Ken J.
Yelp
I know from good west African, somewhat, having been stationed for a year in the hinterlands of Liberia some years ago. West African food is mostly absolutely divine. Spicy, flavorful, diverse, fun to eat - and meals are a social thing. "Let's eat!" was my favorite thing to hear from a friend or even acquaintance calling from his porch. Fun. Yum.
It was just me. Darn. But I thought I should check this place out before I drag friends in to eat with me. It ain't steak and potatoes, and the eating style seems coarse to some.
Let me 'splain. Yeah, they'll give you a fork, like a Chinese place will give you a fork. But fork that. REAL hinterlands west Africans will eat with their hands for most things. From a communal bowl, no less, but let's not get crazy here.
I ordered peanut goat with fufu (aka foufou and other things). It's a bowl of peanut soup with about 15 generous chunks of yummy tender goat meat (with bones and stuff - you don't have to eat those bits!) happily swimming inside. Don't dig in yet! - wash first by pouring from the pitcher of warm water (not to drink!) over your right hand into the spittoon.
Your utensil, should you decide to use it this way, is the cheerily light yellow lump of dough served on a separate plate to your right. You wet your right hand fingers with peanut soup so the fufu doesn't stick, then twist off a morsel of fufu about the size of a small plum (larger if you're a pro) and roll it into a ball in your fingers. Then dip the ball into the soup and raise it to your mouth. Roll it around with your tongue a second or three to savor, then swallow. Suggest not really chewing because that's just not what you do.
What did you taste? YUM, right? The flavor isn't really very challenging - more familiar than you might expect. Nicely savory soup with a little sweetness from the fufu. A little palm oil flavor and just a tad of hot pepper heat. Wipe your chin and do it again. Soon you'll get the hang of not making a mess of it and start to appreciate the simplicity.
Can't tell you how to deal with the meat. Different cultures do it differently. The Liberian Gio would eat the protein with the fufu in the same handful. Others would eat it separately. Some use a spoon. You do you. Extra points if you eat the fat and bones.
When you're done, wash your right hand with the water. Masters undo their belts and belch, a complement to the cook for the Gio. I skip that part.
OK, you can use a fork, but that misses some of the fun. Cut off some fufu, dump it in the soup and wallow it around, then stick the forkful into your hungry maw. The rest is the same.
I would have liked it much spicier, and I probably could have asked for that. I'm more used to peanuttier-tasting soup, yet this recipe was more than satisfactorily wonderful. The goat was fairly lean and very tasty, yet "soft" (tender). The only thing I miss is terrible beer or respectable red table wine. Maybe they have some. Didn't ask this time.
The store is in a working-class neighborhood in an older strip mall. It's a little grubby on the outside, but inside is spotless and really comfortably attractive. The service was good; a little terse until I established that I knew what I was ordering, but not unfriendly even before that. The mama cooking had sparkling eyes and a relaxed way. The other customers were very friendly and I made them smile - a white American eating fufu! In all, a place that knows you want to enjoy your food.
Everyone but me was there for takeout. There was a steady stream of locals leaving with bags of goodness. There are about 20 seats at tables, so I'm thinking this would be a good place to take a moderately sized group. And have fun eating good food.
Go there!
