Places in Lagos| Elysium

This is a long overdue Places in Lagos post. I went to Elysium in December 2023. Please note that the prices quoted below may not align with current realities. Elysium houses a cafe, bar, restaurant and lounge and is located in Lekki Phase 1, Lagos. I stopped by with my friend D for lunch, and here’s how it went.

AMBIENCE

The space is bright and welcoming, with see-through ceilings. I instantly fell in love with the decor, which comprises greenery, gold and dark-coloured furniture, and unique yet simple light fittings. The restaurant has an indoor and outdoor area and should comfortably accommodate over 70 people.

WHAT WE ORDERED

For drinks, we chose MaiTai and Elysium Special Cocktail, a bottle of water, Americano coffee, and bitter lemon. For food, we chose the Lagos Salad, Pesto Pasta, and Chef Special Salmon.

We didn’t wait long before our first set of drinks arrived. I appreciated the luxury of being the only customer at the restaurant and used this time to take photos before others arrived. Like clockwork, as soon as I sat down, other customers arrived. My salad was served some minutes later, and I dug in.

The salad was fresh, and I loved that the peanut was served as a side. I also loved that the sauce was olive oil-based. Talk about health consciousness. I devoured the entire thing. My plate was cleared, and the chicken pesto pasta, Chef Special Salmon with mash and veggies were served.

One look at the pasta made me notice that the sauce used was too much, and my fear was confirmed when I put my fork through it. As much as I love pesto pasta, I couldn’t enjoy this one even though it was tasty, and I had to complain to the waiter.

On the other hand, D enjoyed his salmon and had no complaints about everything on his plate. After lunch, we decided to step down with the cocktails and chilled for a bit before we asked for our bill.

Chef Special Salmon with mash and veggies

SERVICE DELIVERY & CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE

We were ushered in and directed to the restaurant’s entrance and a table of our choice. The staff were friendly and polite, and our waiter was also helpful in guiding us through our selections. The restaurant was cool even though it was a very hot day, and the wait time was decent. The only complaint was the pesto pasta, which the manager came to ask if it should be taken back, but I said no. The fact that this was offered made all the difference. It’ll have been nice to experience my steak cooked before me, but I wasn’t hungry for a steak; maybe next time. The restaurant has limited parking spaces right in front of the building; this may pose a problem on busy days.

DAMAGE

Water ~ 1,500
Bitter Lemon ~ 2,000
Maitai ~ 10,000
Elysium Special ~ 10,000
Lagos Salad ~ 12,700
Chef Special Salmon ~ 29,800
Pesto Pasta ~ 16,500
Americano + milk ~ 3,500
Our total damage was 95,800, which included a service charge of 4,300 and VAT of 4,095.24