East meets west Morden Chinese restaurant has a West African twist By: AV Kitching Posted: 4:27 PM CDT Tuesday, Sep. 17, 2024 Last Modified: 7:20 PM CDT Tuesday, Sep. 17, 2024 Updates

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This article was published 17/09/2024 (721 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It’s not the only Chinese restaurant in town but Wang Dao Bistro is certainly the only one in Morden with a Nigerian chef at its helm.

Proprietor Ganiyat Oyesomi-Daibu took ownership of the existing eatery last November, six months after she emigrated to Canada from FCT Abuja, Nigeria, with her husband and five children.

While still in Nigeria, the businesswoman — she owns Nigerian-based spice company GNT Spice — expressed an interest in purchasing the bistro, which was up for sale by original owner Min Wang who was moving to Ottawa.

The timing, however, wasn’t quite right.

“I was in Nigeria when I contacted Min Wang and we became very good friends. She wanted to sell to me but because our documents were taking time to come through she sold it to her friend. I didn’t expect her to wait for me as this is the way of business, but I lost hope,” she says.

As it turns out, the place was always meant to be hers.

“Later on I heard it was for sale again and this time I got it. I called Min Wang and told her it was mine. She gave me all her recipes. She was very, very helpful. So eventually Wang Dao Bistro came to me,” she says.

Her plan was to continue serving Chinese food, even though it was a cuisine she wasn’t particularly familiar with in the beginning.

With Min Wang’s help, and the power of the internet, Oyesomi-Daibu set to work, mastering the classic dishes that form the backbone of any respectable North American Chinese restaurant.

Customers have questioned the authenticity of her cooking but Oyesomi-Daibu is undeterred.

“They come in and say, ‘Why are you African cooking Chinese food?’ I tell them to taste the food first and then we can talk,” she laughs.

“Then the people say, ‘Oh you are Chinese by blood but officially you are African!”

While cooking up a storm of Chinese dishes in the kitchen, she’s doing something special on the side; residents of Morden are being treated to a cuisine most have yet to experience.

By incorporating items such as jollof rice, chicken suya, poundoyam and fufu into the bistro’s rotation alongside her renditions of fried rice, chow mein, spring rolls and breaded shrimp, Oyesomi-Daibu is gradually introducing West African food to the menu.

“I do have plans to introduce more West African dishes to the menu. When we first opened the restaurant I invited everyone to the launch party and only served the West African food. We were able to get the feedback from the community,” she says

“When people can have a taste they are interested and when one person likes your food they will tell other people. Now people are asking for the African food when they come in because they have heard about us from word-of-mouth.”

Does she know how the other Chinese eateries in town feel about her food?

“Honestly I don’t know how they feel because we have our objective and our vision and that is what I focus on. Personally I am always focusing on how to better serve our customers. That is my concern,” she says.

And how would she feel if non-Nigerian restaurateur decide to specialize in Nigerian cuisine? Would she grant them the same grace?

Oyesomi-Daibu laughs.

“I will ask myself, ‘Is this person getting the real, original taste right? What is this person doing better than me?’ If the person is getting it right then I will go back to the drawing board and look at my own weaknesses,” she says.

“If possible I will look for collaboration with them. If there is nothing we can do as collaborators then I will stick to my own goals and see what I can do better, what can I add to my existing service and how I can position myself better. For me every opportunity is a learning opportunity.”

“Besides there is enough people in Morden for more than one business to exist.”

av.kitching@freepress.mb.ca