This spot has been saved on my collections list for sometime now. I was finally close enough that I was able to stop by and pick something up for dinner. Not a fan of the area as I used to live near there but it's not bad. I walked in and was immediately greeted. I didn't catch her name (which I feel bad for) but she was super friendly. She was talking to me about some of the menu items while she took my order. While I was waiting on my food we talked a little but about the culture and history of where Swahili food came from and her story. I got my order to go. I got a beef sambusa and the chicken white rice. Wow...the food was delicious! I didn't want to stop eating it. The rice was perfectly fluffy, the flavors of the chicken and kale were delightful. the portion was large enough to make two meals out of it. The sambusa was yummy as well. It was an all over delightful experience and the food is tasty. read more

Disappointed in the recent visit. The meal tasted different and this restaurant has experienced their own bout of shrinkflation. Received a full meal and still felt hungry, only about a handful of little beef pieces in the curry. At least the drinks were good. I don't think we will be heading back however. read more

Riziki Swahili Grill - Beef curry - African Near Me - Columbus, Ohio

The style of curry here is absolutely incredible: because Zanzibar is a spice island, the sauce is basically a ton of spices ground together to form an incredibly rich super-savory flavor. I'd never had anything like it before, but I'd happily go again just for that--the goat was cooked perfectly too. The other parts of the meal were pretty good but not as spectacular. Spinach in coconut milk was tasty but not more than the sum of its parts, and ugali was tasty (and rare to find on a restaurant menu!) but I'd probably get chapati (even though that's easier to find) next time. read more

My family and I went to Zanzibar and mainland Tanzania in the fall so we were excited to hear that there was a restaurant like this in town! We ordered the chicken curry with rice, biryani, chicken curry with chapati, and the red snapper fish with a coconut sauce. We also got beef and chicken sambusas and decided to try the mango passion fruit juice. I so badly miss cheap fresh-pressed juice and this was delicious!! We LOVED the sambusas. Definitely something to order again. We didn't eat it with the sauce that came on the side. Didn't need them. We liked the food! The chicken curry reminded me of the West African tomato stew my dad often makes. It's not heavy on the curry and you get chunky pieces of meat. The food lasted us a while! I would come back to try some other stuff. We didn't exactly get to roam around Zanzibar to try street food, so there was a lot of the menu that interested me. I've been to Drelyse before so it's in this same area within a neighborhood. I'll be back! read more

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I've been meaning to come here since I heard they had something like a Scotch egg, and today it was on my way. Of course it's on Tamarack Circle, which I hate. Someone thought this was a good idea. Circle with bumps, similar street names running off it, one-way streets; horrid. Still, I got here. Restaurant is in a small, very run-down strip mall; there is another African restaurant on the other end which I'm sure is good- but I wanted that egg. Inside it's small and bright. Super friendly service. A little awkward- had to duck down due to dry grass over the counter, and watch my step headed to the restrooms due to a bump on the floor. The egg app is donge la yai, a hard-boiled egg wrapped in a thin layer of seasoned beef. Not as thick as the sausage on a Scotch egg, and seasoned differently, of course. And delectable. Maybe I can make these in the air fryer. As an afterthought I picked almost at random from the entrees. I love goat, and pilau, so I got that. You can choose your protein. Bone-in, tender, savory chunks of goat, in a heavily seasoned but not spicy sauce. A mound of good, tender, tasty rice. Some pickled onions. Again, yum. Drinks are assorted juices, made there. I got tamarind. Sweet and spicy, very refreshing. I'll be back. I'll bring people here, and send people here. Worth navigating the Circle of Doom. read more

Amazing food. Riziki Swahili Grill is the place to be for a good comfort meal. Just from a first visit, you can see how much heart and soul they pour into their food. It's real home cooked meal. The chicken sambosa is a burst of flavor with a light kick of spice. For the main, I got a chicken curry with a side of a spinach. Both SO good. Cooked in coconut oil, the spinach was unlike anything I'd ever had before. Paired with their buttery, flaky chapati, it's a meal fit for royalty. Taking a break from the spice, we got a freshly prepared ginger juice. The food isn't the only treat here. We were immediately greeted with kind service. Our waitress gave us phenomenal recommendations and a fascinating background on East Africa. read more

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My husband and I saw all the great reviews and decided to go here today for an early dinner. We were so lucky because they happened to be having a customer appreciation day. We were greeted by Riziki who is the owner/ chef and she explained that each year she does an appreciation day as it was with her customers' support that they've been in business for 7 years and through the pandemic. Her passion and generosity were evident not only from how she came and introduced herself but also the way the free food was set up. We were able to sample their juices (the Mango flavored was my favorite), beef and chicken Sambusa (both crispy and flavorful but I liked the beef one more) a fried potato appetizer and a perfectly spiced fish one. Unfortunately I can't remember the name but she said it could be special ordered. They had a cabbage and a mixed veggie dish with peas which she mentioned normally there is a bean dish on the menu which is prepared similarly with coconut flavors. I loved it. They had two different rice dishes both great. My favorite was the beef curry. The beef was tender & saucy with the perfect amount of seasonings. There was also a chicken dish and fresh chapati )fried bread). You can order on grub hub and door dash but we plan on coming back in person. The decor and music inside added to the festive mood. Highly recommend! 10/10 read more

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What a gem! Wonderful service Zanzibari food. We had super sambusas, chai, beef curry and pulso which was really good pickles cabbage warm kale salad and curried goat. Really yummy. But the stand out was the atmosphere it was so friendly we met the owner and the wait staff were both lovely. The decor was giving beach vibes in the dead of winter with positive messages on every wall. The exterior is humble-and it's next to a Tamarack circle carry-out but please do not let that dissuade you. This place is a unique Columbus experience. read more

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This place is a gem! All of their menu items are delicious and flavorful. They had great friendly service as well. We went in as a large group of 15 and they put all the tables together to accommodate us. We did take up the entire dine in space. Their food has Indian flavors with an African twist. The portions are large and filling. The drinks are amazing too, our favorites were the ginger and tamarind. Very refreshing. The spicy beef sambusa is a great starter. They have chicken, beef, and vegetable option for the sambusas, which can be ordered spicy. They were yummy, crunchy, generously filled, and not greasy at all. I got the chapati with beef curry and kale side. There were two chapatis (similar to Indian paratha), which had nice layers and some nice crunch to the outer layer. The beef curry was very flavorful and had the perfect amount of gravy. All the dishes came with a habanero sauce on the side, which I appreciated. My husband got the Zanzibar special with jasmine rice and beans. The goat dishes were great. The goat meat had no smell to it (many times it's hard to avoid it) and was perfectly cooked. We all really enjoyed our meals. I asked about the taste of Africa platter and was told they serve that every 2-3 months on a special "Africa" day. I definitely would go back here again! read more

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This place is a gem. The reviews are high for a reason. The food was phenomenal to say the least. Everything was fresh, flavorful and delicious. The ladies working were extremely nice and offered us free chai tea and mandazis on the house. In addition they were tentative and excited to see us enjoy our food. I would highly recommend trying the sambusas, the mango refresher, and the lamb Biriani Platter......or anything. Try anything. Please do yourself the favor and go read more

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I came here visiting from out of town and was pleasantly pleased with the quality, taste, and service I received here. The samosa did not make it to my hotel as I ate it on my way. It was delicious. I highly recommend this place. read more

Riziki Swahili Grill - Chapati with grilled goat, cabbage, and kale - African Near Me - Columbus, Ohio

An amazing mix of Indian and African fare. We had sambusa, chapati beef curry and Zanzibar special with chapati. The sambusa are eggroll thin, crispy and pipping hot. Filled with a savory ground beef that is delicious and impressive. The Zanzibar goat is crispy, chewy caked in spices cumin, pepper, that cut through the crispy laminated buttery chapati. A must have if you visit. Chapati beef curry was a fantastic mix of tomato beef akin to Shanghai style staple. Hosts were very amicable and available. Enough space for 5-6 parties of 3-4. Groups larger than 7 would be a bit cramped. read more

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The food was good and so is the service. The price is a little pricey. The service was good.

Such an amazing place with just as amazing food. The staff is super friendly, and the food is made with love.

Riziki Swahili Grill is named after the beautiful, friendly owner & chef, Riziki. This is the first and only Tanzanian restaurant in Columbus. It's truly a hidden gem with one of the best flavors I've had here. I got to speak to Riziki before ordering and she gave me so much info about questions I had. Which entree I should choose and informed me that Zanzibar food is heavily influenced with African, Arab and Indian spices and flair since their island is a melting pot. I opted for an appetizer of a chicken and a beef sambusa and chapati. Omg I loved the sambusas but the chapati that's made with ghee butter was so rich, flaky and my favorite!! My entree was the deep fried fish of the day (tilapia) covered in a savory coconut cream sauce blanketed on a bed of pilau rice. For $14.99 it was definitely about 3-4 meals. I had so much leftover but she cooked it perfectly with thick pieces of fish after I deboned it. I can't wait to come back here with friends next time! I want to try it all on the menu. The best East African spot in Columbus! read more

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The food was amazing but the fact that they are giving you literally 8-10 cubes of beef for $17.00 is insane. They gave me more starch than meat. It's stingy and literally a waste of money. The beans are bland with no flavor not even salt! Chapati was buttery and super good. Sambusa we're good as well. Overall the flavor was amazing but the fact that you don't even get a full portion of meat is ridiculous. I probably will not order again. read more

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Wonderful and delicious food. Fantastic service. Their food is made with passion and a joy. The restaurants's back story is the heart-warming. Will 100% be back. read more

Best food ever fresh we drive from Cleveland to there just eat the food For the first I was surprised the food so Amazing.but y'all need big space for dining in The employe they so nice read more

We ordered sambusas, a donge la yai (a bit like a Scotch egg but a little lighter) and the goat ugali. I'd never had ugali before! I'm sure white rice or pilau would've been great as well, but the ugali is like a warm, comforting pillow in the best possible way. The goat was perfectly tender and extremely flavorful. After we ate, the lovely chef came out to meet us! Absolutely excellent - we will be back. read more

Y'all, go here for a fantastic TZ-Kenyan (and really East African) selection of great food! The Zege with whole chicken anything with goat and the flakiest of chapatis are some of my faves. The samosas + juices (try the tamarind and mango!) are also fantastic. 12/10 read more

This place is simple, cozy, and clean. Family owned and operated. I've been to Tanzania and I was so happy to find this place and be able to get some legit chapati. I'm vegetarian, and they don't have many options for me (which is the reality for authentic Tanzanian food). I got two veggie sambosas, a portion of chapati and the beans in coconut sauce. The sambosa was delicious and the great chapati was made to order as it should be. I had to add a little salt to the beans, but that was all it needed. All the other flavors were there. Since my order was a bit unusual, Riziki herself (the onwer) came to check if I didn't want to order the chapati platter instead, but I explained I didn't eat meat and she asked me if just the beans were really okay or if I would like to have the spinach too. She really wanted me to get the best out of my meal. We got to chat briefly, and she is very kind and attentive. I'm coming back with my husband soon. Then I might be able to provide some info about the meaty dishes. read more

This is the first time that I've had this restaurant food. Our cable rep Simon brought me and my property manager some food for lunch. Let me tell you. This is THEE BEST food ever! I never seen so much food in the big aluminum tray he brought. It was full of yellow rice, plantain, fresh salad and curry goat. That goat was so tender. It's wasn't gamy or harsh at all. The seasoning in everything is IMMACULATE! There nothing that I didn't like at all. So tasty, fresh and AMAZING! I truly recommend this restaurant read more

Delicious food and even more wonderful service! We stopped by after reading about the place in Columbus Monthly. The juices are delicious (we tried mango and watermelon) and made in house. The server gave us some sambusas on the house--absolutely delicious! Flaky and fresh out of the frier, served with a spiced mayo dipping sauce. For entrees we had the chicken curry with chapati, biriani platter with goat curry, and Zege platter with beef kebabs. Our favorite was the chapati, though the Zege was a close second. Afterwards I had a delicious homemade chai tea which was perfect to finish up the meal. The server was incredibly helpful and friendly, and Riziki herself came out after the meal to chat. Highly recommend a visit, was well worth the drive! read more

Riziki Swahili Grill - (From left) Chicken curry with chapati,Zege platter with beef kebab, and biriani platter with goat curry - African Near Me - Columbus, Ohio

This place needs to close down and reorganize itself before reopening again. They are not able to support the clientele demand and do not say no to what they aren't able to do. The average wait time for a meal is 2 hours but they say 30 minutes. I won't be coming back here again. read more

I wholeheartedly recommend Riziki Swahili. The proprietor and her staff have wonderful customer service. I have ordered food from this establishment since 2021, and it always hits the spot! I live 2 hours away, but make it a point to go to Columbus to get the beef samosas, chapati, and fresh juice. It's cozy, simple, clean, and functional (no frills). On my latest order, I arrived 15 minutes after closing time. Any other place would stick to its closing policy, but they waited for me and served me with a huge smile. Can you believe it? read more

This is a great little restaurant in the middle of Tamarack Circle. The staff was extremely friendly! They threw in a free drink when they realized it was our first visit. It was a ginger beverage that contained real ginger. We ordered the chapati with beans and chicken curry and sambusas. Everything was flavorful and delicious! We ordered carry-out, and there was plenty of parking to make it easy to run in and pick up. We are certainly looking forward to visiting again. read more

I was very happy with my order. Swahili grill is the place to go for authentic Tanzania/Swahili food. I got chapati with beans with a side of beef curry the 1st time. Second time I tried bilau with chicken. If you must try anything it would be the wild sambusa they are so good. I love your hot sauce riziki. I would recommend takeout. read more

Incredible. I'm looking for excuses to be near by just to try more of the menu. Front staff is incredibly nice and gave me excellent recommendations for the palette I described to them. I'm not a spice chaser or anything but believe me when I say listen to the labels that say "spicy" the spicy vegetable sambusa left a lingering hotness that was both delicious and fun. Go to Riziki, ask questions if you've never had this kind of food and see for yourself this gem hiding in your own back yard. read more

We had the sambusas for appetizer -- best I've ever had and enjoyed the sauce too. And a plate of delicious plantains for a side dish. I had urojo, served on Sunday, a sort of potato stew described as 'Turmeric potato soup with toppings of sumbusa, bajia, mishkaki (skewers), and cassava chips (Only available on Sundays)'. Anyway it was delicious, I enjoyed the chips, skewers, and potato slivers in the hearty soup. We also had the Pilau with fish, Chai, and Tamarind juice. We went mid-afternoon so no crowd, everything was made fresh, and owner even gave us extra Sambusas to try for our first visit and was very friendly and explained the menu. We will definitely visit again. I like flatbreads and want to try the Chapati in future. read more

I have been craving a good chapati ever since moving to Columbus, and Riziki delivers! Paired with delicious plantains, beans, and chicken curry; you have a very filling meal! Love supporting this woman-owned business! read more

Excellent! Don't walk, RUN to enjoy the delicious food at Riziki! We are so lucky in Columbus to have an actual Zanzibari Tanzanian restaurant. These sambusas are LEGIT and the chapati is the flakiest in town. The spices and coconut sauces are incredible, definitely try the pilau and the beans! The fish was perfectly cooked and everything is really authentic. If you haven't tried Swahili food- you must! read more

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Read about this restaurant in Columbus monthly so I felt I had to make the drive. Spectacular! The decor is warm and fun. Our waitress was so enthusiastic and made us feel so welcome. We let the waitress pick our platters. Our favorite was the Chapati with chicken curry. The others were worth getting again. We can't wait to go back. The chef /owner came out and thanked us for coming. Recommended some future dishes. We can't wait to go back. What a gem! read more

The owner there is so welcoming and nice , clean place , great service and food. Will definitely go back.

Wow! What amazing food and people! My bride brought me here for our 36th wedding anniversary and I am so glad that she did! So many memories of our trips to Africa and the Middle East. We had samosas and sweet plantains for the appetizers and goat Palau and mishkaki entree's. We also tried their chicken curry (amazing!) as well as their fresh made ginger and mango juices! The owner Riziki is such a joy as were all of the staff! Highly highly recommend this for authentic fresh food that was also Gluten Free (except for the samosas!!!). read more

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Home-cooking is a term that is often misused to describe restaurant food. But not in the case of this restaurant. The very nice woman who runs the restaurant (unfortunately I didn't get her name) really does create home cooked dishes of the very best kind. My wife and I shared a huge grilled fish with a coconut sauce on top with pilau rice and spinach while my son had chicken in a curry sauce also with pilau rice. We had beef filled sambusas to start and crisp, flaky chapatis on the side. The owner gave us extra coconut sauce to dip the chapatis into. It's a very simple looking restaurant and the food takes time to cook, the way it should. It really was a great meal...and yes, exotic too since the cuisine is Swahili from the island of Zanzibar off Africa. read more

This is one of the best-kept secrets of Columbus. It is my favorite restaurant in town and offers the best authentic Swahili cuisine. The owner and her team work very well together and the food is exceptional. Not only can you taste the flavors in it, it's obvious how fresh it is. If you haven't been here, I would highly recommend it. My favorite food there include sambusa, chicha, chapati, and chips mayai! For drinks, be sure to try the Ginger Juice, which is made with real ginger! read more

One of the best places for authentic, African food at a great price. Customer service is also very good. Im now a frequent customer!

Absolutely phenomenal! The food and the staff. You must go to Riziki's! The next time I am in Columbus I will go to Rizikis's.

Amazing food. Amazing server. Fantastic cook. Superb cuisine. Go to this place. Enjoy their hospitality. Enjoy their energy. Taste the passion in the cooking. The homemade juices are excellent. Fried red snapper was seasoned and cooked to perfection. Try the goat -- it's divine. I would come back for the sides any day -- kale, spinach, cabbage. All cooked to perfection and remarkably seasoned. Break out of your comfort zone and try this place!! It's worth it. read more

The food is delicious and the service is even better!! Please check this place out and don't forget to try a few sambusas!!! You won't regret it. read more