Best West African Restaurants in the DMV in 2025

Inside Hajara's Kitchen
Looking for delicious African food from authentic cuisine, fast food, to afrofusion in Maryland, Virginia and Washington, DC then this list is for you.
I am thrilled to find that the DC Metro area African food restaurant scene has now emerged beyond Habesha and Moroccan cuisine. When I was growing up in PG County in the 99s and early 2000s, we did not have things called “African restaurants”. Ethiopian, yes. Moroccan, yes. That was all. If they existed you can say in the comments but they did not for me. What do you mean leave the house to go out to eat Salone chop? When we left the house to eat we ended up at places called “All you can eat chinese restaurant on Adelphi Road after church on Sundays,” “Two for two at McDonald’s,” “Olive Garden,” and “Eddy’s Peruvian Chicken (with the yuca on the side and the special green sauce)”. That’s what we had and we were thankful.
If you wanted African food, you ate it at home, at wedding parties and funerals. It never occurred to me that African food was something you could go out to eat or even want to eat out. We had rice at home.
So imagine my joy upon my return to the DMV to discover not just an emerging African food scene but West African restaurants. What a time to be ECOWAS in the DMV. We have HArrived (heavy on the H).
Top 4 African Restaurants in the DMV
Here are my picks for best places to eat West African food in the DMV.
Hajara’s Kitchen is a family-style restaurant in Woodbridge, Virginia with an extensive menu that includes dishes from Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Ivory Coast and beyond. The chef and owner, Hajara Sesay won best rice at the Jollof Fest DC 2023. Her specialties include: Jollof Rice, Fufu and Egusi Soup, Cassava Leaves, Attieke and fish or goat meat, Efo Riro (goat head) and her trademark suya and suya pizza. You’ll love this if you’re dining in a group and looking for authentic West African food. She makes it just like back home. If you can’t come in they’ll deliver to you even if you’re one hour away in Maryland. Just call!
- Jollof Rice
- Suya and fried rice
- housemade Zobo / Sobolo / Bissap
- Black eyed-beans
- Inside Hajara’s Kitchen
The Continent is a trendy new Nigerian restaurant (opened in summer 2024), a partnership between funnyman turned business man Chaz Ogbu and Chef Tony Ijaodola. Located on Vermont Avenue, in North West, DC, The Continent delivers on vibe and flavor. It gives West Africa night out vibes (they’ve even added that Naija dress code. HA!) Dined here in a large group after the Sierra Leone Diaspora Investment Conference in October. I had oxtail with Nigerian jollof (sooo good). I went back again just last month and had suya and moimoi (olele). A friend had their fish dish and was very satisfied. You’ll love this if you wanna get dressed up, also great for large group dining.
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Moi Moi in Washington DC
MoiMoi bills itself as “an American restaurant with a West African accent,” a fusion of soul food and African cuisine. Located on K street in North West, DC, the restaurant is run by a brother and sister duo. Chef H.O. (Cham) is whipping up oxtail rice and peas, okra stew, jumbo and akara. The menu is innovative and delivers on its brand—American food with an African twist. You’ll love this for weekday dinners with friends or dining alone at the bar (if you’re in DC for a business meeting). Feel free to add your kinda afrobeats to the playlist. They’re always open to let you choose the vibe (or maybe they only did this for me, I dunno know).
- Senegalese Jollof (Thieboudienne)
- Olele / Moi Moi
- Beans akara
- with Chef H.O. (co-founder, Moi Moi) and Mai Zubairu
Sweet Sweet Kitchen is a fast food Sierra Leonean and Jamaican restaurant led by the entertaining Chef Mosada “world best chef” (no to me say o, na so e say). They have three locations: Silver Spring, North East and South East DC. I’m not a fan of fast food. I’ve only been here once but Sweet Sweet Kitchen has grown fast! Once a food truck, the three locations tell me that customers love the food is good and its in high demand. You’ll love it, if you need to eat now and don’t have time to waste. The only thing to know is that the portions are on the smaller side compared to all the others on this list. Chef Mosada recently announced he is working on a new restaurant in Baltimore called Nem Nem.