The Mukase Restaurant — Restaurant in Bolingbrook

This place deserves WAY more hype, I can’t believe it took me this long to find it!

The only other time I’ve had African food was at Calabash African Kitchen in Las Vegas (shoutout to Keith Lee for that early-day recommendation!). I had their oxtail soup with fufu, and it was unforgettable. I literally dream about it and count down the days until I can go back.

So ever since, I’ve been on the hunt for something similar closer to home in the Chicagoland area. It’s been weirdly hard to find a place that serves both oxtail soup and fufu in one spot—usually it’s one or the other. So when I saw this place had both? I skirted over there fast 💨

Let me tell you: they delivered. The fufu was phenomenal: the texture was just right, soft but with a bit of body. Fufu on its own is usually mild, which I like, because it doesn’t overpower the dish, it complements it. And that’s exactly what happened here: the fufu perfectly tamed the bold flavors of the oxtail soup.

Now let’s talk about the soup. The seasoning? 10/10. Absolute perfection!!! Flavorful, rich, layered, just so good. The oxtail itself wasn’t the softest I’ve ever had (I’ve had versions where it just falls apart), but it was still tender and delicious.

Overall, this is a spot I’ll be telling everyone about. I really hope they stay in business for a long time because I already know I’ll be back every time that craving hits.

If you’ve been on the hunt for real-deal oxtail soup with fufu, look no further, go try it!! You won’t...

Delicious! And the staff are fantastic as well! We were looking for a good place to pick up some familiar dishes for our Nigerian friends who recently moved here and miss their cuisine. This Ghanian/Nigerian menu hit the spot! The staff was patient as we took some time to look through the menu and put together an order for our large group. Our friends were thrilled for a taste of home and really enjoyed everything we got, including jollof rice, fried croaker fish, spinach and egusi stew, okra stew, pounded yam, peanut butter soup, and all the meats--beef/goat/chicken. For my husband and I, this was our first venture into Ghanian/Nigerian cuisine. He got the Waakye Shitto and Talia with croaker fish (all amazing!), I got the spinach and egusi stew, and we had the opportunity to sample the other dishes as well. Everything was delightful, fresh, well-prepared, and wonderful flavor combinations. We will definitely be back! I will say that the food was spicier than I expected, due to my lack of experience with this cuisine. Just something to take note of, for anyone like me who is trying this for the first time. Eating the meats and/or stews alongside some pounded yam will help balance out the spiciness, for anyone who might need that tip. ;) My husband loves spicy food, and this was right...

The food takes an hour to get even if they say 25-30, there is no indoor seating at all except three chairs to wait on, and I still wish I could come here every day 😂 this is some of the best food I have ever had in my LIFE. I got the motherland combo (what are the black eyed peas called, when they’re prepared this way? They are DIVINE) with goat, black eyed peas sauce (please tell me the name!!), jollof rice (first time! Amazing!) and a mound of plantains. I could have cried when I took the first bite. I am going to have to negotiate with myself to make sure I don’t show up every day, bc that’s how good it is.

I will say, for vegetarians, this place isn’t super vegetarian friendly. My vegetarian friend asked to substitute the meat in the motherland combo for fufu and was told no, had to order as a side for greater charge despite not getting meat in her combo, which I thought wasn’t the best. So you can get vegetarian food here for sure, but there will likely be...