A new eatery with lofty ambitions just popped up in Osu. Supreme is a restaurant, bakery and catering service all wrapped into one, and it strives to be the ultimate business of its kind. Nothing about this restaurant is ordinary. Even the imposing, geometric building stands out from the local businesses that surround it. The austere main dining room mirrors the restaurant’s gleaming exterior. An ultra-modern décor, dark stained wood and forest green leather create a cool, polished ambiance. An American movie plays quietly on a flat screen television and a bartender waits at attention beneath shelves stocked with top shelf liquor.
A bakery lies right next to the dining area, just a few feet from some of the tables. As I look around I notice giant wedding cakes in the window, pastries in display cases and impressionist paintings on the wall. American pop hits are pulsing from the bar and the television provides a hypnotic distraction. Too many things are happening at once.
The menu offers an extensive and confusing variety of options. Breakfast, soups, appetisers, salads, sandwiches and entrees are all available, but the choices lack uniformity. The food is a combination of classic Italian, Mexican, American and French foods. However, there are no local dishes on the menu at all which is puzzling. The wait staff brings out toasted bread with olive spread and pours bottled water into wine glasses. Dressed in cream-coloured uniforms, the staff is so attentive and quiet they are almost sneaky.
I order the chicken escalope— fried chicken breast panne served with steamed vegetables, potato wedges and ‘whole grainy sauce’, which I assume refers to whole grain mustard cream sauce. The meal is undeniably delicious, and the portions are generous. The tender chicken is filled with melted cheese and the rich, flavourful sauce complements the potato wedges, steamed peas and carrots.
The char grilled chicken is delightful, but not as enjoyable. The veggies are sparse, and the garlic mayo sauce is more of a dry paste. The dish is decent, but there is ample room for improvement.
Halfway into the meal, the owner comes over and politely introduces himself as Michael. The restaurant is in the midst of a soft opening, and has been in operation for less than two months. Despite its newness, Supreme is open from 7 am until midnight every day. Although this eatery would be an awkward choice for a date or a family dinner, it could easily impress business associates with its lavish furnishings and pricey meals. Both chicken dishes have a 20 cedi price tag, breakfast meals cost about 11 to 13 cedis, and salads can be as expensive as 19. The appetisers range from 7 to 18 cedis, but the sandwiches are about 13 to 16.
Supreme’s ambiance suffers from a shortage of comfort and warmth, and despite its excellent food the composition of the clientele was questionable. Almost every patron who entered the restaurant was a foreigner. The crowd was completely dominated by white males in business clothes. Obviously, Supreme was not intended for the average Ghanaian.
Supreme lacks personality and cohesiveness. It possesses all the elements of an upscale eatery, but some of the niceties high-paying customers might expect fall flat. For instance, the swanky bathroom looks posh and luxurious but the door is misaligned with its frame and fails to shut or lock properly.
Considering its youth, this restaurant is quite impressive in terms of food quality and service, but it stops short of delivering the full package. Perhaps one day after it has had time to blossom and integrate into the community it will finally attain excellence in all facets of food service, but for now it struggles to achieve true supremacy.