The staff were extremely patient and helpful in explaining the menu. They allowed me to sample the menu items before I placed my order. I ordered the chicken and jollof, which were excellent. The spices were on point. I love this restaurant. read more

Just went there today with my boys and the food was delicious its gonna be a def stop every time i go there. People should definitely go there hungry your hunger will so be well taking care of... read more

definitely a place to visit. THe restaurant is in colobus and my friends and I who are in college in delaware ( an hour away) drive down every chance we get to eat some good food to get a feel of home. Other than the excellent food, the service is good. She is an amazing woman and takes good care of her customers. It is such an amazing place we organized an even there and she took such good care of us, that is the regular customers and our new ones. Dont know what else to say about this place....JUST GO THERE!! its AMAZING! read more

This was the best West African Food I have ever had in my life. First of all the service was splendid and they we willing to to address any questions that we had with not attitude like some places I know. If you want great west African food you definitely have to stop at this place for a great meal and it will take you right back to the motherland. I felt I like I was at home when I had my meal. I am sure you would want to have the same experience read more

This place was FANTASTIC!! it was my first time having African Food and I've wanted to go back everyday since. The owner was so friendly and the food was delicious, PLEASE try the Bisap drink also!! Can't wait to get back for another meal! read more

OMG, this place is great. Great service, great food, and different from the same old stuff. I will be back.

Like most others on here, I found this restaurant on yelp, and am glad I did. The food was very good, I tried the jollof (sp) rice and goat stew, which was very good, but took 40 minutes to get, and when someone at another table brought up the fact that his friend at the same table got his food over ten minutes earlier though they ordered the same thing. She starts talking about how it has to be 165 and other US food codes, but I have been a chef for a while now, and you know that the food is prepared in advance, and hearing the microwave getting a work-out, yet hearing no pots or pans, confirmed my thoughts. She was telling the other guests to look a her reviews on here and other sites, and talked about serving the governor, OSU president, etc. and stating how much better she is at the top of her lungs. It might be the best African food around according to many, but it's still not five stars, with the craziness that took place, they are lucky to not get less truthfully. read more

We visited Drelyse on a Tuesday night. There was one other gentleman finishing his meal but otherwise we had the place to ourselves (for 5 of us.) We met the owner/chef, her husband, and their teen-age daughter. So it is definitely family run! The owner was very patient with us, kindly explaining what was in each dish. She was careful to ask if we had any food allergies (many dishes are prepared with dried shrimp, which is not necessarily called out as an ingredient.) She was also very patient with me, a vegetarian - explaining what was cooked in chicken broth and what was truly vegetarian. I had a delicious plate of black eyed peas, white rice and plantains. Oh my it was soooo spicy!!! She was not joking when she said she would make it spicy. We also tried the sambusa (very similar to an indian samosa) and the "fried sticky rice balls" for $1 each. How can you go wrong? She is from Ghana (she speaks perfect British English, French and Ga - her native language.) The other 2 female chefs are from Senagal and Kenya. After preparing our meal, she was happy to come out and visit with us, explaining more about Ghana and her culture. Overall, a lovely Tuesday night dinner. Highly recommended for something out of the ordinairy. read more

Food is not bad but PLEASE work on your customer service! This is the second time I've patronized the business to make an order and was met with such an unwelcoming vibe! It's like you are bothering them for simply ordering food! Meanwhile we are paying money to eat there! It makes you not even want to enjoy the meal once you get it. I've ordered in person and over the phone and it's been the same story each time. Though I enjoy the food, I don't think I will be eating here anymore. read more

Friendly staff and the food here is delicious. Second day in a row i'm coming here to enjoy these well cooked meals and i will definitely make another stop before leaving the city. read more

This was my first time eating West African food and it was delicious!! My friend and I started out with the Sambusas and the Vitumbua's for an appetizer. The Sambusas were like little phylo meat pies with spices and onions, so yummy. The Vitumbuas were mashed rice with cinnamon and nutmeg and fried, almost like a doughnut. From there we had a sample of the goat soup since neither of us had ever had goat before...it was spicy and really tender, we were both pleasantly surprised. After that we had the peanut butter soup with beef and the Jollaf rice with chicken. It was so much food but it was all wonderful. The woman who waited on us ws so helpful in explaining thing. Wonderful experience I will be going back. read more

Loved it! First visit was casual and welcoming. Definitely listen to your server for recommendations. Peanut Butter soup was lovely and the goat was great, too. read more

Walking in, I was impressed by the simple but elegant tables and the amazing smell....mmmm. It was good time right from the beginning! We wanted to try it all. The service was incredible. They even gave a us a free vitumba with the springs rolls we got as an appetizer. Being a person that doesn't like things too spicy, there were still plenty of dishes to enjoy. My favorite were the peanut soup (what an amazing flavor - even my 19 month old enjoyed it), jollof rice with chicken, chep djan (the tilapia was perfectly cooked and had great flavor). Although I personally have not grown into the taste of palm oil, my husband loved the okra soup and the beef spinach stew. Of course get the fufu for dipping! The Banku is a different but wonderful taste, try it! If you like to try ethnic foods, Drelyse will satisfy above and beyond! read more

The other reviews cover it all! It's in a relatively sketchy neighborhood (as far as Columbus is concerned) but the food is WORTH the risk! The owners are more than gracious. They even gave our table (of 4 ppl) a free plate of plantains and everyone knows I am all about free. lol I had the Jollof rice and chicken and that was delicious. I HIGHLY recommend this restaurant! read more

Just went recently with a group of friends. The place is in a little sketchy shopping strip. But don't let this keep you from coming to this place. The food is phenomenal. We got the goat soup, a beef dish, and a chicken dish...and a couple appetizers. All of it was fantastic. Lisa (the owner and our waiter) made sure we felt comfortable and asked if anyone had allergies. She was very attentive and was very helpful in explaining all the dishes. None in our group had had African food, but we will be back soon. The service is just like what everyone else says....it's great! We asked for ice, and supposedly they either ran out or do not carry ice. The waiter went out and bought a bag of ice. Great service! Anyone looking for great food and an adventure....check out this place! If you don't know what to get, let Lisa recommend dishes. Great job Lisa! We will be back soon. read more

This review is based solely on the customer service and has nothing to do with the food itself. I had just got off the plane from oakland to columbus and was starving. Headed straight to Drelyse because I was craving for Ghanaian food but when I got there, it was closed. I then went to sleep at a friend's place, woke up the next morning and called as soon as the restaurant opened to order. I was told it would be ready by 45 minutes to an hour. The lady was very rude and abrupt when she picked the phone. No worries, just was starving and the important part was I get my order in as soon as the store opens. I get ready to leave Columbus for school which is 2 hours drive away, get there and my food isn't ready. The lady is so rude about it even going as far as lying about the time I called. So I opened my phone up and showed her the time I called. The other man is quite nice and tries to calm the situation. He even offered us a drink on the house. While the food is good, good customer service for me is everything. read more

What a find! We got the Sambusas, the Joloff rice, and the Peanut butter stew with goat (fairly spicy but the goat was delicious!). The owner is very helpful and kind, even stayed open later than he wanted to for us and helped us to pick out what we would enjoy. read more

The food here is pretty good, but whenever we are trying to order, the items listed on the menu are often not available. The customer service is great, the guy there is very friendly. The fish is my favorite with Jollof rice and the sambusa! read more

I stopped in here the other day to try something different. The food was good. I had the Jolof Rice with the chicken simply because thats what most everyone here had and I was not disappointed. I also had one of the sambusa and it was tasty. It was very similar to an empanada. The owner was also really nice. He mentioned that if I were to come back I should try the peanut soup. He went ahead and gave me a free taste and its unlike any soup I've ever tasted. If I ever want to introduce a friend to new ethnic food this will be the place I take them. The only downside I have is that it was a little tricky finding this place. read more

Wow! My husband, two daughters and I went here last night, and had a meal to remember. The staff was wonderful, took time to explain things, and help us with choices. My vegetarian daughter LOVED the Red Red, a bean dish. I had the beef peanut soup, which was divine, and my husband had the jollof rice with goat, and was SO happy! The jollof chicken was incredible, too. Wish we lived closer, I 'd come here as often as I could afford. And do try the vitumbar and sambusa. read more

I love this restaurant. The food is fresh and delicious. I eat here regularly and have not been disappointed. If you are picky or unfamiliar with West African cuisine, ask questions about ingredients so you are very clear. For example if you order fish, the fish will have bones in it. In addition, I love the sambusa's and spring rolls. They are delicious! And, the grilled tilapia is the best!!! Love this place! read more

We were a pretty large group (8 people) and were visiting out of town. None of us had Ghana food before, but the owner & the server explained their menu very clearly to us and gave us good suggestions. We particularly like the peanut butter soup, red red and Waakye but all of the dishes we tried were good. Highly recommend this place! read more

good food served everyday. i really enjoyed eating there or even taking out to the crib and take time to enjoy

I read about this restaurant in one of Columbus's free newspaper, either The Other Paper or Alive. I finally had a chance to visit this establishment. What can I say, but this place is amazing. Delicious, flavorful, not boring, friendly, and a lot of food for a great price!!!!!!!!!!!! I had the beef spinach stew with fufu. This was outstanding. The dish was extremely flavorful, and you receive a lot of food for your money. The music in the background set the mood for the food. This was my first time experiencing African food. The server explained the sides to me, and he made sure I knew what I was getting before I ordered. Before I left, I had to order another dish, the jollof rice with chicken, for lunch at work. For the yelper who said this place is a hidden gem, it is. It's definitely worth the trip!!!! This place was a lot of fun, real ethnic food, great price, great staff and cooks, all in all, this place ROCKS! read more

When I moved from NY, I thought I'd never have a chance to eat my favorite dishes from whatever international cuisine...unless I went back for a visit. On a whim, I decided to look up any restaurant that served African cuisine, and I found Drelyse. I've had my share of West African dishes in NYC (Senegalese and Ghanaian) and never had the opportunity to introduce my husband to it. We've had Ethiopian food, which we love (probably because some of the dishes are similar to Indian food), but I wanted him to try something different. We went to Drelyse last night and it was empty, however, a lot of people came in to pick up orders. The waitress was very nice and described some of the dishes to us. She suggested the Goat Stew and Chappatis, saying that it was the favorite dish among many Indians that come over (and they claim it was better than what most Indian restaurants serve). My husband order that, but I decided to have something different. She suggested the Peanut Butter Soup (with lamb) and Fufu. I specifically asked to try something with Fufu, because I never had the opportunity to try it before. For appetizers, we ordered some sambusa, which was served with a spicy tomato-like chutney. When the food came out, I didn't wait to devour it. The sambusas were fresh, meaty and deliciously crispy. Way better than what I had at Blue Nile (which was stale and probably a day old). The spicy chutney was a perfect compliment to the sambusas. Then our dinner came out. My husband was first skeptical about how good the goat stew would be, but to his amazement, it was everything that the lady said it would be. The chappatis were more like parathas, and the spices in the stew smelled heavenly. And yes, I did sneak a few bites. The meat was tender, and the sauce was full of flavor. The Peanut Butter Stew with fufu (and I got a side of rice) was tasty. It was a completely different spice profile. It was earthy? It tasted like the dish too hours to make and simmered to perfection. It had a depth of flavor that I can't quite describe, but it was hearty and complex. Unlike what the other reviewer said, you can taste the peanut butter. I'm not sure if he was expecting dollops of Jif or Skippy in his stew. I mean it's just ground up peanuts, the natural unadulterated kind. The fufu was starchy but really good with the stew. My husband didn't care for the texture of the fufu, but I liked it. It was different from eating rice everyday. All in all, the food and experience was great. I'm definitely coming back and bringing friends with me. Next time, I plan on trying some vegetarian options. read more