Yelpers and hard-to-please Redditors praised Umana Yana but I was initially unclear on the "must…read morehave" items given the fusion aspects. Umana Yana is named after a Guyana location but much of the fare is African. In addition to scouring photos I even looked on DoorDash for popular items. The jerk lamb lollipops and red curry fish tacos were excellent. Umana Yana is an expert in spice and sauce, and also has a knack for combining fire and sweetness. The lamb has plenty of built-in flavor but was also adorned with a topping vaguely in the pico de gallo paradigm along with pineapple, and there's a green sauce on the side.

This place has AMAZING food and drinks! Best Ethiopian food I've ever had, and I've had food made…read moreby Ethiopians several times. They make food from many places, and do it well. Awesome Tamarind Margarita. My husband also lived his food and drink, whatever that was. Chris was a great server. Can't wait to go back.

Delicious food! Lots of vegan options, super sweet staff, and the restaurant is very cozy. Loved…read morethe yummy spiced tea I got too!

Absolutely love the ambience and the food. We tried many…read moremany dishes so it is really hard to remember the names, but ingudai tibs stood out as well as the collard greens. The injera itself is soft and delicious. They have many options for different spice levels and the servers are always knowledgeable about the menu - it really was great service and food. So glad a good ethnic restaurants exists in stamford!

We highly enjoyed this!! The server helped with great recommendations. We got a huge variety to be…read moreable to try things out. Favorite things were the spicy plantains and beef pie. The appetizer sample was good to try out. The vibe is rlly nice we came for lunch so it was super chill time. Next time will try the beef stew w fufu and chicken w jolaf rice

What went well? Everything! Thursday night dinner was amazing. I'm not always adventurous in food…read morechoices but my favorite dining companion is. At her invitation I read the menu first to prepare. I started with a grapefruit lemon cocktail ( non alcoholic) followed with fresh bread,chicken pie,and coconut rice. Good for a picky eater, the food was fresh, well spiced, really yummy. I tried akara bean cake - these are really cool fried veggie fritters. 10/10 will try again. My companion enjoyed the whole tilapia. Dessert of puff puff and chocolate ice cream ended the meal. Puff puff are lovely bits of fried lightly spiced dough. Like donut holes with a good passport. The restaurant is vibrant and radiates good energy. The owners are welcoming . Just Jollof Kitchen gets a high recommendation.

Best flavor in Troy!! I visited The Seasoning House using the "surprise me" feature on Yelp and wow…read morewas I surprised on how amazing the food was! The dish was incredible and served on this beautiful wooden plate. The flavors of the salmon, spinach, and Jollof rice all mixed together with their special sauce on top was exactly what I didn't know I needed. The staff were so kind and answered any questions we had and the restaurant was great for both eating in and taking out. As a pescatarian, I was so happy that I could find something to enjoy even with a limited menu and will definitely be back to order it again soon!

Five star all day long! We drove 40 minutes (each way) to get take out, and it was well worth it!…read more(BTW, they do have some tables (if you were interested in eating there). We tried this for the first time, and well were not disappointed! The food was fantastic! We had the pork kebab, the chicken platter, the beef foot stew, and wings! We really enjoyed everything, and we will be going back! The hardest part was the wonderful smells coming from our food as we drove home!

I've only had West African cuisine a handful of times in my life, but Keobi stands out as one of…read morethe best ones. We ordered the asaro and egusi with plantain fufu. Everything was terrific and strongly flavored. The asaro, a yam stew with shrimp and greens (though I located very shrimp if at all) had an intense, somewhat smoky savory flavor. It was also quite starchy and did not require any rice or fufu accompaniment. The egusi stew with chicken was also incredibly flavorful; I preferred this slightly more over the asaro. Paired with the soft steamed and lightly sweet but more neutral-tasting plantain fufu, the egusi was really tasty. As others have noted, the food did take a while to prepare. It appeared that there was only one woman working both the front of house and the kitchen. There were no high chairs. The restaurant was clean and nicely decorated for the holidays. Our kids were entertained by the Afro beats playing on the TV. Overall we had a very delicious and comfortable experience at Keobi.

Very quaint restaurant. They had a friendly staff. I believe the owner is also the chef and he was…read morevery accommodating to my order. I ordered egusi with fufu and a plate of jollof rice and goat meat. And I say don't walk... run there and get your order. You will not regret it. Even my children who have basic taste buds and are quite picky ate the entire plate of jollof rice and goat meat. I will be back to try more dishes.

went to Safari 77 to try West African food for the first time, and it was a great experience. We…read morestarted with suya as an appetizer--it was very yummy. It was spicy, but I actually loved the heat and flavor. For the main dishes, we ordered fufu with lamb, jollof rice, banku with fish, and later tried the fried fish with fried yam. Everything tasted delicious, and everyone at the table loved the food. Our server, Ladina, was amazing. She explained the dishes well, was very attentive, and provided awesome service throughout the meal. The atmosphere was nice, clean, and welcoming. The prices are a little on the high side, but the food quality and service made it worth it. Overall, it was a great first experience with West African cuisine, and I would definitely recommend Safari 77.

This space is really cute, hospitality is on point and the food is even better! This is my second…read moretime visiting this week just because I love this meal. I can eat it every day!

I recently stumbled upon Sidibe 2 African restaurant when a restaurant I was hoping to visit in the…read moresame plaza was closed. I was intrigued because African cuisine is one of my weaker spots food knowledge-wise. I understand that Sidibe specializes in West African cuisine, and especially the cuisine of Ghana. As I've never had Ghanaian cuisine, I'm not in a position to judge authenticity or to compare quality to other similar spots. Since the restaurant name has 2 in the name, I assume there is another CT Sidibe 1 restaurant. There is a Sidibe restaurant in East Hartford and I'm guessing there may be a relation. The New Haven location is in a nice plaza and there is inside seating. It's not fancy, but there are nice colors and accent pieces. I saw a number of people get takeout or pick up delivery orders while I was there. I ordered Goat and Jollof rice, and it came with a hard boiled egg and salad over the top. The rice, which I understand is typically made with tomatoes and/or tomato paste, chiles and seasoning had a well rounded flavor and was delicious. The rice texture was good. I loved the sauce with the goat. I don't know exactly what it was, but it also seemed like a tomato and/or chile-based red sauce. Tremendous flavor. I assume it was a simmering sauce for the goat and contained some of that good umami. I've had goat a few times before. Goat doesn't have a reputation for being the most tender meat, but I understand that it can get somewhat tender if it is prepared properly. Sidibe 2's goat was certainly tender enough to chew, but it was on the tougher side than say well prepared lamb or pot roast. I would order it again because of the sauce and rice, but I'm assuming the goat could get more tender. 4.25 Stars. Well worth trying if you're in the area. It's near the Route 15 tunnel area exit in New Haven

My rating is higher than an 4 but lower than a 5, I'll have to go back and try another dish but the…read moreFufu & Egusi was so delicious and flavorful. It was my first time eating fufu and boy is it filling! I also had a Sobolo drink and was so spicy, spicy but still yummy to drink and i just know it did some good health wise.

The food was phenomenal. The staff were absolutely amazing, they checked up on us constantly and…read morethe food came out relatively quick. The restaurant was nice and cozy with TVs for entertainment. I would definitely recommend if you're looking for good, high quality African cuisine.

Okay so as a West African that eats Nigerian and French West African food all the time, I'm always…read morevery skeptical to try West African restaurants because I worry the flavors will be Americanized. I heard so many amazing things about Heritage Spice so I absolutely had to check it out! Also I friend of mine recently catered from Heritage Spice and the food was delicious (I loved the jolllof. It had the perfect smoky party Jollof flavor). I'll start off by saying the menu items are pricey and the prices nearly turned me away...but the food was INCREDIBLE! I seldomly come across a Nigerian restaurant that fully hits the mark on flavors and keeps everything true to the culture. I tried the egusi soup with goat meat and fufu. The stew had a generous amount of goat meat and the egusi tasted very fresh. There was a good level of heat without it being overly spicy. The spices in the stew reminded me of my grandmas home cooking. Lastly, the fufu itself was soft and tasted very fresh as well. The egusi stew truly hit the spot and was the highlight of my work week. Overall 8.5/10 for the egusi and fufu (8/10 for the jollof I tried at a catered event and 10/10 for the puff puff I tried at a catered event). I also ordered the food on Grubhub so that most likely inflated the prices. I'm excited to try out other items on their menu! When I went to the restaurant I was hoping to also get the puff puff because I tried their puff puff at a catered event but I was told they only sell puff puff on Sundays or do pre orders for specialty items like puff puff or meat pie.

If you're in Putnam Valley, you have to check out this gem! Evelyn, the owner, is absolutely lovely…read moreshe took the time to explain the different spices from Ghana and share her knowledge of West African cooking. The market is stocked with a wide variety of West African products, but also has everyday basics like eggs, milk, bread, and the freshest veggies. What makes this place even more special is that Evelyn also makes delicious dishes and offers party rentals (tents, tables, and chairs)--a true one-stop shop. It's also worth mentioning: this is the first African market in Putnam Valley and honestly, it's the cleanest market I've ever been to. You can tell how much care and pride goes into the space. Highly recommend stopping by you'll leave with amazing products and a smile!

Excellent customer service, and as a Nigerian, Jollof Rice is delicious definitely coming back and…read moreI'm coming from California so this A-1 since Day-1 haha

I saw this restaurant on YouTube. I thought I had to travel all the way to the Bronx for good…read moreGhanaian food. I'm glad to see that I only had to come to Bridgeport. There are different rice dishes available as well as accompanying stews. I don't eat meat and I don't like fish, so the woman behind the counter, I assume is Betty, was able to accommodate me by combining two rice offerings (Jollof and Waakye) with a red sauce and a spicy condiment. A very nice and clean establishment. She was very gracious. I'll be back.