The truth is few New Yorkers throw dinner parties like Ayo Balogun-the chef, owner, and de facto protagonist of Dept. Our meals here even inspired a guide to restaurants that feel like dinner parties. By the end of the meal, the communal table of strangers will have shared BYOB selections and who they approve of on Love Is Blind. Nigerian records spin, white wine glugs into tiny ridged IKEA glasses, and the more people sip their complimentary chenin blanc (or whatever they brought to drink if they already knew about the BYOB policy), the friendlier and less first-day-of-school shy they become. Of Culture can only fit about 15 diners per seating, most of whom commune at a wooden table next to framed photos of the owner’s grandparents. The space has the energy of a cool gallery opening, only the attendees here don't have daddies and personal connections to the Getty family. This Bed-Stuy place serves a four-course, prix-fixe meal twice nightly in a room off of Nostrand Avenue. Of Culture, a Nigerian restaurant you need to book a seat at right now. (Usually we pay in red wine or tupperware containers of congealed macaroni and cheese.) If we were going to dole out cash for that kind of thing, $75 would seem like a pretty good deal–especially if it meant eating one of the city’s most exciting meals in a setting that feels like an apartment hang. Fri.-Sun., noon to 1 a.We don’t normally give friends money to throw dinner parties where we get to schmooze with strangers, eat comfort food we didn’t make, and happily shut up when the host gives a speech. All the meat is halal.īuka New York, 946 Fulton Street, Brooklyn, NY 11238. Adorning the walls are fabric and clothing from different parts of the country, including a dress from the Igbo tribe and a Yoruba traditional hand-printed piece of fabric.Ĭome dine at Buka, and immerse yourself in Nigerian culture while having delicious, authentic food. “The bus comes with character,” he explains. The bus was the most popular form of transportation throughout Nigeria until the mid-1990s. Taking me to the back of the restaurant, Mashood proudly shows me a yellow bus, much like a minivan. (Not sure what effect it would have on me, a slight woman.) If it’s late enough, and if you are so inspired, you may want to try the African viagra, which is a combination of bitter herbs and gin. Made in-house, it is refreshing and does not interfere with the delectable flavors of the food. I love the fresh ginger juice, which is made with honey and ice. Also popular is the panla, a dried codfish dish served with fufu and your choice of sauce. The palava is a green leaf “draw soup” the gbegiri is a honey bean stew, originating in the northern part of Nigeria. Made with cornmeal fufu, it is served with palava and gbegiri sauces. I also had the efo, finely shredded spinach with sautéed onions and dried fish. Breaking off a piece, I dipped it in the egusi. It is the perfect accompaniment to all the delectable sauces. Fufu, a staple in Nigeria, is made with fresh white yams, and has the consistency of firm mashed potatoes. A colorful orange and green dish, the egusi is warm, lightly spiced and delicious. Understandable!) The rice is divine.įufu is served with goat and egusi, a delectable sauce made with ground melon seeds, spinach and dried fish. (Since there is a lot of competition among Nigerian chefs for the best jollof, Lookman declined to tell me exactly what blend of spices he uses. The jollof rice, a West African rice pilau, is a tomato-based dish made with butter, onions, pepper and secret spices. The spiced meat was delectable and grilled to perfection. I dipped the meat in a special blend of dried spices that were served on the side. Suya at Buka New York.įor appetizers, I sampled the suya, thinly sliced beef dusted with peanut, ginger, suya (a Nigerian spice), and herbs. Inspired by his successes, he opened up his own restaurant, Buka, on Fulton Street in the Clinton Hill section of Brooklyn. “I pride myself on being traditional,” he tells me, in regards to his Nigerian cuisine. His cooking was so good that more and more people started showing up for his food. A self-taught chef and an admitted foodie like myself, he started working at small eateries in New York. (Very Brooklyn.)Ī bit tired from fasting during Ramadan, he nevertheless had energy to discuss his experiences with food, both in Nigeria and here in the United States. Outgoing and friendly, Mashood, owner of Buka, a Nigerian restaurant, is a handsome, bespectacled man with a salt-and-pepper beard, sporting a hipster-style thin-brimmed straw hat. "I wanted to experience things from the source,” he told me one afternoon. Lookman Mashood went traveling throughout the southern states of Nigeria, searching for authentically prepared food.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |