My Coffee Is Expanding in More Ways Than One
NOSA: Perhaps we should have suspected My Coffee always wanted to be more than a plain ‘ol coffee shop. The space at Wings is something special and it goes beyond the decor or anything of that sort.
FOLLY: The "For Lease Sign" decribes it as a "bespoke coffee shop" - LOL.
NOSA: With that view, it’s literally the perfect location. As soon as Wings gets more tenants and foot traffic, that My Coffee location will explode. But, I digress.
FOLLY: Since our original visit two years ago, My Coffee has expanded to four locations. Two grab and go (Lekki & Mega Plaza) and two sit in coffee shops (Wings & Adetokunbo Ademola).
NOSA: Additionally, since our original visit, My Coffee has got itself a full fledged menu. The food has always been where they beat out the competition and they aren’t loosening that grip anytime soon. Salads, breakfast staples, and even a couple nods to its Ukranian roots, the expanded My Coffee has about anything for everyone. Their roast beef bagel sandwich is still one of the best bites to grab on your way to work.
FOLLY: Apart from it generally being dishonest, a restaurant should generally use only their own images on their Instagram page (Nigerian restaurants, I'm looking at you sideways). This is relevant because our entire order at My Coffee was made by looking at their Instagram page and picking out stuff that looked good.
NOSA: So to start, we shared the Mozzarella Sticks.
FOLLY: You don't often find mozzarella sticks on menus in Lagos, and most times event if it's listed they don't have it available. Mozzarella is one of the few cheeses I can eat and so I quite enjoy it. I found these a tad bit overcooked and as result, the cheese on the inside went a bit further north on the melting scale than one would like.
NOSA: I agree that it could’ve done with a minute or two less in the fryer, but I liked it nonetheless. Also, most places with mozzarella sticks on the menu tend to be a bit stingy with the cheese. A bit of a shame because mozzarella is probably the cheapest cheese to get in Lagos.
FOLLY: That I can definitely attest too, Mozzarella is pretty cheap at Hubmart & SPAR.
NOSA: For our mains, I went with the Caesar Salad while Folly got the Fish & Chips.
I really liked my salad, but they goofed a little bit with it. First, the bacon was a bit “hot”. The meats in a salad can be warm, but hot is a no for me. Why? Well, thanks to this thing called heat transfer, the top layer of your salad ends up just as warm. Ever had hot iceberg lettuce?
FOLLY: However, the positive was that My Coffee used very thick cut bacon and gave a pretty generous serving.
NOSA: I would have preferred bacon bits instead.
FOLLY: I don't know what this man is saying.
NOSA: Anyway, the second goof was the croutons were tucked inside the salad. Sounds like a great idea until the croutons taste soggy and without crunch because they absorbed some of the moistness from the lettuce. You always want the croutons at the top.
FOLLY: Again, I don't know what this man is saying because I found the croutons sufficiently crunchy. I, however, didn't like that they were all tucked at the bottom for a much simpler reason because I kept having to go dig for them.
NOSA: Complaints aside, I liked the salad. The vegetables were fresh, the parmesan was sharp, and most importantly, it had croutons. Croutons are my absolute fave.
FOLLY: I'd rate the fish and chips a solid 7 out of 10. I'm only deducting points because the portion was a bit small relative to how much it cost, and the fish was ever so slightly over battered. Thankfully, the fish was still more than the batter but it could have done with a little bit less batter.
NOSA: The fish and chips were surprising decent. Taste about as good as they look. It won’t transport you to a pub in London, but you’ll definitely not regret it.
FOLLY: With chips, generally the bar is low. There are certain things you simply need to avoid to make a good batch of chips: don't undersalt or fry in old oil. Soaking the chips in cold water for several hours will take out the excess starch thus making them taste better but if you don't, we won't lose hair over it. Obviously, frying in oil that was used to cook fish is a grave sin - you should never do this.
Long story short, the chips at My Coffee were fine and appropriately salted.
POSTCRIPT
NOSA: The menu has changed a bit. It's, I daresay, better now.
FOLLY: A lot better, and also more extensive. I should also add that the customer service at My Coffee is very pleasant - much better than the average you'll get anywhere in Lagos.
NOSA: Definitely worth a visit.
VERDICT
DAMAGE
Ceaser Salad - N4000
Fish & Chips - N4400
Mozzarella Sticks - N2200
PARKING
Wings has more than enough parking that you'd ever need.