Finally got an opportunity to dine here. Ive had the food catered before and this time I was able…read moreto try in house. The establishment itself is quite dated. The awning outside needs refurbishment and inside furniture is not updated. It's dark inside, almost like a night club. Perhaps it is sometimes. I did not like the decor, it was a little run down and honestly did not match up to the prices. The service was also disappointing. I felt that staff lacked a bit of professionalism and they rarely checked on us. The plates are huge. That is a plus. My partner ordered the goat and I tried the red snapper. I think one plate is big enough to share. I like the spinach, but everything needed a bit of salt. While the red snapper was coated in a lovely tomato and red pepper gravy, I felt it made the crispyness of the fried fish disappear and it was kind of soggy. Maybe you can ask for the gravy on the side. The food is not bad, but given the physical establishment and the service I wouldn't return.

First time trying this spot and the food was really good. The suya was tender and you could tell it…read morewas grilled, though I wish it had a bit more seasoning. I ordered the "Mother Land" cocktail--it was very strong but still sweet and enjoyable. Unfortunately, the service was a big letdown. Our server wasn't attentive, barely checked on us, and put our order in incorrectly. I ended up waiting a long time for my partner's food, and by the time it arrived, mine was cold. The space itself is super cute, I loved the afrobeats music and the overall vibe is great. While the food was good, I just wish the service had matched it for a better overall experience.

Drinks were really good but the food could've been better. I understand you have to cater to…read moredifferent clientele... as a Cameroonian I wasn't that impressed. I will come back for dinner, maybe it'll be a different experience... PS. Julio was great, he explained the menu to us and everything came out as we ordered!

Great environment, DJ on point and the suya was delicious. Would definitely recommend to a friend…read morelooking for a good night out

I ordered the half beef, half chicken suya plate with rice and spinach as my sides. The taste of…read morethe food was amazing. The Suya has a subtle but lingering spice. The place is Next to the CVS in a very active retail center, but the orders are filled quickly on site.

I tried the salmon with jollof rice and spinach. I'd always wanted to try it, but I'm not sure I…read moreliked it. The spinach tasted frozen, and the seasoning was way too overpowering. I probably wouldn't go back. Customer service was good. when I called the woman that answered was very nice and attentive to my questions .

(This review is for a delivery order so does not include any detail on service / ambiance)…read more Delicious Ghanaian food in the heart of U Street! I've been wanting to try Ghanian food for the longest time, so when I saw Appioo on UberEats, I just knew I had to put in an order. I got their grilled red snapper with a side of fufu and banku (two traditional paste-like Ghanian dishes; fufu is a starchy dough made with cassava and plantains, while banku is a slightly sour fermented version made with cornmeal and cassava). The red snapper was perfectly grilled, with a delightful char on the outside and super crispy skin, but flaky, tender flesh. It was served with a light, refreshing tomato sauce, and shito / black pepper sauce. The shito was incredibly rich, with a great spicy, smoky, and umami flavor. The tender fish and flavorful sauces went wonderfully with the two sides, with the fufu serving as more of a blank canvas (and therefore a great way to let the natural flavors of the fish -- or the deep, smoky, spicy flavors of the shito -- shine). The banku was perfectly tangy and just the right amount of funky, and it was great with the fish on its own. Everything from Appioo was incredible! I can't wait to sample a few more of their dishes, hopefully from inside the actual restaurant.

With classic Ghanian dishes included and the vibe friendly enough for a good conversation, this…read moreestablishment had many options for every dish on the menu such as vegan, beef, chicken, fish, goat, and oxtail, ranging from $22 to $25 as standard price points. The food here is very authentic and has been approved by many of my West African friends living in the DMV area. My friends and I decided to order one kind of each dish along with one kind of each side so we can try a bit of each. The okra soup was a bit too spicy for my taste, but it contained a lot of flavor, which could be neutralized a bit by the fufu that I ordered. The peanut butter soup was very creamy and flavorful. The jollof was a bit plain, but since the spinach stew was flavorful, it was all good. The wings seemed like an outlier amongst everything else we had ordered, and they were a bit dry, but with two types of dipping sauces, they worked out just fine. Even though there are so many West African restaurants within the DMV area, I find this establishment to be one of the most authentic ones. Since Ghanian food itself is already fire in general, one can't go wrong with coming here.

Great food: from the Fante Fante fish, to the oxtail waakye, to the bofrot donuts for desert,…read moreeverything was heavenly. Excellent service Personable chef and sous-chef. Both came round to chat with us - nice touch.

A MUST when in The District! Space is quaint so Reservations…read moreare required. They do have an upstairs with a bar. Service is swift and personable, with well-informed staff to suggest items that surprise and delight you. We started with the Daddy Bofa drink. Strong and not for the faint of heart. Definitely worth it. Had a Mocktail Sobolo (Zobo). If you're of Caribbean descent, think Sorrel. The Kelewele is good for now and later. The spiced coating on the Plantains and lightly spiced peanuts do not overtake the sweet kiss of the fried Plantains, although, some will be more Tostones-flavored and textured. They are also good with the sauces that come with the Chofi. Chofi's fried turkey tails. Similar to Chicharron de Pollo but smaller and a tad fattier. Comes with three (3) sauces with different spice levels. Come with sweatpants or other LOOSE fits, make 'em fancy though because it's a sexy place. The Waakye gives three (3) large succulent Oxtail smothered in Gari. The Rice & Peas (Red Red) (Red Black Eyed Peas) and a Jollof-styled Rice (without the spice), which was good. The Red Red are DELISH. We're a legume family. The Elmina Spicy Chicken is really for two (2), A LOT! Stewed in a savory but spicy red pepper sauce. DIVINE. We added a side of Jollof, which honestly, it should automatically come with, considering the price. FANTASTIC dishes together! After all of that, no room for dessert, although we were gonna get the Malva cake. It does come with ice cream and we simply had no room. We took everything for leftovers because it's that much food. Amapiano usually plays overhead, giving a Motherland vibe. Once in a while, you'll hear GoGo beats to remind you that you're Stateside in The District. Overall, an immediate return!

I got the pleasure of learning about Calabash and experiencing their Ghanian cuisine on a Sunday…read moreafternoon and I thoroughly enjoyed. Calabash African Cuisine is an intimate and cute establishment that offers great customer service. And the food, the food was absolutely delicious! I ordered the Suya and Waakye, which took my tastebuds back to the delicious dishes my second family always cooked for festivities. I also got the opportunity to try my friend's entree, which was the Banku with the Peanut Soup. Needless to say, the food was flavored and cooked perfectly. Whenever, I'm craving some goodT Ghanian food, I'm glad that I now have a go to... Calabash.

Typing this while in emergency room with friend who has a severe peanut allergy. We asked the…read moreserver several times was there any peanuts in the seasoning and he said no. My friend started to react after eating the suya and I had to rush her to the emergency room. The only reason we found out about the peanuts was because I made the server go ask the chef about the peanuts after her reaction . This was something that could be avoided if they took the time to put her health and life first.

THIRD TIMES THE CHARM!…read more This is my second time dining at Lydia's on H (third visit). My first time was Valentine's Day, and the restaurant, while calm, was chaotic, AKA the full menu was not available. The second attempt to dine there, the staff member (whose name I forgot, please charge it to my head and not my heart!) informed us before we sat down that the evening service was a limited menu. To entice us to return and ensure consistent customer-centric service, the bar manager invited us to return on the first night and asked the staff to inform us when we arrived. Sure enough, the next day, when we arrived, there was a note for the staff informing them that they should be expecting us. The vibe in Lydia's is always chill! The music is always good and at a volume where you and others can still enjoy each other's company with conversation if desired. Overall, the food, service, and ambiance at this establishment should be the standard for many others. Well done, Lydia's. We are excited to come back and try the steak-and-cheese egg rolls next time.

THERE'S MOLD IN THE ICE. If you get ANYTHING to drink from here do not get ice with it. You've been…read morewarned. There was a black thing in my drink I tried to grab it to show the bartender just to realize it was INSIDE the ice. Frozen into it. The food is NOT good. Best thing here is the egg rolls. I've had everything on their menu between three visits and each time I was disappointed. The oxtails came to the table hot on the outside but COLD towards the center which lets me know they microwave the oxtails before putting them on the plate. The server said there was nothing they could do but put it BACK IN THE MICROWAVE because I ate some. I wasn't asking for a discount just expressed I was unhappy with the inconsistency in temperature. My kids didn't even like the wings and fries so that should tell you something. They're 12 and 10, that's all they eat. The Suya was a finesse. It's not Suya. It's just not. And to not get what you expect, it wasn't cheap either. I was also told on my last visit that they do not pay their staff properly (stealing hours from their checks) but you'll have to ask your bartender or server about that one. He said that the service fee does NOT go to staff at all it only goes to the business and seemed like he was even scared to say anything. Why not just raise your prices Lydia? It's misleading!!! If I ever go back it'll only be to party upstairs after eating elsewhere and I'm only doing shots! No mixed drinks, no ice.

Dogon gave my wife and me one of the best dining experiences we've ever had in our lives, and we've…read morebeen to a lot of restaurants. We came yesterday for our anniversary, and from start to finish, everything was exceptional. First, our waiter Rafael was superb. He truly made the entire experience feel top tier. Every recommendation he gave us -- from the dishes to the drinks -- was absolutely on point. His service, attention, and energy took an already amazing meal to another level. We've been to their sister restaurant, Tatiana, and really enjoyed it, but I have to say Dogon completely blew us away. The flavors, the spices, and the textures were all perfect. We had the charbroiled oysters, Benne's Bowl, Mom Dukes Shrimp, the coconut curry branzino, and finished with the rum cake. Every single dish was outstanding. The food tasted so rich, soulful, and layered -- it honestly felt like I was eating in a friend's Caribbean grandmother's home. A huge thank you to Kwame, Michael, and Rafael for making our anniversary dinner so special. We are not DMV locals, but we will absolutely be back this summer.

Celebrated my birthday here earlier this year. The food, service, and music were all fantastic…read more Additionally there was a delay with our oxtail dish in the kitchen, after our greens dish had already been brought out and got cold because we wanted to enjoy the dishes together. I say this to say our server was very attentive and made sure to have the kitchen bring us out another hot greens dish at the same time as our oxtail dish, WITHOUT us asking. Top notch customer service and attention to detail. Definitely a great experience with the ambiance to match.

Everything was phenomenal. Highly recommend this place. The Jollof with beef skewers knocked my…read moreshoes off. Amazinggggggggggggg. Also, try the Shrimp & Avocado salad best everrrr!!!

I'm a big person on trying different cuisines so when I saw "West African grill", I definitely…read morewanted to try it! I did takeout, which is the bottom part of the building. It's quite a small cozy takeout spot. I got the half chicken - you can choose which side you want so I got the attieke. I never had attieke - it's like a grain. A mixture of couscous and quinoa to me. The dish was great. I liked the onion salad mix that they put to the side with the chicken. The chicken was a bit dry, especially the white meat. But if you add it with some the onion mix, it'll be ok. Quite an interesting place. I could possibly come back and try their subs/sandwiches.

BEST OF THE BEST!!!…read more My favorite Eritrean resturant!! I have been coming here for years!!

A Michelin restaurant serving Eritrean food, with a focus on breakfast and cafe style dishes. I…read moredropped by for a quick breakfast after a morning run. Ordered the Eggs Silsi with French bread. By default the dish had three eggs, but I asked for just two eggs. The dish was basically scrambled eggs with tomato sauce, green peppers, onion and berbere sauce. It was very fluffy, similar to a Sabzi kookoo. It tasted spicy, earthy and a bit smoky. Compared to Turksih Menemen, it was drier, spicier and earthier, and had no cheese. The French bread was nice and hot. Spreading some eggs silsi on the bread and it was heavenly! Moreover, the restaurant was small but very clean. The staff was friendly. Highly recommended if you want some African cafe food!