I am a pioneer of Nigerian restaurant in Canada ― Adebola Esan

Adebola Esan is a restaurateur in Canada whose love for cooking influenced her business path in the food business. Her Flavours Restaurant was chosen as the best restaurant in Calgary by Avenue Magazine. She speaks about her business and how she makes Nigerian meals to the delight of her customers in this interview by ENIOLA OYEMOLADE.

 

What influenced the name of your restaurant ‘Flavours Restaurant’?

Flavours in the Nigerian Food; Flavours Cuisine and Catering (a.k.a Flavours Restaurant)

 

What is your favourite Nigerian food?

Jollof Rice

 

What advice would you give Nigerians abroad who may want to venture into your line of business?

It involves a lot of work. So, be ready, be present or available to make it a success

 

Which of the Nigerian dishes is the most popular among the customers?

Pounded yam, I guess, because of the soup.

 

How long have you been in this business?

I started business from Nigeria, baking and decorating cakes, cooking for fun. But, I actually started cooking as a business in 2008 and opened the restaurant (Flavours) in 2013

 

How do you source for your foodstuff?

I patronise some African grocery stores both in Calgary and Toronto.

 

How do you set yourself apart from other restaurateurs?

Through my relationship with workers and attention to details.

 

You studied English, but you now own a restaurant, how did you discover the passion for cooking? 

I studied English at Obafemi Awolowo University, graduated in 1990, (B.A. Ed) then proceeded for my Master’s degree at the University of Ibadan in 1994.

My passion for cooking, I will say, goes back to my upbringing. I started cooking at an early age and as I grew, more kitchen tasks was delegated to me by my mum

 

What challenges did you face at the beginning?

The first challenge was my mind. It’s not something I had done before; it was a mental battle because there was no Nigeria restaurant in Calgary to see as an example. I was blazing the trail in a culture that was foreign to my up bringing.

I took a leap of faith with the support of my family and the determination to succeed.

 

How do you feel when you hear unpleasant news about Nigeria? 

Of course, I feel so sad hearing about how things have deteriorated. I grew up in a Nigeria that was safe, peaceful, loving, with a lot of potential for the future. I pray and I hope Nigeria can get back to the good old days.

 

Do you experience any discrimination at all as a result of this? Does it affect how people relate with you? 

I won’t say discrimination, but people ask questions about what is going on in Nigeria and they tend to be sympathetic about our families back in Nigeria.

 

What types of dishes are you into?

Right now, it’s mainly Nigerian dishes to fill the gap for people -home away from home- and also for other to experience our food culture.

 

How much of your training as a teacher impacts your business?

I go beyond the food to relate with my customers, sometimes offering personal support and care.

 

How did COVID-19 affect your business? How were you able to pull through? 

Dine-in was mostly affected and inability to employ staff. However, we were able to leverage on pickup and delivery.

 

When you are not cooking, what do you do?

I rest my feet mostly, watch TV.

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