She brought out a brown manila envelope, nearly overflowing with a large stack of papers. She placed it on the table, and walked away. I silently nodded my head in thanks, and pulled out the papers. Instead of seeing a “for your eyes only” classified introduction or a debriefing, I was given my target, or rather, several dozen targets. “I’ll take the fish,” I muttered, making sure no one overheard us.
No, Dabakh is not the restaurant for spies and espionage. Although, there are good reasons for thinking so. Dabakh is a trek, as I found out the hard way. It’s not necessarily hard to see, but getting to Refugee Rd can prove to be difficult with construction and rivers and roads that dead end getting in the way. If one can make it to Hamilton Rd., it’s just a quick left on Refugee and another into the parking lot of what looked like an old Wendy’s. They’ve put up barriers and various decorations to make one forget that, but it almost adds to the charm. Dabakh wins the record for longest hours of a non-chain/Buckeye Donuts: 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. Mon dieu! Oh, it’s worth mentioning that Senegal was colonized by the French, and so you’ll likely hear a “merci beaucoup” or “ça va?” The menu is by far one of the more unique in the city. The lunch menu is probably double the size of the dinner menu, and boasted many interesting options that are most definitely worth investigating. And the incident above that I began with—that was our waitress bringing out a picture of what seemed like every dish on the menu…and more. I picked out a few pictures that I liked, asked her for suggestions, and settled on a preparation of grilled fish. It’s unclear, but it seemed like most if not all dinners were prepared the same way. Preparation of meat, served with white rice, brown rice, couscous, French fries, spaghetti, or cassava, seasoned raw onions, caramelized onions, hardboiled egg, and mayonnaise—yes, mayonnaise.
You might be tempted to get one of the very exotic drinks that Dabakh offers. The bouye, which is juice that comes from the baobab tree, is an acquired taste. A taste most certainly acquired by five-nine year olds. That’s right, the baobab tastes like liquid Smarties. Extremely sweet, it might be good to have a sip of but it’s very difficult to have for a whole meal. Perhaps the ginger drink is a safer choice, you think. You’d be wrong again. It hits the mouth and immediately the tongue recognizes it as mouthwash flavor, until a little sweet aftertaste kicks in. I’m not absolutely sure that they brought out the right drink; there was no indication of ginger. They brought out traditional Senegalese bread to the table, cut into small ovals…hey, it’s baguette! Good baguette, too—not quite as crusty as La Chatelaine’s, but just how you’d imagine it.
The Dibbi (grilled lamb) was very good— smoky, crispy, seasoned and cooked well. You’ll be tempted to gnaw the meat off the bone. The couscous was a little dry, and quite a heaping serving for a diner to make their way through. I’d probably recommend the rice—either white or brown. The white rice, slightly sticky, was a much better canvas for picking up the flavors of the dish, and also felt a little lighter and the texture less interfering, if that makes sense. Dabakh does a nice job mixing in vegetables, topping main courses with fresh onion, peas, corn, green pepper, and carrot. One hardly notices them, but they add a wonderful freshness and texture The grilled fish had a very interesting preparation—it either was lightly fried, or covered in egg and bread crumbs and grilled well, I really couldn’t tell. Regardless, it was extremely flavorful and well-spiced. It might have been a little on the salty side, but you a restaurant can get away with this when it is serving a very large and mild tilapia. A good deboner will thoroughly enjoy this dish; a poor one will, too, albeit after a little work.
Things to note: I dined late, but everyone who came in got takeout, so don’t be surprised if you’re the only person sitting in the dining room. What dish the couscous came with and what the rice came with got mixed up, so be careful when ordering. So what does Dabakh provide to Columbus? It provides a hub and gathering place for the small but growing Senegalese/west African community. It exhibits the diversity in language and flavors and certainly adds richness to the culinary scene.
Dabakh Restaurant
4470 Refugee Rd
Columbus, OH 43232
(614) 626-4976
www.dabakhrestaurant.com
Be forewarned, website plays music.
Lunch menu items start at $7 dishes.
Dinner menu starts at $10 dishes
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