Baobab Fare is the most celebrated newcomer to Detroit's food scene in years: a Burundian restaurant in New Center opened in 2021 by Hamissi Mamba and Nadia Nijimbere, refugees who arrived in Detroit in 2013. The menu is short — goat stew, beef stew, fish, plantains, ndizi — and exceptionally good. James Beard has nominated them as semifinalists multiple times.
The room is modest, the prices reasonable, the service warm. Order the Nyumbani plate to try several dishes, and don't skip the housemade hibiscus juice. Reservations recommended for dinner.