ChòpnBlọk
West African restaurant · Montrose ·
West African flavors with bowls, skewers, and creative cocktails
West African flavors with bowls, skewers, and creative cocktails
"Born as a fast-casual stall in the Post Market food hall and now a full-service, Michelin Gourmand restaurant bursting with energy, this Nigerian American chef-owner Ope Amosu project gives West African flavors their proper due. The Polo Club Suya ($16)—tender beef skewers dusted with yaji peanut-pepper spice sourced from Nigeria—is succulent and genuinely spicy, mirroring the version served at the legendary Lagos Polo Club. The chips & dip ($14) riff on a Texan classic by swapping tortillas for crisp, lightly salted plantains and pairing them with guacamole, queso, or salsa with velvety, savory stewed Liberian greens; a ChòpnBlọk visit without an order of this appetizer is incomplete. Well-portioned bowls are the calling card, and the golden bowl ($22.50)—smoky jollof jambalaya, curry, chicken, yaji vegetables, and stewed plantains—hits smoky, sweet, and spicy all at once. To drink, the manyaritas ($14) reimagine the margarita; order the tamarind for an earthy depth of flavor. The Montrose dining room is lively, loud, colorful, and well-lit, with Afrobeats pulsing and a party feel, and as a full-service space it better reflects the Michelin-caliber food; it’s busy thanks to word of mouth and accolades, so book a reservation." - H. Drew Blackburn
"An after-hours service at the Montrose flagship (9–11 p.m., Thursday, October 9) brings Afro-soul DJ sets and one-night-only dishes that fuse Trill Burgers’ comfort food with ChòpnBlọk’s West African flavors—think suya sliders, loaded fries, and more. Recently named one of America’s 50 Best Restaurants by the New York Times, the restaurant frames this collaboration as a way to “bridge the gap within the African diaspora,” and it serves as the final restaurant stop in its Celebration Circuit, a month-long run marking the location’s first anniversary on October 1." - H. Drew Blackburn
"Hearty West African bowls await in a bright, colorfully decorated living room that celebrates West African art and aesthetics; the Motherland (steamed rice, curry, yaji-spiced vegetables, sweet plantains) is warmly spiced and ultra filling, the Trad packs jollof-style jambalaya with halal chicken and more yaji-spiced veggies and stewed plantains, and the plantains appetizer is almost impossible to pass up; cap it off with a classic cocktail or a refresher like the Cape Town Cooler (guava, lemon, grapefruit, sparkling water) if you’re skipping alcohol." - Lane Gillespie
"The standalone Montrose restaurant is the full realization of West African flavors that outstrips the food-hall stall experience, offering an expanded menu of reimagined classics and comforting bowl pairings. Expect creative small plates like deviled Scotch eggs made with spiced turkey and suya beef skewers with yaji spice and pickled red onion, alongside hearty Blok Pairings such as buka (beef short rib red stew with rice, beans and sweet plantains), Liberian-inspired Greens + Tings (roadside steak and stewed plantains), the Black Star (ikoyi shrimp with yassa curry) and the popular Golden (smoky jollof jambalaya with curry, chicken, vegetables and plantains). Cocktails by Alexis Mijares nod to West African ingredients — the Dodo Old Fashioned uses spiced plantain syrup and a dehydrated plantain garnish, while the Redbush Sidecar features chocolate rooibos–infused cognac — and the warm, moody dining room is decorated with colorful African prints and cultural nods, including a curated shelf of books by a Black woman–owned bookstore." - Brittany Britto Garley
"Montrose-based cooking from Ope Amosu that offers rich, plantain-laden stews and an ardent illustration of West African foodways transplanted into Houston’s diverse dining scene." - Eater Staff