I tried new Huddersfield restaurant and left feeling puzzled

If you’re new to west African cuisine, the menu at Foeyams restaurant in Huddersfield might leave your head spinning.

I was au fait with chicken bites and goat curry, and cow foot soup was self explanatory, but some items on the menu left me puzzled. Should I choose forohchaya? Or how about supakanja with fufu, or maybe some ebbeh?

Anyone for a bit of saucy forengh? Are you tempted by the lamb domada, or by the ultimate tongue-twister, chebu gen bu weh (fish) benachin?

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Only one entry - chu bullet - had a helpful translation, ‘meatball stew’. I was thinking a glossary of terms would have made things easier.

Later, I Googled 'forohchaya' and was told the word 'did not match any documents'. So I am still none the wiser on that one.

Luckily on the day I had restaurant owner Foday Janko to give me a crash course in Gambian and west African cuisine. The food is made from scratch by his wife Mariama Baldeh. Helpfully, there were some some laminated signs beneath the serving counter with lists of ingredients for various dishes.

Inevitably I chose something familiar, goat curry with rice, and sat down in the window seat, an ideal spot to watch the world outside in Byram Street, near the top entrance to Huddersfield Open Market. I was told the goat curry was the most popular dish at Foeyams.

The goat curry was perfectly spiced and a suitable accompaniment to a truly memorable mound of rice called jollof, also known as benachin, which is usually made with long-grain rice along with tomatoes, peppers, chillies, onions, spice and more. If you do order the goat, just be mindful of the odd little bone.

The curried goat dish cost £7 and the rice £3, so it's possible to dine well here for under £15 which is fantastic. I also enjoyed a baobab soft drink (£2.50) and was told this was homemade with imported baobab fruit. You might want to opt for a sugar-free version as mine was super sweet.

I also tried the lamb pattie (£1.50) and a dumpling (60p) which can be either savoury or sweet. There is also a dessert menu with sponge cake, fruit salad, chocolate banana cake and fudgy brownies. The children's menu allows diners to ask for smaller portions of any adult mean for just £5. The breakfast menu includes eggs on toast with beans, and other items.

This restaurant is a welcome addition to Huddersfield's dining scene and worth a visit for lunch or dinner. Just be prepared to ask lots of questions if the dishes are unfamiliar.

Foeyams, which opened in June, is on Byram Street, Huddersfield town centre, and is open seven days from 9am to 10pm.

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