(Left to right) Shito spicy crab rice at Bintü Atelier, a West African restaurant that opened last summer in the Eastside; Equal parts rich and spicy, the soft-shell crab rice at Bintü Atelier is perfectly balanced.
Bintü Atelier
While Charlestonians may recognize some of the dishes at Bintü Atelier—red rice, for instance, is a Gullah Geechee staple rooted in West African foodways—the vibe of this inviting Eastside spot is a new one for us. The familiar but fresh feel reflects the journey of owner Bintou N’Daw, a Senegalese chef who made her way to the Lowcountry via New York City, where she and her mother founded Nafis, a line of African sauces and condiments, in 2015. N’Daw came south to work in the kitchen at Chez Nous for a year, but couldn’t bring herself to leave. “I fell in love with Charleston,” she told Charleston magazine last year. “It has a similarly strategic port, similar architecture, and the streets and the way the houses are built are so much like [my home city] Saint-Louis island.”
After a local search for African food came up dry, N’Daw and her husband, Tracy Young, opened Bintü last August. The chef offers Senegalese standbys like thiéboudieun (red rice) with fish and mafé—a peanut stew made with chicken or mushrooms—and has plans to rotate dishes from other African regions on the menu.
Tucked into the largely residential Line Street with half of its seating in a tented patio, the restaurant feels at once straight out of West Africa or the Caribbean and organic to the neighborhood. Inside the bright yellow cube of a building, reggae emanates from the turntable, while diners share crab rice and grilled chicken wings washed down with sorrel (hibiscus) tea and house-made soursop-pineapple juice.
Adventurous eaters can easily over order here—on a recent visit, two tables took their entrées to go after filling up on the toothsome curry turnovers (portions are generous, to say the least). But no worries, the savory lamb yassa is even better the next day. And don’t forget to ask for some of the makes-everything-better house hot sauce made with habanero and ‘Carolina Reaper’ chiles.
8-D Line St. bintuatelier.com
More Worldly Bites
Caribbean Delight
This Rivers Avenue spot has been comforting homesick Jamaicans with its jerk pork, oxtail, and roasted breadfruit since 2016.
3309 Rivers Ave., North Charleston caribbeandelightsc.com
Okán Bluffton
Chef Bernard Bennett opened his brick-and-mortar temple to West African and Caribbean cuisine in Bluffton last year but still does the occasional pop-up in Charleston.
71 Calhoun St., Bluffton @okanbluffton
Reggae Grill
You can’t go wrong with the daily special here, such as the curried goat and turkey wings with rice and peas.
4226 Rivers Ave., North Charleston jamaicangrillsc.com
Taste of the Islands
Jamaican ex-pats say this is the place to order ackee (a kind of fruit) and saltfish, the country’s national dish.
630-A Skylark Dr., West Ashley facebook.com/tasteoftheislandsllc/
Images by (fabric) G.Ozenne & illustration (leaf) Naticka Circle & courtesy of (sancocho) Okán Bluffton
