Alloko Garden is one of many restaurants cooking out of Jingletown Eats, a ghost kitchen and food…read moredelivery distribution center identifiable by the painted bird on the storefront. I had already planned to visit Jingletown Eats to pick up donuts from Mochill for Yelp Elite Week, so of course I had to take advantage of the opportunity to try a new restaurant, Alloko Garden, as well! I ordered the Shoukuya (whole grilled chicken) and Alloko (plaintain fries) for $30. Both were so delicious! The chicken was juicy and well-marinated, and came with a flavorful tomato and onion topping. The plaintain fries were fun to eat and paired perfectly with a spicy, salty dip, which the website describes as a prebiotic sauce. Having no other point of reference, it reminded me of Chinese fermented bean paste. The only issue was that I didn't receive the salad that the whole chicken set should include. Looking back at the different options, only the whole chicken comes with a salad, so I can see how this mistake could happen. After making my own veggie side, the Shoukuya and Alloko ended up being enough for four servings, which is a great deal. I would absolutely recommend Alloko Garden to anyone craving or wanting to try West African cuisine!

Man! This was some yummy food and a blast from the past. As…read morea returned Peace Corps Volunteer who spent 2 years in Ivory Coast back in the 1990's, I was thrilled to see a local restauranteuer surface who could re relate some of the flavors that tickled my taste buds back in the day. Not to hate on its neighboring countries, but after travelling widely in West Africa I concluded that Ivory Coast has a truly rockin' and superior food culture. I'm vegan aspirational but my partner is not, so to increase his buy-in, we ordered Shokouya Cancanan chicken. The half chicken, accompanied by delicious grilled onions and tomatoes, was a generous portion of robustly seasoned, plump, fresh and perfectly cooked chicken. I love that they only use "happy chicken" as I call it--cage free, hormone free & antibiotic free--which assuaged some of my flesh eating hesitancy. The side dishes were just as I recalled: attieke, a marvelous cous-cous-like starch made of ground, fermented, then steamed cassava, was tangy, springy, and performed as expected in hand. (In hand?, you ask? Why yes, the "real" way to enjoy attieke is to scoop up a small handful with your right hand, scrunch it up in a ball, then dip it in a sauce or accompany it in this case with a bit of tender chicken.) It gives a taste and a mouth feel like no other. Then there was the alloko, which is a generous portion of chunks of fried plantain "doux," or sweet plantain. In Côte d'Ivoire you would likely enjoy these as streetfood, in my opinion best consumed after the heat of the day had spent itself and you were walking with your companion to take some fresh air before turning in. A street vendor would hand you a pile of these wrapped in a piece of newspaper, accompanied by a blob of paste composed improbably of fermented dried fish, ground chili pepper, oil and the omnipresent Cube Maggi. The marriage of sweet banana, spicy, umami, salty...made my toes curl just as I did 20 years ago! well, you can experience some of that magic with Alloko Garden's alloko. Each chef has their own recipe for the alloko side sauce and I suspect the proprietor, Monsieur Tohouri, uses less heat and less fish and more natural ingredients than the MSG-fest that is Cube Maggi, for us Oaklanders than he might have grown up with. But this healthy non-volcanic version more than gets the idea across and my partner, new to alloko and its accompaniments, understood that the idea was delicious. We both loved that instead of omnipresent plastic, this alloko (& attieke) came in a biodegradable paper box. Because he was temporarily out of one other dish that I'd hoped to sample, Mr. Tohouri kindly added a dish for me called fonio arancini, which are kind of hush puppy type doodads made of a grain I didn't remember encountering in my village, fonio. Even 20 minutes after picking up from the storefront in Jingletown, the fonio arancini arrived home still delicious in all the ways grain plus a dunk in a deep fryer can be: hot and crispy on the outside, warm and almost pudding-like on the inside, with a warm umami awesomeness from the cheese mixed with the dough, and a yummy dipping sauce alongside. According to the article I read in Berkeleyside, this fonio is part of an interest Monsieur Tohouri has in increasing the economic base in Côte d'Ivoire. First step is creating market demand. I say, bring it on!! Although we were ravenous after a four hour bike ride that day, both BF and I were satisfied after this feast. I know this is the first of many trips to this place. I feel so fortunate to have an authentic source of Ivoirien cuisine in my back yard, and with an emphasis on the health of the food chain, the planet, and the humans both producing and consuming the cuisine. I ordered and picked up directly from the storefront because I'd read somewhere that restaurants lose something like 40% of the price charged, to the delivery company (uber eats, grub hub etc). As the prices were very fair given the generous portions, this means a really tiny profit margin for the person doing all the work. What I didn't realize would be an added benefit was meeting the actual proprietor, the chef himself! Monsieur Tohouri came out to hand me my food, thus completing the awesomeness of the experience. How often in this disseminated and impersonal world do you get to thank the actual person who feeds you? My overall assessment: five thumbs up!! Merci bien Monsieur Tohouri!

Absurdly underrated! away from main streets so definitely a local IYKYK -- the food, the service,…read morethe view, everything is superb & it's family owned Personal Recommendation: Moroccan Saffron rice with chicken breast & caramelized onions OR Moroccan Saffron rice with Kefta & caramelized onions PAIRED WITH a Moroccan Mint lemonade!

Pros: nice portions and options, friendly greeting, good water view…read more Cons: background music of some type needed, interior is old and in desperate need of a refresh, service is lacking

Really enjoy their egusi soup with mackerel fish. I usually just order from door dash but this is…read morethe first time I've eaten inside. It's small, quiet and a nice little place to eat with your significant other or family

great restaurant I stumbled on in west Oakland. african food was very delicious. service was also…read moregreat. rice and chicken was what I had and it did not disappoint. portion size was great . Ambiance was pretty chill and welcoming.

We organized an event in California and needed food on short notice. I found her page online,…read morecontacted her and the next day the food was delivered to our doorstep. We ordered Jollof, chicken, and plantain. It was 10/10! I loved it soo much

I love African food. The spices are rich and it's always so savory. My favorite item here is the…read moremeat pie. It has a nice crust that is pretty buttery. The inside is filled with luscious meat. I always have lots of questions when I order at this joint, and they are always so patient with them. The ambience is that of a nice little food stand in urban Africa. Love it!

Good food. They treat the customer right with a better service. The Ambiance is unmatched.read more

Omg best food ever.!!!!!!Try it u won't be disappointed!!!…read moreI'm obsessed with the waffles. I ordered 7 orders of them a few times so I would be able to eat there food for breakfast the whole week :) Warning it may take a while to get your food cuz they're is usually a lot of customers, but it's well worth the wait!

Everything went well! Their raw kifto is my fav! The…read morerestaurant is like a well maintained machine. Everyone knows what they are doing! One of cool things living in Oakland is that you can have authentic food from all over the world. Sorry forgot to take pic before eating. Finish too quick.

This was my first Ethiopian meal ever, so my review might not hold as much weight, but I absolutely…read moreloved Enssaro! I come from a town with a Michelin-recognized Ethiopian spot (LeYou in San Jose) but never made it over. If it's elevated from what I had here, I'm dashing right there. We had a Meat & Veggie sampler for 2, and bottomless injera which was great! I really enjoyed all the different meat stews, but also liked the lentil and cabbage/potato/carrot mix-ins as well. I didn't get to try the famous honey wine, but I will have to soon! I know this location will be moving to Rockridge very soon, so it's even closer to where I work... guess you know what I'll be having every week!

If you are considering Ethiopian food, just wash your hands and come here. It's like dining in a…read morefriend's home, welcoming, warm and genuine. The owner Abby D. is also the chef and her love and pride in her cuisine shines through her cooking. Having eaten Ethiopian food only in the US, this is the best version that I've had across Chicago, NY and DC. They offer indoor and covered outdoor seating, giving it a homely comforting vibe. Since it was just the two of us, we ordered the vegan sampler and the lamb tibsy (spicy). The lamb was delicious and well spiced. All the dishes were served on a platter of injera - sour, spongy bread that just soaks up all the flavor to perfection. I enjoyed the red lentils (misir wat), yellow lentils (alicha) cabbage and carrot stir fry, collard greens and a house salad that had a dressing which perfectly complimented the rest of the dishes. They also offer additional injera should you need any - we didn't. You eat with your hands from the common platter, but they do provide additional plates and silverware should you need it. The portions are generous and we ended up taking some of the food home. They have a bunch of dishes I'd like to try, so I'm definitely going to be back!

New menu has a few tweaks but the same great stuff We…read moreordered Simo veggie mix with double yellow lentils instead of red Lamb crispy Tibsy Still love this place. It has the best Ethiopian food, 100% teff injera, kind staff and a nice patio. Easy parking