For all its pomp and circumstance, there's no dress code at Shaw Bijou, which furthers Onwuachi's goal of creating a comfortable space similar to a dinner party at his own home. Top Chef contestant Kwame Onwuachi chronicles his journey from the South Bronx, to Nigeria, and his rise to chef and owner of The Shaw Bijou in Washington. Finally, you're moved to your table in the chic, exposed-brick dining room of only eight tables, where you consume multiple courses of avant-garde international plates inspired by Onwuachi's childhood memories. After imbibing, you're guided through the kitchen, where you can witness dishes being primped and polished, and take photos with Onwuachi if you please (a food blogger's dream). You start off in a luxury cocktail lounge sporting comfy Icelandic sheepskin chairs, where you simply tell the seasoned bartender what flavors you're feeling that evening. Situated in a renovated Shaw townhouse that's hip and homey, it's more of an experience than a restaurant: you're even required to purchase a $185 ticket online for the culinary show (hopeful visitors clamor for reservations as if they were newly released concert tickets they're made available on the first of every month for the following month). These days, he's cooking Nigerian food at a series of dinners that are part meal, part conversation space for discussions that center around blackness.Top Chef finalist Kwame Onwuachi's Shaw Bijou has solidified its place in DC's fine-dining scene - and not without a glamorous splash. Wey, a self-taught cook who calls himself a Nigerian "food dude," was serving egusi at his stall in New Orleans's St. But at his members-only bar attached to the space, Onwuachi says there will be nods to Nigeria with dishes like suya prepared with 40-day dry-aged Wagyu, as well as egusi, updated by replacing the traditional dried stock fish with fresh monkfish. Onwuachi expects to open the Shaw Bijou later. all of those memories come back to me now more so than ever," he says.Īt his much-anticipated restaurant, The Shaw Bijou, in Washington, D.C., the menu will draw on influences from around the globe. Next up: 25-year-old Kwame Onwuachi, whose résumé includes stints at such cachet-carrying eateries as New Yorks Eleven Madison Park and Per Se. The full lineup is: The Juan MacLean, The Rinse, Gym Class, Prowler, The Subjects and DJs Music for Robots, Patrick ODell, Tim Sweeney, and DFA and friends. "We raised our own livestock, plucked palm kerns. A memoir from the most important chef in America (San Francisco Chronicle) and chef of Tatiana, the New York Times 1 Restaurant in New York City 2023.Kwame Onwuachi’s story shines a light on food and culture not just in American restaurants or African American communities but around the world. The mag has lined up a number of bands and DJs, including One Louder faves The Juan Maclean and Tim Sweeney. Onwuachi, best known from the most recent season of Top Chef, spent two years living in Nigeria when he was 10 and is also reaching into the Nigerian pantry. When Elẹgbẹdé opens his restaurant, his friend and former shift partner at Eleven Madison, Onwuachi, will be there to collaborate on a dinner. Still, Elẹgbẹdé is cooking for his countrymen: "This is for our people to have this pride in our food." And, he predicts, "Within 10 years, I will have a restaurant in America, most likely in New York City, my home." At a recent food festival where he shared dishes like poached prawns in a peppersoup with smoked crayfish broth, he was greeted by those excited by his cooking and others "who wanted to argue our food was not Nigerian food." But, he explains: "I am not cooking Nigerian food, rather utilizing locally sourced ingredients to create dishes that are influenced by our food cultures and traditions." But even Elẹgbẹdé has faced some resistance for the license he's taking. The legendary René Redzepi at Noma offered some advice: "He told me, 'You have to go Nigeria, spend time there and create a food that is true to you and true to your people,'" Elẹgbẹdé recalls. "I started to see how I could represent Nigerian food in a way no has ever seen," he explains. Still in New York, he hosted Nigerian food pop-up dinners. The Shaw Bijou Gregory Vakiner and Kwame Onwuachi became friends after meeting in culinary school and soon began collaborating throughout the course of. But, Elẹgbẹdé says, "At a certain point, I felt lost." This is "the food that made me fall in love with cooking in the first place" says Nigerian-born chef Michael Adé Elẹgbẹdé, who has recently returned to open an ambitious tasting menu restaurant called ÌTÀN in Lagos.Ī few years ago, he had checked off a bucket list of culinary accomplishments: The CIA grad had staged at Le Bernardin, Alinea and Eleven Madison Park, and was invited to return to Eleven Madison.
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