Irie Zulu

The Mister and I had been watching the reno at Irie Zulu for what seemed like forever — we used to live just around the corner. So we jumped at the chance to grab dinner with some friends recently and try something new.
The interior is really nicely done — you can’t tell this used to be an old bridal shop. It’s simple, clean and modern with little African and Jamaican touches, liked beaded napkin rings. As others have stated, the menu changes pretty drastically each day, so it gives you a chance to really branch out and try new things on every visit. They have seating for perhaps 30 people, and they’ve been popular right out of the gate (for good reason) so plan to get there early or wait a bit.
We started with hand pies and fritters — these change regularly according to what the chef has on hand. On our visit, the fritters were lentil, and tasted a but like falafel and were served with an incredible homemade chutney. Seriously, it looked like nothing much but was full of flavor, heat and spice. The hand pies are like empanadas and on our visit were fish. Not being a fish person I passed, but others liked them.
For entrees, I ordered chicken curry and also had the chance to sample the beef curry and the oxtail. Unfortunately, they brought out the wrong thing for me — the peanut version which I said was fine (didn’t want to wait and why not try a thing, right?) Personally, I found that the peanut flavor was overpowering and it was pretty bland and boring in comparison to the other dishes I sampled. The oxtail was a huge portion, really well cooked and just fell off the bones. It was a little spicy and a lot delicious — same with the beef curry. So I’d go that direction the next time.
On the drinks front, they have African Kingfisher beer which is crisp and refreshing and they do some craft cocktails with their homemade ginger and hibiscus juices. They’re on the sweeter side, but again the flavors are unique and delicious. Service was pretty good too — they are happy to explain what things are if you are unfamiliar (as I was). We talked with the owner, who is super passionate about cooking, flavor and great ingredients. We were discussing jerk and why it never tastes «right» here — she said it’s all about the pimento wood and she offered us some of their jerk marinade to try. The Mister loves jerk and downed quite the spoonful before realizing it’s VERY spicy in the best possible way.
As noted above, portions are very large. Prices are a bit higher than you might expect ($ 19−25/entrée) but the ingredient quality is high. Even though I thought my entrée was «meh» it’s pretty telling that I couldn’t leave without buying jars of their jerk paste and that incredible chutney to bring home. I can’t wait to head back for Jamaican night and try some more new things!

Great first impression!
This place is pretty popular right now, so expect a wait on the weekend, especially for groups larger than 2. We had about a 20 minute wait for 3 people, and shortly after sitting down a women who I assume is the owner came over and thanked us for coming in. I thought that was a nice touch.
The menu changes based on what’s in season, but the type of cuisine is always divided up into days of the week:
Tues & Wed: West Africa
Thurs: East & South Afr

I went back last night with a friend visiting from the U.P.
There were a few diners when we arrived and I knew another friend was on her way with friends for her birthday dinner. A half hour later or so, 4 more diners entered. The bottom line is that Tuesday nights are safe to avoid a busy restaurant, and it’s West African day at Irie Zulu, so a good option for you.
Anyway, we started with drinks. I ordered the Tusker lager beer from Kenya because I never had it before. It was served very cold. The texture was crisp and light, and the flavor was good. It would make for a great summer beer. My friend ordered the Reggae Girl Kiss cocktail, which I tried. It is PACKED with great flavors, but if you’re not a fan of sweet drinks, this one isn’t for you. It’s made with rum and ginger juice. I liked it a lot, again great for the summer.
For dinner, we ordered the Beignet Fritters and West African Hand Pies, veggie and beef, as appetizers and the Beef Suya and Tomato Beef Curry Stew for our entrees. We thought the Hand Pies were served as 2 veggie and 2 beef, but all were veggie, so we asked our server to bring out the beef hand pies. For your reference, the veggie hand pies are rectangular and the beef hand pies are triangular, so that’s how you can tell them apart.
The beignets were light and fluffy with a texture similar to a doughnut hole, and they were lightly sprinkled with powdered sugar. The pastry crust for the hand pies reminded me of the pastry used for pizza rolls. The veggie and beef were both great, but I think the veggie may have had slightly more flavors.
The Tomato Beef Curry stew was delicious, like the last time I had it, and it was served with a side of a Ghanan rice and bean combination, which was mostly rice, much to my delite.
The Afro Fusion Cuisine Beef Suya dish included very tender pieces of beef. The seasoning on the beef is a West African Suya spice and was very flavorful, but be advised that as you ate more of it, there was a heat that built on you, not overwhelming but it was there. In fact, I would say it was just the right amount of heat. It was served with a side of Yucca Fries (normally these would be Yam Fries) and a tomato and onion relish. The fries would have benefitted from seasoning, but I added the sauce form the Beef Curry Stew and that was a winning combination. I recommend asking for a dipping sauce for the fries, maybe the Joloff.
We had our fill and took leftovers with us, which I enjoyed for lunch today!
Music played off an on, sometimes louder, sometimes softer. I think the staff makes adjustments based on how many guests are dining and the overall noise level, since it is a small and cozy venue that may be sensitive to noise levels.
I was asked by another Unilocaler if the restaurant has highchairs for infants, and the answer is yes. I think it’s great to see parents encouraging their children to eat real foods instead of just pizza, burgers, and chicken tenders. This place would definitely put your kids on a foodie path.
Be sure to visit soon for dine-​in or carry-​out if you haven’t already because you are missing out!