Egusi At Kuramo In Columbia

Egusi at Kuramo

We hit up the Nigerian food at Kuramo in Columbia, and I'm a fan of our first table of food.

Kuramo is a new restaurant in the Long Reach village center, offering up a short menu of Nigerian, Caribbean, and American food.  We asked for advice, and we ended up with egusi -- a spicy stew of spinach and ground melon seed served with a very cool alternative to rice.

It's pounded yam.  It looks like pizza dough, but it's more like mashed potatoes with a slightly firmer texture.  You pull off a piece of yam, and you scoop it to pick up the stew.  It's mild, but delicious.  The stew comes topped with a sauce and a choice of fish, beef or chicken.

It's delicious.  The stew is rich and spicy.  The ground melon seed looks more like ground chicken or tofu.  The meats were all good, although I liked the white meat chicken best.  The yam is filling and mild.  Pieces pull off easily, but it's a stretchy, smooth texture that feels simultaneously exotic and like comfort food.

Kuramo is a pretty big space with wooden benches and almost an island vibe.  It was pretty empty on a weeknight, but our waitress was friendly and chatted us up with advice.  She recommended the egusi.  She talked us through everything.  We ordered chicken curry as well.  It was another big stew, good but not as interesting as the egusi.  It came with fried plantains, which were halfway between the types that I'm used to eating.  They're sweeter than Cuban tostones, but not as soft and sweet as maduros.

Next time, I want to try to okro, a stew based on okra instead of spinach.  There are several stews along with rice dishes as well.  Anyone else have suggestions for eating at Kuramo or at Nigerian places in general?

Kuramo Restaurant

8775 Cloudleap Ct.

Columbia, MD 21045

443-542-9689

NEAR: This is in the Long Reach Village Center -- north of Rte 175 off Tamar Drive.  The supermarket there is Family Market, which has nice vegetables, Korean food, and lots of Latin items as well.  There is also a nice takeout fried chicken place called Chick N' Friends.

Did Kuramo Restaurant Open In Columbia?

Does anyone know if Kuramo International opened in the Long Reach village center in Columbia?

There had been talk that the new restaurant would open on March 9.  I'm looking forward to trying a menu that promises breakfast, Peruvian chicken, Nigerian food and all kinds of flavors ranging from Latin America to Africa to the Caribbean.

I shopped at Family Market today, and Kuramo was locked in the middle of the afternoon.  Anyone have early reviews?  (Update: Publius comments below that Kuramo's Web site says they're closed on Mondays.)

Is The New Kuramo Restaurant Opening In March?

I wrote three weeks ago about the Kuramo restaurant -- its sign promising a Columbia location and its Web site promising Caribbean-Nigerian food.

Last night, someone left a comment saying that he is the owner behind the project and saying that they'll open on March 9.  I was at Family Market this weekend and noticed that the giant sign had been taken out of the window.  There were people working inside.

The comment is signed by Orlando Morozov.  You shouldn't take a blog as truth, but it seems like a weird prank if it wasn't written by a guy trying to open a restaurant there.  Anyone know more?

New African-Caribbean Restaurant In Columbia: Nigerian Food, B'fast, BBQ, Sounds Interesting

New Kuramo restaurant in Columbia

It looks like a new African-Caribbean restaurant is coming to the Long Reach village center in Columbia.

There is a sign in the window advertising the Kuramo African-Caribbean restaurant.  I nosed around the Web, and I found a site that says Kuramo will offer a broad menu -- with a bunch of Nigerian dishes.  The menu on that site talks about pepper soup, efo, jollof rice, and more.

Look through the window

The site seems half-made, which makes sense for a half-built restaurant, but the photos look delicious if they're really dishes that this restaurant will serve.  They certainly look like nothing else that I have seen around here.

(Update:  People say this sign has been on that restaurant for more than a year.  That's a bummer.  I don't know the situation.  Anyone know if this will happen?)

Kuramo fills the spot that used to be the Dog House Pub & Grill.  There is a sign in another window for Os, which says "breakfast, barbeque & more."  That may be connected with a place with a similar name in Baltimore.  A broad menu with some comfort barbecue and some unique Nigerian food?  This could be good.

Anyone know details?  Background of the places?  Timeline to open?  Looking through the window, there was clearly work still to be done.  But it looks like a restaurant, not a construction site.  Are we close?

Thanks to Jesse for the tip.  David Greisman had previously reported that a Caribbean restaurant was coming to Long Reach.  Wouldn't a profile of the new owners be a great story idea?  Nigerian food in Columbia?  When are they opening, David?  When?


Kuramo Restaurant
8775 Cloudleap Court 
Columbia, MD 21045
443-570-9724

NEAR:  This is in the Long Reach Village Center -- north of Rte 175 off Tamar Drive.   There is a new supermarket coming to Long Reach called Family Market.  There is also a nice takeout fried chicken place called Chick N' Friends.