Already highly regarded in Peckham, Little Baobab was a natural choice to succeed Tatale when Akwasi Brenya-Mensa finished his time at The Africa Centre.
Though Brenya-Mensa’s reflective Ghanaian cooking has been supplanted by Little Baobab’s more accessible, traditional Senegalese flavours, the interiors remain the same - a smart move in our book, as the sandy, mottled plaster walls, rattan lamps and pot plants make this a very soothing place to spend a few hours. The restaurant feels stripped down in a very charming way - service is chatty, and tables are only a few metres from the open kitchen, where a clutch of chefs busy themselves over plates at the pass.
The set menu is extremely reasonable at £49 and ideal for a couple of people, as you can share practically every dish on offer (though larger groups might find themselves a bit short on options). An opening plantain, sliced in half then half again, fried, and dusted with spiced salt, feels a little spartan, but admittedly it is just a warm up, and a delicious one at that. In fact, it sets the tone for dishes where we would happily have ordered another, given the chance.
The cooking is staunchly home-style, and all the better for it. We devour plump, fried fish balls in rich tomato sauce, and a stew of black eyed beans, which puts Heinz to shame. Lamb chops are well-done but still tender, with glistening fat, barbecue smoke and spice rub all melding happily with a caramelised onion sauce. It’s all just delicious.
Suddenly, we’re at dessert, spooning our way through an extremely rustic chocolate and ginger tart. Sweets feel a little more makeshift, but like everything else, the flavours are absolutely there. Big appetites might feel a bit light on food - we reckon a bread course would solve the problem easily - but there’s no questioning the quality of the cooking on offer here. If the Africa Centre is to be a home for Africa and its London diaspora, it has a perfect food ambassador in Little Baobab, which is ultra-accessible, and rooted in comforting African flavours.