The New Joloff Opens its Arms to Bed-Stuy

Another new restaurant has opened on Bedford Avenue.

But for many area residents, the flavors and faces inside of the restaurant will be very familiar: Joloff, a popular Senegalese haunt on the corner of St. James Place and Fulton Street in Clinton Hill, now has a new location at 1068 Bedford Avenue between Putnam and Madison Streets in Bed-Stuy.

Last Friday, the restaurant held its grand opening. The majority of the crowd seemed to know Joloff well, and welcomed an addition closer to their doorstep.

Owner Papa K. Diagme is dedicated to servicing the community, and the new location seemed obvious when he was looking to expand.

“I open here because a lot of the customers live on this side, too,” he said.

Diagme came to Brooklyn from Senegal twenty years ago, and opened the first Joloff in 1995. During our conversation, a constant stream of people approached Diagme, shaking his hand, offering hugs and expressing their gratitude.  

He seemed to know everyone on the street, and it’s clear that he has established himself here.

“Everybody here grew up around this food,” he told me. “The branches are coming out, but the roots have to stay. It’s home.”

Diagme and his family welcomed everyone in with open arms, and the restaurant glowed with vibrant colors and warm light. The walls are painted vivid blues, greens, and yellows, orange curtains mark the entrance and paintings hanging throughout the restaurant add even more color.

There was live jazz on a small stage on the opening night (Diagme plans to bring in more live music in the future, as well as the occasional DJ) and, of course, food was constantly circulating, offering a smattering of traditional Senegalese dishes.

“Everything here is homemade, even the drinks,” Diagme told me.

Appetizers include a range of fried bites – a sweet, caramelized, and crispy fried plantain, lightly fried spring rolls packed with tender lamb and steamed vegetables, and vegetable pastels with potato, all of which are dipped in a deliciously sweet tomato and onion sauce.

Unfortunately, I didn't make in time to the event for the round of beverages. And I was sorely disappointed, because Joloff offers a sorrel and hibiscus drink, a Baobab Tree juice, and guanabana juice, all house made.

Central to dinner, of course, was joloff rice, the restaurant’s namesake. Joloff rice is a popular, traditional West African dish, but good joloff rice is hard to come by. The rice is flavored with jasmine and is slowly cooked in a tomato sauce so that, when served, the rice is thoroughly coated with a mildly sweet, tomato flavor, a delicious compliment to any Senegalese entree.

The steamed vegetables–with celery, carrots, peppers, onions, and cabbage–were tender and mildly spicy and topped with a thick tomato sauce. There was also a curry tofu dish with soft tofu, potato, and peas. While I don’t generally like soft tofu, this tofy goes well with the potato and curry, giving the dish almost a creamy texture, and cooling off the stronger flavors of the curry.

The grilled chicken tastes like it is right off the grill (I just love that grilled flavor). While it is slightly dry, it compliments the other, saucier dishes.

At Joloff, a family owned business, it feels like you are getting the best, homecooked, Senegalese meal. And the comfortable, warm atmosphere only emphasizes this mood. The restaurant has officially opened as of Monday (closed on Tuesdays), so stop in for great food and wonderful hospitality.