Radio Kwara

"On a Wednesday night, the music flowing out of this tiny Nigerian restaurant on Greene Ave. might inspire you to grab a bottle of red from the wine shop next door, and waltz on in. From the folks behind Dept. of Culture, a Nigerian restaurant with an always-booked tasting menu, Radio Kwara is a more accessible alternative. Nothing on the a la carte menu is above $32, and it's all just as delicious. Inside, servers pour spicy broth onto tender chunks of goat tableside, and friends share the butter-soaked bread ati obe with marinated mushrooms, and charred octopus suya." - willa moore, bryan kim, tiffany yannetta, neha talreja

"When Eater named Dept of Culture its best new restaurant of 2022, there was one major concession: It was impossible to get into. Earlier this year, the team corrected course with Radio Kwara, a walk-in restaurant that’s every bit as satisfying. The a la carte menu has goat pepper soup with noodles, a standout mushroom toast, and roasted guinea fowl. BYOB." - Luke Fortney, Eater Staff

"If you've been in Clinton Hill recently, we’ll bet you an order of pounded yam that you’ve walked by Radio Kwara on Greene Ave. and never noticed the completely unmarked restaurant. But the Nigerian food coming out of their tiny kitchen—nourishing goat meat pepper soup, charred octopus suya—is worth a stop. From the folks behind Dept. of Culture, a Nigerian restaurant that offers a four-course tasting meal around a single table, Radio Kwara is a more casual alternative, with an a la carte menu that caps out at $34. If Dept. of Culture is a special occasion restaurant, Radio Kwara is a weeknight spot that makes even a Wednesday feel like a special occasion. photo credit: Kate Previte photo credit: Kate Previte photo credit: Kate Previte photo credit: Kate Previte photo credit: Kate Previte Inside, there are a handful of tables and a curved counter overlooking the kitchen, where friends gossip over brioche-like bread, slick with butter and topped with goat or mushrooms, and wine from Radicle, which is directly next door. Radio Kwara doesn't sell alcohol, but they allow you to bring your own bottles with a small corkage fee. Invite a friend here for a long overdue catch-up, and pick up one bottle more than you think you’ll need. Then settle in for a mellow evening punctuated by obe ata, Nigeria's versatile red pepper-based sauce, which you’ll find in several dishes—sandwiched between moi moi and flakes of mackerel, and poured over sticky, stretchy pounded yam. In each dish, it tastes just a little different. Food Rundown photo credit: Kate Previte Bread Ati Obe The dish that made us fall for Radio Kwara. A towering hunk of bread, toasted in butter so that each side is soaked but crisp, layered with obe ata and your choice of either crispy sautéed mushrooms or marinated goat. You can’t go wrong, but start with the mushroom. photo credit: Kate Previte Charred Suya Octopus Something about the contrast between the tender chew and the sharp spiciness of this well-charred tentacle makes us wonder why more places don't make octopus suya. photo credit: Kate Previte Goat Meat Pepper Soup If you had a cold, we estimate three sips of this clear, spicy broth would cure you instantly. But that makes it sound like the broth is the best part. It's not. It’s tied for first place with the thin, bouncy noodles, and the hunk of soft goat. This is a beautiful soup. Order it. And if you don’t usually share soup, let this soup be the exception. photo credit: Kate Previte Pounded Yam Some days, eating a chicken wing clean or getting every bit of meat out of crab legs feels like a fun challenge. Other days are for pounded yam. Actually, scratch that—all days are for pounded yam. Radio Kwara's is smooth and sticky, served drowning in a pool of obe ata, and we’d like to feed it to everyone we love, especially if they’ve recently had their wisdom teeth removed. Black Jollof Rice If you're here with a larger group, you could definitely get this rice, which is served in a warm clay pot, to round out your order. We find it lackluster compared to other mains though, and sometimes slightly undercooked. Why order rice when you could be eating baby-soft yam? Moi Moi For the Radio Kwara version of this steamed bean cake, a circular patty is served atop a bed of smoky mackerel. The patty is dense, the mackerel perfectly flakey. photo credit: Kate Previte Guinea Fowl A dainty little bird—great for two friends who want to pick at something for several hours while catching up on every single minute of every single day since they last saw each other." - Willa Moore

"With so much coverage of Dept of Culture, and two years of James Beard nominations, it’s surprising Radio Kwara hasn’t blown up. It’s as good as Dept of Culture and unlike that restaurant, you can get in easily. The format is different: Most days the menu is a la carte, with dishes like goat pepper soup and Nigerian agege bread. The tiny restaurant plays great music, and it’s BYOB with no corkage fee, so stop by next-door Radicle Wine on your way in." - Luke Fortney, Emma Orlow

"From Dept. Of Culture—one of our favorite West African restaurants where storytelling and humor punctuate dinner—Radio Kwara is a marginally larger, but still tiny, spot in Clinton Hill. The food is inspired by Nigerian drinking parlors, chef Ayo Balogun’s childhood, and regional cuisines from his home country. The dishes are deeply layered with flavor and the goat pepper soup is a must-try dish. Radio Kwara is open Wednesday through Sunday for a la carte dining, and they do a 10-course tasting menu once every two weeks. You can also BYOB." - neha talreja, will hartman, bryan kim, willa moore