From gambia to glenpool

“I instantly fell in love with the restaurant business,” Momodou says. “This business is about serving others, and that is something I never get tired of.”

Meet Momodou

Momodou Ceesay was born in Gambia, a tiny country in West Africa. In 1983, he traveled to Oklahoma to attend Rogers State College, and later transferred to Oklahoma State University to earn his degree in Hotel and Restaurant management. Momodou began working as a dishwasher in 1983 to work his way through school. “I instantly fell in love with the restaurant business,” Momodou says. “This business is about serving others, and that is something I never get tired of.”

In 1990, Momodou moved to Glenpool with Mamie, his wife of 38 years, and opened Mamadou’s in 1996. Twenty-five years later, his love for his wife, four children, and famous comfort food is still going strong. 

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Our History

When Momodou move to Glenpool in 1990, he noticed a significant gap in the restaurant landscape. “There were a few fast food restaurants, but not a single one offered steaks and comfort food,” Momodou says. “Many Glenpool residents work in Tulsa, and after coming home from their daily commute, they really didn’t want to drive back to Tulsa for dinner.” That’s why he opened Mamadou’s in 1996, serving steaks, salads, and of course, his famous prime rib. “I wanted to give the Glenpool community the opportunity to stay in town and enjoy good, quality, reasonably-priced food,” he says.

His favorite part about the restaurant is the people who have been eating there faithfully for so many years. “Mamadou’s feels like home to them,” he says. “They have a particular table they like to sit at, and they want to be at that same table every time.”