YENDIDI VIRGINIA BEACH

First time trying African food

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

I absolutely love this place. The food is so out of this world and the service is always so friendly. My go-to is the spicy grilled chicken with jollof rice and fried plantains.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Unfortunately, we weren’t able to try the food. My friend and I drove a little over a hour away, just to be told “we close at 9 but the kitchen closes at 8:15”. Well that sounds like you close at 8:15. Not 9. She proceeded to say, we weren’t expecting anyone so we locked the door. Not to mention, we went to Norfolk first, he told us to go to the VB location because they stay open longer and he would call them. Disappointed is an understatement.

Service: 1

This is a family style restaurant. Everything on the menu can easily be shared by 2 people, especially the stews. Same goes for the kids menu.

The restaurant was very beautiful when you walked in. There were lots of culture decor that went well with the type of food they served. Music was enjoyable and not too loud.

Our sever was both polite and knowledgeable. We were seated quickly.

We tried fufu, egusi soup, grilled red snapper, spinach stew, grilled chicken, cabbage, jollof rice, and fried plantains. Everything was hot and flavorful.

I got my food in medium spice and thought it wasn't too bad. My husband however considered it spicy. If you can't handle spice I suggest that you get your food on low spice.

We'll definitely be back!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

I enjoyed the casual vibe — a great spot to relax while enjoying simple but tasty meals.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

First time trying African food and it was delicious! I had a lunch special and it was a shareable portion for my son and I. I’m boring and tried the grilled chicken (yummy and they serve it was sauce), jollof (this was also a tasty surprise), string beans(seasoned but I love veggies so I’m not the best to critique these), and sobolo-spicy and aromatic but good. The lady that assisted me was very polite when I arrived for my takeout order. She even mentioned their current specials to me. The restaurant looked well maintained and clean too. Next time, I will dine in!

As a West African (Nigerian), this food was NOT it. The egusi soup tasted like red stew and had ZERO taste of egusi. Tomato sauce in egusi?? No native African seasons. The okra soup, also nothing special. Blended to death. Didn't even have draw. Please, take it from someone who grew up eating okra soup and egusi soup, you are absolutely not getting the real West African flavor experience. No dried fish, stock fish, crayfish. ZERO depth in flavor. ZERO umami. I also asked for mild for the excuse for okra soup bc my dad can not have spicy food. I asked for the hotest spice level for the egusi. The spice levels were exactly the same. He could not eat his soup and will have to actually doctor it into being real okra soup and to lighten the heat. They couldn't even be bothered to use smoke Cameron's pepper. I'm not sure if it was horrible bc this is how Ghanians cook thier okra and egusi soup, but I refuse to believe they cook like this in thier homes. Also, I know this will sound awful but when I saw front of house people were not African, I knew it immediately wouldn't it be good. Folks, you're better off finding someone on facebook marketplace who is selling small batch made to order West African food. THAT is where you'll find the real deal. As Taco Bell is to authentic Mexican food, Yendidis is to authentic West African food.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 1

Service: 4

This was a cultural experience for the books! Jada was very knowledgeable on the menu and what to pair selections with, was patient and personable. This was truly a 5 star dining experience. THE FOOD!! Wow peanut butter soup with shrimp very spicy was great. Kelewele was so delicious sweet n spicy. Chicken Suya was a great appetizer smoky and spicy. Every staff member was welcoming happy and if you have never tried African Cuisine this is the place to go!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Peanut Butter Soup

Amazing food, service was exceptional with good african music and ambiance.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Absolutely LOVED eating here, I came for my friend's 21st birthday and our server was amazing, and one of the chefs occasionally came out and checked on us. The food was HOT, freshly cooked hot and I loved that. I'm excited to come back here <3

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

First time eating at Yendidi and will not be the last! We were warmly greeted and our server Sarah was sweet and attentive. We felt welcomed and valued. The vegan menu was extensive and my husband and I shared the bean and jolloff rice burrito, it was huge and delicious! The sides alone were worth the trip, the cabbage was sweetly caramelized and melted in your mouth. I plan on getting dishes for my upcoming bookclub to go along with the book Americanah. Thank for feeding us!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Food is good but they’re not giving enough meat. I ordered the goat stew i swear both bowls has on small piece of meat and a bone. This has to stop

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 4

Service: 3

I made a reservation a day in advance and arrived 10 minutes early and I was sat at the bar and told by a waitress that I would be seated shortly. I waited for over 25 minutes had to call the waitress over just for her to take our drink order and never return with the drink of course I still didn't get a table but watched the same waitress seat other patrons who arrived after my party did. Needless to say I didn't wait to be seated I left. i even spoke with a different employee and expressed that i had a reservation that was over 25 minutes ago she looked at me said nothing and you guess it my party still wasnt seated after being embarrassed and ignored. Absolutely horrible customer service!!!

Service: 1

Date of visit 7/24/2025, Thursday 6:30 pm
Was not expecting to leave an excellent review after we experienced the waiter we did. It was not crowded but we barely ever saw her, just over all not good at her job. The food got delivered by R2D2, we'd seen it go to other tables but had no idea it was automated until it came to ours and the waiter was nowhere to be seen. The other waiters and staff took notice fairly quickly however and helped us save the experience. My wife's food came eventually but mine apparently went to the wrong table so I had to wait for them to remake it, the food takes a while to prepare because basically the whole dish is prepped and cooked fresh when the order comes in, it shows in the quality but makes it really rough when mistakes happen and the food comes separately.
The waitress Alyvia was truly amazing she noticed everything happening and brought us a manager to help us, and the manager was immediately helpful as well, they brought me out an appetizer while I was waiting for my entree so I could eat with my wife, we treated the different dishes like different courses and wound up just sharing everything anyway. The portions were spectacular and plenty and absolutely everything was amazing and fresh. My wife got a tomato basil chicken stew prepped with medium heat with a pounded yam (mashed potato taste with a slightly firmer texture) and jollof rice. I got the spinach stew with shrimp cooked with high heat and paired it with coconut rice and sauteed mushrooms. They sent sauteed cabbage at first but quickly sent the mushrooms and let us keep the cabbage too which was nice because it was spectacular as well, fully cooked but still had a crunch and immaculately seasoned though not overpowered. This mushrooms... Mmmmmm the mushrooms.... Fantastic lightly sauteed and fresh as can be paired with a zesty seasoning and peppers and onions truly spectacular. The coconut rice was so good I had to learn how to make it at home. And the jollof was no different. (Coconut and Pilau ((yellow rice)) are less work, less steps, and less ingredients if you're like me and just have to have it again). The pounded yam is a perfect side for a spicy dish, simple and filling and I'll be learning how to cook that too. The tomato chicken and basil stew is everything spaghetti wants to be, absolutely delicious and I'm not a fan of most tomato baste sauces but this was spectacular and very clearly not from a can. The spicy spinach stew was immaculate, very generous with both the spinach and the shrimp. The flavor penetrated both but neither were over cooked and both spinach and shrimp cook way fast so that shows talent in the kitchen.
Neither of us could stop eating until we were fully stuffed. Then we ate some more while we waited for Togo containers. Absolutely everything got eaten, we couldn't bring ourselves to waste a single thing that came in the bowls. Can't wait to try it again with a different waitress. Hoping for Alyvia.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 1

The food here is NOT cooked by an African but by a Jamaican or other Islander. I ate the WORST-ever Egusi soup in 8/13/2025 and almost gagged. No Crayfish, no African spices, just a lot of salt and black pepper instead of habanero. After three spoonfuls, I threw Way the food. Urrgh!

Atmosphere: 2

Food: 1

Service: 2