Last night Elisée and I went to the Bissap Baobab in San Francisco (on 19th street) for dinner and dancing. Many of our friends-White, Black, American and African-have been recommending it to us.
We began the evening with a delicious dinner. Elisée had the "poulet yassa" and I had the "mafe" which is basically a peanut sauce. It was so good that Elisée was certain an African "Tantie" was in the kitchen, but a quick peak revealed the great chefs to be two young Hispanic men.
The setting is very tiny and intimate. The seating is a little too crowded together, but the fast service makes up for it. After dinner we headed to the bar and enjoyed hibiscus and tamarind cocktails. At around 10pm, the setting changes. One by one, as patrons finish eating, the staff quickly remove the tables and chairs, to transform the room into a small dance floor with a DJ in the back. Dancing begins immediately. The music was fantastic, a real mix of traditional and modern music from throughout Africa. Elisée was pleasantly surprised after hearing a song from the Congolese musician Awilo Longomba, a song he hadn't heard since high school.
I loved the mix of people dancing in the club. There were a lot of men and women of all colors, and definitely a lot of Africans. I still say that the best dancers on the floor were an elderly interracial couple who had to be in their mid 60s. Overall, a lot of fun, and definitely a place we'll return to.
We began the evening with a delicious dinner. Elisée had the "poulet yassa" and I had the "mafe" which is basically a peanut sauce. It was so good that Elisée was certain an African "Tantie" was in the kitchen, but a quick peak revealed the great chefs to be two young Hispanic men.
The setting is very tiny and intimate. The seating is a little too crowded together, but the fast service makes up for it. After dinner we headed to the bar and enjoyed hibiscus and tamarind cocktails. At around 10pm, the setting changes. One by one, as patrons finish eating, the staff quickly remove the tables and chairs, to transform the room into a small dance floor with a DJ in the back. Dancing begins immediately. The music was fantastic, a real mix of traditional and modern music from throughout Africa. Elisée was pleasantly surprised after hearing a song from the Congolese musician Awilo Longomba, a song he hadn't heard since high school.
I loved the mix of people dancing in the club. There were a lot of men and women of all colors, and definitely a lot of Africans. I still say that the best dancers on the floor were an elderly interracial couple who had to be in their mid 60s. Overall, a lot of fun, and definitely a place we'll return to.
Leave a comment