The place knows how to make ordinary meals special. Every dish was a new adventure. This place…read moremaintains cleanliness and its owners are kind, helpful and direct. This restaurant delivers impressive service. I'm thinking I might return.

This spot creates perfect experiences. Quality food. Particularly attentive service team. They…read moreselect quality ingredients and serve substantial amounts. The place sits in a perfect position too. This restaurant delivers an uncommon experience.

Time to break out of one's culinary groove and explore a cuisine loaded with flavor, history, and a…read morediversity of textures and ingredients. African cuisine holds quite a range, depending on the country and culture it originated from. Across the US, from vibrant food markets to trendy fusion cafés and transmigration-owned restaurants, one cuisine is rising fast: Kenyan food. It's not as globally mainstream as Thai or Mexican yet, but in 2026 it's becoming one of the most talked-about international food experiences, especially in multicultural cities like New York, Chicago, or LA. My partner, our friends, and I made a reservation at Swahili Village off of Center Street in Newark before the Saturday night performance at the nearby NJPAC. A reservation was easily made hours in advance via OpenTable. Upon arrival as first-timers, we were greeted by the host at this husband-and-wife-owned establishment. We were promptly seated at a high table by the bar in one of the three spacious dining rooms blending traditional elements paying homage to African heritage with modern touches; Afrobeat music enhances the festive atmosphere to create a warm and welcoming vibe. The menu is built around East African dishes influenced by the region's historical ties to Arab traders, Portuguese explorers, British colonizers, and Indian immigrants. As a starter, we opted for the Samosa. For our main meal, we decided on Suya-Nyama Choma (Beef), Lamb Chops, Grilled Chicken Breast-Kuku Choma, and Oxtails. They came with two sides and got Jollof rice, Mokimo, Sweet Plantains, and Spinach. Our drinks (Flaming Margarita, White Sangria, The Motherland, and Heaven's Nectar Martini) were strong enough and tasted great, with some unique options. One reason why we fell in love with Kenyan cuisine was its balance of flavors. Instead of being extremely spicy or very mild, Kenyan dishes were aromatic, warmly spiced, and tastefully rich & savory. The portions were healthy. We didn't have room for dessert. The service was impeccable. Our server, Fabrice, took the time to explain everything on the menu & recommended drinks and entrees. Overall, it was an amazing experience. Hands down the best food we've ever tasted!

Good food, first time trying a Kenyan restaurant, but my server would not leave me alone. My…read moregoodness, it was borderline harassment, and I ended up giving my phone number just to make it stop. Very unprofessional honestly. Outside of that, I give the food a 4/5. It was delicious. I didn't care for the cabbage or the sauce that went on the fish, but it was mostly delicious. The restaurant is very clean, from the booths to the restrooms. There is good music and also the ladies there were very kind. I came here specifically because a Kenyan guy I was dating wanted me to try it out. It was definitely worth trying, although the server soiled the experience for me. I don't recommend visiting as a woman by yourself. Come with a group or something. That was very weird.

The Liberian food here is too good man. I get pepper soup and Torborgee and it was delicious. Right…read moreamount of peppeh. It's a hole in the wall , but definitely worth the trip to east orange

I really wanted to like this place. The lady was really nice, and while inflation is a thing here,…read morethe portions are big. I got a literal serving tray of food for my snapper entree combo. The foundation is there for a great, top notch place but there are many little things holding the food back. I got two entrees. Fried snapper and the cassava leaf. Loved the sauces that came with the snapper. The snapper was well seasoned. And it was the first time I finished my fried plantains. Cassava dish had great texture and seasoning. Big flavor and goes great over rice. What's holding them back? The snapper entree. Fried snapper, pretty straightforward. The snapper was dry, it was either overcooked or pre cooked and refried later. Came out dry and tired. The couscous tasted...... boxy? Stale? The sauces while amazing, were very greasy. The salad was just OK, uninspired. The cassava leaf. I loved that smoky, cured taste underlining the dish. I'm not sure of all the ingredients but I'm pretty sure a lot of the flavor came from salted, smoked/cured meat and fish. It goes great with the cassava and the cassava leaf texture. But it was so just so salty. The amount of salt VS the leaf texture VS over rice was unbalanced. The meat was a hodgepodge of different types. Fish, chicken, ham hock, and i think goat? Some of it like the chicken shared the same issue as the snapper. The ham hock was a chunk of bone mostly. The goat(?) was great. The rice. I like my plain white rice fluffy and light. The rice was weirdly dense. Strange texture for me. I've eaten lots of rice but never like that. It doesnt take the sauce well. Maybe that's how they like it in Liberia? I dunno. This place has the potential to be a hidden gem, but the little things were too much. The large portions and good service prop it up to 4 out of 5. The food is an otherwise miss.

Very bad customer service…read more Waakye is very good Jellof is the worst I ever tasted Wouldn't recommend this place overall

The food quality is as high as the service quality. Their personnel displayed real pleasantness…read morealso. Very authentic. They provide extra effort here. We'll probably be back before long.

There are good places, there are great places, and then there are places where the food is truly…read moretransformative. This tiny unassuming African spot on the Main Street in Springfield is one such establishment. If you asked me where the very best grilled chicken I could have is I would point you here and tell you to ignore the fact that it was African, if you asked me for the very best African food I would say there are many great places and this is one of the absolute best! Karen, the owner and chef and Emanuel her brother are kind and well versed in hospitality, a fact that her formal and informal training will prove if you are fortunate enough to meet them. The spices, the smells and the flavors are what Africa is known for and the first thing they will tell you is that everything is cooked to order so don't expect it to just be ready but I promise you it's worth twice the amount of time (it wasn't too long by the way) and you truly feel as though you have been invited into their home. With no hyperbole this is not just some of the very best African food I've had it's some of the very best food I've ever had and I cannot wait to return.

There is a long wait. They do cook everything fresh, but they ran outta the red snapper…read more Too much garlic on the food. Ordered branzino. It was fresh. But all I could taste was garlic. They use a lot of garlic on everything. It was a one and done. If you enjoy garlic, then it's for you. Restaraunt itself smells bad. It's not the most hygienic place. It's very a mom and pop, hole in the wall kinda place. I wouldn't dine in because of the smell.

Where are they located now? I loved there attieke w that yellow sauce and lamb. My father use to…read morebuy from here but I know there was a fire or something that happened

The best red snapper on the east of the mississippi. That shit is FIRE. I stop and get an order…read moreevery time I'm in NJ. You have to get it early in the day because it sells out fast.

Looking for a chill African spot to dance and unwind, we were recommended to visit Origin. We…read morearrived around 10:30 and were told we made it just in time to get in for free, as there is a cover charge starting at 11 pm. For about an hour, the music was at an enjoyable level. Once it hit 11:30, the dj started and it became hard to talk to each other. The afrobeats and hip-hop kept us dancing and singing all night, although a lot of songs ended prematurely. My girlfriend didn't enjoy her espresso martini until they made it again with less Bailey's. I ordered a Remy Martin based cocktail which was ok. Our bartender was funny and engaging, and she went above and beyond to make us drinks we had at other restaurants (which she nicely didn't charge us for). Their alcohol selection is average. They also have a VIP lounge upstairs and people smoke hookah throughout.

The men there are deplorable! A group of men behind me spilled their beer and it got all over my…read moregirlfriend's jacket and the men cleaned themselves off and never once said my apologies or ANYTHING! We sat at the bar and we constantly felt we had to grab our belongings cloes due to the seedy characters lurking around. I WILL NEVER GO THERE again w/o a man lol lesson learned. Not ladies night friendly at all!

Cash only! I must mention this first. No delivery either and…read morethis place is strictly take out. Saw locals coming and going so I am excited to enjoy this! 1. Waakye and stew with spaghetti with meat 2. Jollof and vegetable with fish 3. Peanut soup/okra soup 4. Fufu and Banku Service was great. I will phone it in next time to shorten the wait time. Quiet ambiance will lots of love and care going on in the kitchen!

Aunthetic Ghanaian food that's conveniently located in Flatbush, which is lucky for me. It's a bit…read morestrange for the area, since the neighborhood is predominantly Carribean, but thankfully Akwaaba graces us (the name itself means, "Welcome", in Twi). I was told you know it's a legit place since inside, there's hanging one of the most common Ghanaian house decorations, the wall mat with the famous woman smiling from ear to ear, holding a vessel and a large bowl. This place is definitely a hole in the wall, resembling more of a closet on the side of a building than an actual eatery. It's cash only, be prepared, and also you might have to ring the doorbell since the guy isn't always there attentive waiting at the door. Prices were fair for what they were offering. We got the Banku with okra soup and Waakye with goat meat. Both were legit, according to my friend, and reminded him of home so much that he closed his eyes. He said we definitely need to go back.

How would I rate my experience? Unique. 9ja is a Nigerian place but they are fine with English so…read moreyou can visit and ask as many questions as you like. Do ask. Please ask... First impressions: Small urban place. Free Wi-Fi a plus. Smoke alarm battery going off a minus. Family setting a plus (toddlers roaming the dining room and kitchen). You can get your order in or to go. I got mine in and watched as they hand-washed and cleaned bowls and utensils. Some of those became mine. I got a mix of efo elugusi and efo biro, which were two of the three starters they had today. I watched as they assembled the bowl and... put it in the microwave. No no no. Sigh. As the dish neared completion I perused the fridge, grabbed a bottle of Nigerian imported palm wine, and dug in. What looks like bread is probably the pounded yam. You tear off a bit and dip in the spicy yummy starter. I found there was a perfect proportion - my last bite of each came together. Well executed. Less well executed is the Assorted Meat. That is Nigerian for "large pieces of inedible cow parts, not actual cuts of meat". (I heard people saying no meat with their order, now I know why.) I ate the tripe (not cooked tender, but passable and unique), passed on the cow skin and couldn't eat the tendon if I tried. But otherwise, nice and flavorful and spicy. Do note that it's spicy here. All done, I washed my hands in the washing bowl (what's a "sink"?) and paid. Verdict: Probably really really authentic. Not the ingredients I expected but I love authenticity, so I'll give it 4 Yelp stars instead of random Unique Stars. Next time I'll work on the fish entrees instead of "assorted meat".

I had the egusi with pounded yam. It was delicious. I got beef as my protein and it was rough but I…read moreexpected it to be. They're a little pricier than my normal go to place but the food might be better. I tried the vegetable stew and I think I will get that next time. So flavorful. The ambiance was very casual, looks more like a to go place. The service was pretty good no complaints.

Hate to say this about an African restaurant. But the Suya was awful. Dry. Tasteless. It tasted…read morelike the meat had been sitting out for a while and they just threw it in a bag and sold it to me. I will literally never go here again. They used to be in union and the food was good there. Now that they are in Irvington. Thumbs down.

Came here with a work proximity associate who grew up in Ghana and another work buddy for lunch…read more We were the first guests to start the lunch rush. We shared one meat pie as we waited for our entrees. I got the jollof rice, plaintain with goat. My buddy ordered the spinach stew think with plaintain and white rice. The other buddy got the turkey wings but sweet potatoes instead of rice. The portion is large. All our entrees were under $13 and each entrees comes with a bottle water. They go give you a bowl of water to wash your hand if you eat with your hands. There's hand soap on every table. The flavor was really good. There was a fish sauce that went well with the food. My goat was really chewy and hard. It needed to be braised longer. I tried the spinach dish and it was really good. They used a lot of spinach. So if you think you're gonna be sick. Get that to Popeye it up. Cc accepted. I will come back to try a soup. The nice lady running the place told me the soups are very large portions. I will call in my order if I'm in a rush. They make the food to order. We were there longer than I liked.