Choba's African Kitchen — Restaurant in Waldorf

First time trying what appeared to be traditional Fūfū, and West/Central African cuisine, in general.

I enjoyed the home cooked quality of the food, and I will say it leaned closer to what your Mom might cook for you than what a traditional chef might cook you at a restaurant. That's not to say that the food was prepared with any less care, but more that the food felt homey and rustic in the way that it was prepared, and I feel like that lent to its authenticity.

The Fūfū tasted like the soft, unsalted, unbuttered dough that you might make for a tortilla, an arepa or fried yuca. It's delicious in the same way that cookie dough can be delicious—it's unique in the sense that I don’t think I’ve ever tried a doughy companion to my food and utilized said companion the way that I would a piece of bread for my estofado, a garlic knot for my fettuccini alfredo, or a tortilla for my menudo.

I had it served with Egusi (melon seed soup/stew, if I understood the chef correctly), so It's got the same type of usage, but I did find it to be so sticky that it made more sense for me to fork up the pieces of oxtail and set them into a flattened piece of Fūfū to make really, really soft oxtail tacos. Haha.

But then I just dunked the whole quarter of the Fūfū into the Egusi, and I sort of forked chunks out of it and mixed it with the chunky bits of the stew and pieces of the oxtail, and that was kind of the most delicious way for me to eat it. I think because the Fūfū was beginning to absorb some of the juices from the soup, it seasoned it a bit and the flavors altogether made for a good eat.

I am a firm believer of not salting, prepared meals, especially when I’m trying a cuisine for the first time (I want to eat it as the chef intended me too), so I didn’t salt anything, but I will say that a little salt probably could have enhanced the flavor a bit, especially for the Fūfū, which was much less salty than I would’ve expected.

The delicious spicy sauce that was included in the meal was a welcome addition to the oxtail and Egusi. It added a great kick, and some of that salt I was looking for.

I also had some of their homemade hibiscus and ginger juice, which is now probably my favorite combination of juices that I didn’t even know I wanted. Really tasty stuff, and the natural, lightly sweetened juice was just right, I would say.

All in all, I had an enjoyable experience, and I felt very welcome and cared for as a customer, but I think it’s fair to knock one star off for a few reasons:

The food, although delicious and very different from a lot of the other cuisine out there, was a bit bland.

The service was a little odd, as I was dining in, but the food was prepared as a to go order, and although I was attended to, it was really more to just open my bag and provide a tray under me—so I guess I was just a little confused, but I do wanna commend the chef's effort and the acknowledgment for the misunderstanding. She is very sweet, and a tender soul.

The atmosphere, was kind of just OK. Not really sure what they were going for, but it felt like a standard café/bakery kind of place. I think they can do a little more to celebrate their culture and proudly display a piece of themselves to the people that come to dine here.

So with that said, I would rate this restaurant a 4.25/5 stars.

I think you would have a good time here, but maybe go for the goat meat with rice and vegetables or one of the other mid-tier dishes, because although the oxtail and Fūfū was good, it was a bit steep at $30+ after the tip.

Thank you...

I have been coming here for the past few years and the quality of food has declined tremendously, however it's the closest African restaurant in vicinity to my home which is still 30 mins away.

Today was my last straw and last time supporting this establishment.

On my birthday (May 28th) my husband brought home jollof rice and suya because he knows it's my absolute favorite, however the moment I opened the container you could smell the food was off. I proceeded to still try it however the rice was completely BURNED and hard and didn't taste at all like jollof, the suya (the very few pieces they gave) were over cooked ans dried so hard it was like eating a leather belt, highly inedible. I called about my issues and the woman apologized and told me to come back I told her I lived far and work in Virginia so it would be hard to return. She said no problem i could return for a refund or replacement. I was thankful and said ok. I was not given a timeline or any further details.

I stopped by today because I took the day off and when I reminded her who I was and the incident that occurred, she responded oh you waited too long, that was May and it's now June.

I told her I wasn't given a deadline and she repeated the same thing

I simply said no problem and turned around.

She didn't dispute the fact that the food was disgusting and I was owed reimbursement.... she only disputed the fact that I called on May 28th and it is now June.

Never again!

Quality is lacking, quantity vs prices is ludicrous, eat there at...

My husband and I ordered the assorted meat (w/ jollof rice and mixed vegetables) and the stewed drumsticks (w/ white rice and stew) yesterday.

The drumsticks were... sad (that's the best way to describe it). Not much flavor, dry on one side, tender on the other, it was a mess and the meal only came with 2 of them. The white rice was definitely cheap instant rice, and the "stew" was mostly oil, but sadly, the most flavorful thing out the bunch.

The assorted meat was okay I guess, it didn't taste like anything despite eating 3 different parts of a cow. The jollof rice literally tasted how a cigarette smells which I've never experienced before with any food ever??? And the mixed veggies were definitely cheap little frozen corn, carrots, peas, and green beans heated up in a microwave.

I'm surprised the meals came with drinks because they haven't before, but I see it was needed to wash down their "food". I have given this place the benefit of the doubt multiple times, but I would politely skip it if you're ever considering eating here. The food is NOT authentic African food, it's EXPENSIVE (for what you get), and NOT good. No comment on the service or cleanliness of the restaurant because I did not go in...