating. It doesn’t feel like a restaurant and I guess I can call it a hybrid because it has almost the same look and feel of the club upstairs (Sip Bar & Lounge)

Now on to the menu. We settled for Chapman as we weren’t ready to risk having a bad cocktail and better to be safe than sorry right? The Chapman was really good and not watered down. My only issue is why do restaurants tend to fill up your glass with more of ice than the liquid itself? Solution – ask the waiter to bring you ice in a separate glass and then another glass for your drink without ice… Wisdom!

Using ice to reduce your portion

As for food, our eyes went straight to the ‘Sip Specialty’ which had 3 options – Pepper Chicken, Pepper Fish and Fish and Chips.

Now when you read Pepper Chicken, it kinda seems like it might have been an error and should probably have been “peppered chicken (naija style)” but the description read “Grilled chicken topped with pepper sauce served with your choice of chips or rice and boiled vegetable” so perhaps no error.

I went with the Pepper Chicken and my friend had Pepper Fish (this had same description as the Chicken). Not sure why the menu doesn’t mention what type of fish especially as there are so many different types.

Stewed Chicken Really…

Close up pic – Just in case you can’t see the amount of stew on this chicken

The Chicken wasn’t bad but it didn’t taste fresh to me and all that stew just confused my taste buds and couldn’t really taste the actual chicken. All that was left to do was really just to ask for White Rice to eat with the Stew…

The Fries were really good for frozen fries and served very hot just how I like it.

The Pepper Fish had the same presentation as the Chicken. Had to scrape off all that ‘pepper’ to discover what type of fish it was. Tasted like Croker Fish. Not really a fishy person but I’d choose Catfish over Tilapia or Croker any day.

Foodie Thoughts

Ambience: Really loving the decor, cosy feel and set up here.

Food Quality: The portion of the sides are adequate as well just not feeling the stew/pepper as it takes the actual taste of the chicken away from it and would have been better if this was minimal but I guess the chef was being generous as it was almost closing time. It would also have been nice if the menu specified what type of fish they were serving. Always thought specials on the menu are meant to be like the best things right? not this one though. Loved the Chapman as well which goes for N1k. Really need to do like a comparative analysis for Chapman in Lagos.

Location: Sip & Bite is relatively to easy to find especially if you are familiar with the Island and the nightlife as it is located where the club is and on a busy road in the city of Lagos unlike these guys.

Price: As for the prices on the menu, mains are N4,000 and above and the only things below this amount are the starters and single sides. The Pepper Chicken and Pepper Fish are above standard Lagos pricing so far as this would go usually go for an average of N3,000 – N3,500.

Service Delivery: The food came out quite fast and the waiter who served was polite as it should be 🙂

Damage

Pepper Chicken – N4,000

Pepper Fish – N4,500

Glass of Chapman – N1,000

Sip & Bite

11B Akin Adesola Street, Victoria Island, Lagos

+234 803 855 5557