Around the World in LA: Lagos African Cuisine

This summer I thought it'd be a good idea to try some new restaurants in LA. I've been eating the same foods for a while. Why not try something new?

Recently, I went to a place in Mid-Wilshire called Lagos African Cuisine.




I had looked it up on Yelp, thinking it was called Ngoma. They changed it two years ago, according to our waitress.

The menu is extensive. There's a section of entrees from East Africa, West Africa and Nigeria. We ordered one dish from each region, plus an order of Cassava Chips.



The texture of the Cassava Chips is interesting. I wanted to think of it as eating fries, but that's not accurate.

Here are the three dishes we ordered:



Ugalina Sukuma Wiki. Ugali is like a cornmeal paste, and by itself has no flavor. It's a staple of Eastern and Southern Africa. To get an idea of the ugali's texture, it's similar to grits. Since it has no taste, it's served with the sukuma wiki (kinda like collard greens) and chicken. It all works well together.



Fried plantains and fried yams, served with grilled fish. This was off the Nigerian section of the menu. While the plantains were OK, that fish was tasty.



Poulet Yassa. This is chicken marinated in a lemon sauce, sauteed with vegetables, served with rice. It's a West African dish.

I'm not a food writer at all, so I can't tell you the intricacies of African cuisine. But I do like food. Especially when it's something new. And Lagos was a success! I would go back here to try the other dishes.

Lagos African Cuisine (Formerly Ngoma Restaurant)
5358 Wilshire Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90036

A word on the Yelp reviews: There are two one-star reviews for Lagos, which you can take with many grains of salt. Their Ngoma page has more views and averages 3.5 stars. The food hasn't changed since they renamed themselves. I wouldn't let the one-star reviews sway you.

If you have a favorite African dish or restaurant, please comment! I'd loved to hear about it.

Before I Forget: Hong Kong

Writing about my last two trips has been difficult. I start strong, writing a great deal about the beginning, and then I lost focus and quit. This is an attempt to make amends.

My Highlights of Hong Kong:

Family



The real reason I visited Hong Kong. This was a chance to see K's grandmother (Amah), two aunts, uncle, sister and brother-in-law. Family time included Chinese food up the wazoo and a Thanksgiving feast, complete with turkey and fixings. I made nice with Amah; She said I had a nice nose.

Dialogue in the Dark



K's sister brought this to our attention. It's an hour-and-a-half long exhibit, and you're blind the whole way through. A guide gives you a walking stick and you walk in complete darkness. Really. You can't see crap. It's best to use the walking stick, or you'll end up groping the person in front of you.

You're taken through a simulated market, ferry ride, and other HK experiences. All using your other senses. And the end of the tour, you discover (mini spoiler alert) that the guide is blind and has to experience living like this every day. You end the exhibit with a Q&A session with your guide and an appreciation for your sight.

Sorry, no pictures were taken inside.

Dim Sum



Like you couldn't guess this one. I love dim sum and in Hong Kong it tastes...well, nearly the same as it does in Monterey Park. Sorry. I don't have a very discerning palette.

I had dim sum on two occasions, and the har gow and tsu mai were heavenly. And cheap. That's important.

TST

Tsim Sha Tsui. It's a touristy spot, overlooking Victorian Harbour, but you get fantastic views of the HK skyline. Great for unwinding and people-watching.



Central Station



If you hang around Central Station on a Sunday afternoon, you will find yourself surrounded by Filipino women. These women work all week as domestics, and Sunday is their day off.

They're everywhere; sprawled on broken-down cardboard boxes, playing cards, eating lunch, and gossiping. Outside Central you hear packing tape ripping, over and over again, as they pack their balikbayan boxes (they're like gigantic care packages).

And throughout Central is the aroma of Jollibee's fried chicken...



The Peak



It's a must-do. You can take the tram, but we took the bus. If you're mildly carsick like me, consider the tram. The Peak is also a tourist spot, but for good reason. It offers a view of HK that you can't get anywhere. We went at night, which I recommend. It was crowded, but not much. You will have to fight the tourists to get that perfect photo, which I never seem to take, but that's ok.

I very much liked Hong Kong. It's loud. It's smells funny. The streets aren't people-friendly. But the city is so alive. It doesn't hurt that the food is fantastic.

This won't be my only visit. As long as K has family living there, and as long as har gow is still being made, there will always be cause to return.

The American Tourist

While cruising my twitter feed, I found this article:

How to Avoid Looking Like an American Tourist

It's a lengthy article. It's full of "Do"s, mostly "Don't"s. I agree with some (fanny packs are just ridiculous) and there are some I wholeheartedly disagree with (leave my nylon cargo pants and travel shirt alone!), but overall, the article got me thinking.


*Breaking so many rules in this photo*

I get the point; Don't do anything to be a prime target for thieves, and don't do anything to embarrass your fellow Americans. Basically, don't stick out like a sore thumb.

Here's the thing: Americans are so good at sticking out and embarrassing themselves because that's who we are. We love fanny packs! And taking dorky pictures of ourselves! And yes, sometimes we let one fly while we're in public. Go USA!

On the flip side of that coin, we can be at ease among strangers (Americans are gold medalists in small talk), we're game for most things (see: Andrew Zimmern) and, though we may appear dorky, we're really fun-loving (see: My Travel Guru).

American tourists can follow a list of guidelines a mile long. We can ditch our fanny packs. We can switch our REI convertible pants for linen slacks. We can whisper instead of yell. That won't change things. We'll still be louder than most. We'll still be laughed at by locals.

For all our faults, I'm still proud to be an American Tourist; Thankful to have the means to travel, and eager to learn how to be a better citizen of the world.

But sorry. I'll wear my travel shirt wherever I damn please.

Catching Up

Good grief, it's been over half a year since I've posted?

I feel awful. But I had a wedding to plan and after that, a marriage to tend to, meaning time away from this blog.

That doesn't mean I've strayed away from traveling. The wife (who will figure prominently in this blog going forward, whether she knows it or not) and I spent a week in Belize. And, if all goes according to plan, we'll be hitting up South Africa in October.

When not traveling, we've been trying out a few restaurants in the LA area that serve a different cuisine than I'm used to. It's sort of a summer project that keeps me yearning to travel. And eat. And eventually, write.

And I owe a few words about the 2nd leg of my 2010 trip. Well, there's a leg of my 2009 trip that I never covered. I should put it to the blogosphere now before it evaporates.

I'm just getting my groove back. Here's hoping I hold onto it!