Palais Maasaï — Restaurant in Dijon

We have been traveling through UK, Northern Italy and Eastern France for a month - coming from Australia. So now, we are in Dijon for a few days to discover Burgundy and want a casual dinner that’s not rich Bourgogne cuisine for a change (though we love that too). We are staying near Rue Berbisey and want something near home. Palais Maasaï comes up on Google maps with great Google reviews highlighting delicious food and not-fancy but very friendly hospitality. We’ve eaten various African countries’ cuisines at home in Australia before, so are excited. We walk in the door and are a little confused by the quasi-nightclub vibe of this very small restaurant. Is it a bar or a restaurant? The owner seems a bit confused that we have walked in, early on a Saturday night. He explains the menu and we say, “we have a 20-25 euro per head budget, can you please feed us your recommendations”. The feast that ensued was magnificent and came with keen explanations - the owner is from Burundi but takes inspiration from East, West and Southern African regions. We had chunky marinated beef skewers BBQ-ed, delicious prawns/shrimp that you can eat whole - not peeling, mouthwatering plantains and samosa with a delicious chilli sauce and fries, a mafé with brown rice that was deep and rich and - at our specific request, even though it’s mid summer - fufu with a gorgeous beef stew that was just delightful. We had a very reasonably priced South African red wine and a couple of very well-made cocktails. We spent 120 euros all up for the 4 of us (the owner was careful to explain up front that the bottle of wine would be above our budget, which we happily accepted). Best of all was our cheerful host who did everything - making cocktails, cooking the food, serving, chatting. I felt like I was a guest in his home. I read that in another review that service was a bit slow. Sure, don’t expect to eat here in a hurry, this is a family meal experience. We left the restaurant full of food, tipsy from wine and nourished from hospitality. I give Palais Maasaï a Michelin star for a wonderful, casual, unexpected, delicious, and welcoming night...

For all the tourists coming to Dijon that want to have a different but cosy experience, this is the place for you. The wine is great, the food is delicious, everyone is very friendly and the owner really pays attention to your needs. A nice small business that makes you feel...

Very delicious food! We found this place during our holiday in Burgundy. The food was freshly cooked for us, the service was perfect. The owner was very friendly and did everything to let us feel comfortable. We had a nice experience, tasted new flavours and enjoyed...