Chefs at Bolat immerse diners in West African culture via savory stews and tropical ingredients served at a slick black-and-red café. A mild dough known as fufu accompanies most dishes to balance spiciness and scoop up morsels of wisdom hidden under ingredients such as tilapia, plantain, or goat. Provided in place of silverware, rounds of fufu are meant to be pulled apart and remolded into small discs that can, like chopsticks or dining pliers, pinch bites of food and deliver them to the mouth's main opening. Bolat's table minders provide diners with sudsy bowls of water to rinse fingers between plates, elevating the authenticity of the West African dining experience.
