William Quagraine, CEO of Gold Coast Restuarant and Cocktail Bar
The Gold Coast Restaurant & Cocktail Bar, which started near the Nyaho Medical Centre at the Airport Residential Area in Accra on April 2015, has moved to a new location opposite the Accra Tourist Information Centre (ATIC) and owners, William and Francesca Quagraine, say it is all part of the grand plan to make it the best restaurant in this country.
Good restaurants everywhere have stand-out qualities. For the Gold Coast, its walk-in gallery of iconic Ghanaian images which welcomed guests, the variety of tasty dishes and the generally great ambience helped strengthen the brand which has had to look for a more spacious space to serve the ever-growing clientele.
“It’s been a wonderful journey since 2015,” says CEO, William Quagraine. “We have managed to develop different categories of patronage mainly by word of mouth. People kept coming back because they liked the food and the quality of service and we have moved to the bigger, new location with that same sense of dedication to customers’ needs.”
To the management of the Gold Coast Restaurant, the new location is superb for several reasons. It offers easier access to clients. The types of businesses and residents in the area are the kind of clientele it already serves. It means the restaurant has moved closer to its target market now.
“Tourists looking for well-prepared African/Ghanaian dishes pass through regularly so where we are now is a blessing to them. They can easily locate us and have a real taste of Ghana through our food".
“There’s also space for banquets and conferences and we have introduced additional services like daily breakfast, a coffee lounge and a demarcated smoking area”.
The Gold Coast Restaurant actually started in London in 2004 and steadily established itself to all shades of Londoners as the place to go for fine African and Ghanaian dishes alongside an impressive selection of Ghanaian beers.
According to the CEO, Ghana’s participation in the 2006 football World Cup bolstered an immense awareness for the eatery, resulting in a sort of carnival whenever Ghana played a match. The 2010 World Cup brought the restaurant to the notice of greater numbers of people.
“People across the United Kingdom, United States and elsewhere who knew of the restaurant during its London days, dropped by at the Airport Residential Area whenever they were in Ghana and heard we had moved to Accra".
“We have stepped up considerably in several ways, in terms of the variety of food, drinks and services available and trust all those will help push us to the very top of the restaurant business in Ghana.”
The gallery of iconic Ghanaian images has also been expanded. Dr Kwesi Owusu of Creative Storm Networks spent long hours selecting the photos and is happy with the final collection. He says it adds a lot to the pleasant atmosphere at the Gold Coast.
Live band music on Friday nights has been an integral part of Gold Coast’s feel-good package. There’s a huge, open space available now at the new premises and a plan is already drawn to make it a prime venue for performances by top international and local artistes.
A rich list of artistes played at the Airport Residential Area Gold Coast. They included Pat Thomas, Bessa Simons, Ebo Taylor, Okyeame Kwame, Kari Bannerman, Smart Nkansah, Gyedu Blay Ambolley and Ofie Kodjoe.
Others were A. B. Crentsil, Asabea Cropper, Samini, Bisa Kdei, Tic Tac, Elivava, Kwame Yeboah, Pauline Oduro and the globally-known Nigerian act, Eneka.
There will be an official opening of the restaurant at the new location on Friday, August 9.
Several first-rate musicians are due to perform.
