Bolat African Cuisine

This restaurant was excellent. My boyfriend and I went because we wanted to try new and interesting food and in sure glad we chose to eat here. This was a really authentic experience and the food was outstanding. We were concerned at first because the restaurant seemed empty, but I have absolutely no idea why it would every be empty. The food was so fresh and so flavorful. I got the yam porridge with goat and it was spicy and so flavorful. My boyfriend got a dish with tilapia and something called fufu which is a beaten yam dough which you eat with your dish with your hands. That fufu was amazing. I’ve never had anything like it before. The people working were incredibly kind and taught us how to eat the food and explained what things were. They even brought complimentary fried plantains. These were the best plantains I’ve ever had in my life. These people know how to cook great food. I will be recommending this place to many.

Blessings,
I have not been to the Café yet, but I did have the opportunity to eat the cuisine Sunday at an informal dining experience at the Dorchester Art House. It was GREAT!!! Spicy Shrimp, fish, honey bread and vegetable soup and a bread similar to corn bread! And the sauces were GREAT!!! Loved it all and can’t wait to get to the Café.
Sincerely
Marian Hayes

I went to this restaurant with my girlfriend to get some jerk chicken. Since it was a African restaurant I expected them to have it but they first thing they told me was that they didn’t it have any for the day. Which was ridiculous considering there was barely anybody in the place. My gf tried ordering some fried plantains but the server said she couldn’t order them without something. Why even have that option on the menu ???
We finally decided to order some ox tails and a beef patty appetizers but the serving size was sooo small. For almost $ 10 per dish I expected a pretty decent sized portion but I got the exact opposite.
The décor and music is nice I give this place that.
Another problem was wait staff. It took too long to get the small plates of food we received.
²⁄₅ would not recommend.

As an African, I would love to see more African restaurants succeed. I’ve ordered from this place twice and both times there have been disappointments. The first time, I ordered for delivery (prepaid and everything), it took me almost 2 hours to get my food. They said there was a mixup with the delivery service. The second time I ordered for pick up, it took them an hour and forty minutes to prepare my food. The place isn’t busy at all, there is really no excuse for it to take this long. If they really want to succeed, they need to get it together. It’s really embarrassing, I would never recommend this place.

We held an event here and they were great! The owner was very nice and accommodating. He personalized the menus and gave us a great deal price wise! All the food was delicious! I had the goat soup… very flavorful, but very spicy so consider yourself warned. I also had the jerk chicken which was great, but a little spicy… not as spicy as the soup. I got to try the peanut soup as well, and that was phenomenal! The hibiscus juice and ice cream covered in coconut were perfect too! I have to stop writing because I’m getting too hungry thinking about all the yummy flavors. If you want to try something different, definitely go!

Fun, hip atmosphere with excellent drinks and beautifully plated food with tons of flavor. My husband and I had a great experience! Will definitely go back.

Went there for a tasting with my brother and his fiancé the food was great! Meat pie was awesome! Definitely recommend the coconut rice, curry jerk chicken. Goat was wonderful!

Having 0 experience with African cuisine going into my meal, coming out of it as positively as I did seems like a good sign?
I started with the grilled plantains with their side of house made peanut sauce, which was delectable. You really can’t go wrong with some very well prepared plantains and a phenomenal peanut sauce. For the entrée I had their Curry Goat dish, which originated from Nigeria. The goat was cooked exceptionally well with a nice tender texture and extremely flavorful marinade with the curry.
So far I’ve got positive memories associated with African cuisine, and I’ll definitely be going back to Bolat to make some more.

Sometimes, there are things that are worth the wait. I went to Bolat’s booth when they were at the Taste of Chicago. I had never heard of them but by the length of the line, I knew they had to have good food. So, I patiently waited. I got the sweet potato fries and the Oxtails with Jollof Rice and Plaintains. I wanted to lick the container after I was done because everything was DELICIOUS! I haven’t made it to the restaurant yet, but it’s on my bucket list especially after seeing my buddy Gino W.‘s review and photos.

A few years ago I went to Iyzanze Restaurant in Chicago’s Uptown neighbourhood. Later I come to find out that it is owned by the same person who owns and operates Bolat African Cuisine. So I decided to try out Bolat to see what offerings they had.
Hibiscus mojito. Plantain with peanut sauce. Meat pie. Peanut soup with fish. Queen Nefertiti Egusi with fish. Ice cream covered with coconut. Salt and pepper highball.
The cocktails were out of this world. Anytime I get a drink that isn’t heavy on alcohol, while still being refreshing in flavour, I’m satisfied. The plantains with peanut sauce were a hit. I wish I had ordered several meat pies for take-​away. I actually ate the peanut soup with fish using fufu for my utensil. I can’t say enough about how much I liked the egusi with fish. And to top it off, the scoop of vanilla ice cream covered in coconut, served with honey raspberry reduction, topped with apricot, and sprinkled with cinnamon was a perfect finale for the heavy meal that I had.
Bolat African Cuisine was rather light with customers. The restaurant seems more like a lounge. Then again, I arrived as soon as the doors opened for business, I was probably ahead of the dinner crowd. One thing to note is that food is prepared as soon as it is ordered. Nothing comes to the table as if the kitchen staff has read your mind. I’m accustomed to laid back Caribbean and African atmospheres in restaurants, though.
I must say that I like Bolat better than I do Iyanze.

The restaurant and service is in my top 15 of the best restaurants of all time. The restaurant has a mix all kinds of African Foods. The variety of menu items is amazing. The extremely fresh ingredients and flavorful. The Curry Shrimp and Coconut Vanilla ice cream ball is a much have.

I finally tasted Bolat’s food after years of walking by and being curious. I am not an expert on African cuisine, but having been to several such restaurants in Chicago, I will say that Bolat is well ahead of the competition (I exclude Ethiopian restaurants from this comparison). Not only is Bolat better, but it serves unusual, tasty creations that are well worth a try. We ordered five dishes (a mix of appetizers and entrees), each a unique explosion of excellent flavors. All five were well worth ordering again.
Before writing this review I read a few of the previously posted comments. I can understand some of the critical comments. The space, although interesting, is a little shabby and the restroom could use some help. I could see how service may be uneven, although I was most impressed with how friendly and helpful the owner was.
In a way, it’s our own fault — I think it’s a crying shame that on a weekend night a restaurant this good was nearly empty. For fast, uniformed service there’s Applebee’s. But if you want a flavorful and memorable meal, this is a place to try. Perhaps with more business the owners would fix those annoying problems that could detract from the overall experience.
My bottom line is simple — I’ll be trying Bolat’s food again.

Bolat has amazing food and the potential to become a première restaurant in the city. The majority of African cuisine restaurants in Chicago are greatly focused on Ethiopian dishes. Bolat has separated themselves from their East African counterparts by letting us experience what the other countries have to offer.
After taking your first bite of food and sip of drink you will say to yourself «oh yes, they care.»
However, unfortunately the wait staff and just the wait itself will leave you flavorless and somewhat bitter. Bolat needs atleast (2) servers on the floor and (2) assistant cooks to support the chef in the back. My wait time for grilled plantains and (1) beef patty was 30 minutes. We had to wait one hour for dinner after finishing our starters.
I understand Bolat is a new up and coming establishment. However, it takes money to make money. Hiring (4) additional staff members would greatly improve the service and more people would return on the regular.
As of right now I don’t see myself returning unless changes are made. I really want to see Bolat succeed! We need more African American businesses to flourish in this city!!!

I sampled Bolat at Taste of Chicago. I had been planning to come here since the summer, and am so glad I finally did. I like how the place has a slow paced and authentic feel. They even stayed open late for us. The décor is pretty cool. The plantains and spicy peanut sauce was simple but good. The goat soup had a nice kick and flavor. The jerk chicken with salad and coconut rice is to die for! We had to try the dessert, after loving all of the other plates. The homemade vanilla ice cream ball with coconut shavings was delicious. The owner was nice enough to make me a gluten free version of the banana fritters and ice cream. I am already craving more of those!

Pros:
Flavorful and interesting
Intimate atmosphere
Warm despite the small size and freezing temp outside
Cons:
Not good for large groups
Small portions, large price
Cold & creepy bathroom
Everything seemed to be very spicy, almost unbearably so
Incredibly ridiculous dining time
I came here for a friend’s birthday. We had a group of 19. Let me tell you, this place is not equipped to handle groups. It is very small and intimate, and can seat about 25 total, but they seem to hand prepare each dish as they are ordered. This isn’t a bad thing, but it’s not ideal for a group.
Also, with a group of this size, they give you a set menu with three to four options per course. I’m generally not a fan of this as I am rather picky and indecisive. But I understand it makes it easier on the staff.
Our choices were as follows:
Appetizer —
Grilled plantain with a peanut sauce. The plantain was rather dry and a little bland, but the peanut sauce was very tasty.
Meat pie, which I highly recommend. It’s a good size and rather tasty. Oddly enough it reminds me of a spicy corned beef hash hot pocket. I’d be happy with a few of these as an entrée.
Cilantro curry soup, which is very spicy but delicious.
Entrée —
Jerked chicken with coconut rice and a plantain. Oddly enough, the rice was the spiciest part, and it was all very spicy, a bit more than I could handle comfortably. There were four small drums and a good portion of rice, but it seemed a rather small portion of meat for an entrée. I was expecting the chicken to be the focus but the rice was the majority of the plate.
Peanut soup with tilapia, delicious, but I wouldn’t consider this an entrée, more of an appetizer.
Fufu and goat? Can’t remember what it was really called. This is like mashed potatoes mixed with raw bread dough, best way I can explain it. It was interesting, but I’m glad I only sampled and didn’t choose this one.
Dessert —
Coconut Tabu which is basically a coconut ice cream
Or banana fritter with a scoop of vanilla ice cream which was light, crispy and delicious… Oddly, though, this even had a hint of spiciness too. I really wish the portion was bigger because this was the most enjoyable part of the meal for me., but it was only about four bites big.
So, one choice from each course was $ 22 per person. I’m sure this isn’t really a lot considering the quality of the food that I’m sure is handcrafted, but I’ll be honest, I’m cheap and if I’m going to pay $ 22, I want to be super wowed or have leftovers, which I had neither experience.
The whole meal took almost three and a half hours. I understand with one cook and only a handful of staff that a handcrafted dining experience may take a while, but we didn’t even get our appetizers until we had been there an hour and a half! Considering it was a set menu and we had reservatios, I feel they could have better prepared to accommodate our group and make it a bit more time friendly.

This was the first time I’ve been to this place and when we walked in it was empty, literally empty. We were the only two customers there. Which was perfectly fine because we got tremendous service. The waiter asked us what type of foods we liked and the spicy level we were comfortable with then made suggestions. And the suggestions he made weren’t three most expensive things on the menu (I hate when places do that). I had no idea what plantains were and he went back into the kitchen and brought out a plantain and a banana and explained the difference. I really liked how he didn’t just try to explain, he went to extra mile and showed me.
I ended up ordering the Ayamashe. It was super spicy and my nose and eyes were definitely watering at the end, but that’s how I like it, I was very impressed.
My friend ordered yamashoma. She enjoyed it, but I think it was a little hotter than she expected.
My only «complaint» was that they don’t list the prices of their drinks on the menu. I think they were about $ 8 (pretty cheap!) after doing some math but I still don’t know because the bill didn’t list out individual prices.
Overall this place is great and it is definitely a restaurant you need to add to your list of places to try

Very good Nigerian food. A bit overpriced, but I blame the area of the location. The food is your traditional Nigerian food, with a little flare. I am half Nigerian and I loved the food although Bolat is trying to reach a different demographic with the way the food is prepared, I still enjoyed it. The interior is beautifully painted and the service was excellent.
If you are looking for a good traditional Nigerian restaurant without the glitz and glam go down the street for 2 miles till you reach Vee Vee’s. Awesome food, with huge portions without the price tag of an extra $ 10 per plate.

I live right by this place so I’ll often call in pickup orders. I ordered a number of times and there have never been more than a few people dining in at this restaurant.
Pros:
–The rice with goat and plantains dish that I get every time is seriously tasty.
Cons:
–Ambiance is weird, place looks very poorly maintained inside. A really weird layout inside and a cheap entrance.
–Prices are a bit high. The rice dish that I get is like $ 16, should really be like $ 12.

Bolat is a restaurant that specializes in African cuisine. Their menu offers appetizers (grilled plantains, meat pies, yam, piri piri shrimp, etc.), entrees (yamashoma, sega wat, jerk chicken, doro wat, jollof rice, curry goat, etc.), soups, salads, vegetarian dishes, as well as desserts. I’ve tried their Braised Oxtail over Jollaf rice at the Taste, and came here specifically for that. The braised oxtail, as I remember it, was falling off the bone, succulent, well-​seasoned, and very tender. However, I was a little disappointed as they did not have that available. I instead opted for the Goat Curry over Jollaf Rice — it had a nice kick to it and was pretty spicy. The goat itself did not have a strong game-​y flavor to it, so that was good. The meat was seasoned with African spices and came with slices of tomatoes and onions. We also ordered 2 meat pies for appetizers as well as chicken skewers. The meat pies didn’t seem to be fresh as it tasted as if they were reheated; the outer crust was very hard, but the filling was very hot — however, these were very tasty! The chicken skewers had some spicy seasoning on it, so I couldn’t finish more than one bite; eating with the slices of white onions helped somewhat, but not much for my level of spiciness! My husband had the chicken over Jollaf rice, and his chicken was done in the way I liked it — cooked extremely well. The service was superb, and the price was not bad as well. The restaurant itself is dim-​lit, but it was extremely clean and lovely. Try sitting by the window if you can to enjoy the passerbyers! I would definitely come back for their braised oxtail entrée as well as when their meat pies are more fresh!
+brasied oxtail entrée

My date and I enjoyed Bolat very much. It wasn’t busy since the weather was bad, there were only 4 – 5 other people in the restaurant. Even so, the atmosphere is nice, and the paintings on the wall were pretty interesting and the décor is clean. The waiter was friendly and the food came out quickly.
That said, the food was pretty tasty. Nothing 5-​star, but it was pretty good. The grilled plantain appetizer with peanut sauce could have been a little bigger portion, but it was great. I had the ayamashe with goat meat, which was fantastic. I like spicy foods and this was adequate, but not overwhelming for spicy lovers. My date had the jerk chicken and she said it was good.
Overall I would recommend Bolat, the only big downfall is it’s price. Luckily I had a coupon, but I felt the prices were a little high for what you get.
Atmosphere: ⁸⁄₁₀
Service: 8.5÷10
Food: 8.5÷10