Owner and chef Samantha Abrams’s decades-long dream of opening her very own Caribbean restaurant came to fruition last year with the splashy debut of Sapodilla’s, breathing soulful life into the Marion Barry Avenue stretch of historic Anacostia.
The Southeast
restaurant, named for the prized Caribbean fruit, led the charge for several more West Indies-loving spots that followed in D.C. (Realm, Isla, and most recently, Croix). The design and dish details nod to her native Guyana, the rainforest-dense country on the tip of South America’s North Atlantic coast, where she grew up before moving to the U.S. in 1993 with her parents and siblings.
“I’m very, very proud to be Guyanese. It has defined everything about me — how I learn, how I think, how I operate,” she tells Eater.
Everything — and she means everything — is made from scratch at Sapodilla’s. “There’s nothing that comes from a bottle,” she says.
What to order
- Briny Brussels sprouts ($18), a best seller since day one, are anything but boring. Here, the flash-fried order is tossed with fish sauce, garlic, and honey. Blanched tomatoes soaked in oil and herbs join the party in a bowl that’s finished with a zig-zag of cilantro crema.
- Slow-cooked goat curry ($35) served in a black pot is as tender as it gets. An accompanying stack of neatly folded roti is vegan and butter-free (unlike most versions of the flatbread), which makes for a non-greasy, bouncy vessel to scoop up the melt-in-your-mouth meat. No napkins or utensils required.
- A generous helping of slippery vegetable chow mein ($25) got me my pasta fix of the day. The stir-fried noodles are actually manufactured in Guyana, Abrams says.
- Guyanese-style fried rice also speaks to the country’s population of Chinese immigrants, served with the seared branzino entree ($38). The fish is jazzed up with ginger-tomato cream and perched on a big bed of sauteed spinach.
What to drink
Abrams, who fondly recalls collecting cherries falling from trees after rainstorms, is big on freshly made juices today. Whatever’s in season, from tart sorrel to antioxidant-rich hibiscus, makes its way into cocktails spiked with Jamaican, Haitian, and, of course, Guyanese rums like the 12-year El Dorado.
The look
It’s hard to miss the striking mural stretching up to the ceiling upon entry. The commissioned piece is a love letter to Guyana, showcasing the colors of its flag, the beautiful Blue Saki bird, the stately house her grandmother built, and Kaieteur Falls, which is the largest single-drop waterfall in the world. The upper level is covered with billowing tapestries that pay tribute to the garment factory her entrepreneurial parents owned back home.
The vibe
An upbeat soundtrack of mixes from D.C. native Marvin Gaye spills out into the street under its red-lit signage. On a recent weekday evening, a cozy corner nook was taken up by D.C. government employees kicking back after work.
Insider tip
On weekends, it’s hard to find a seat on the second floor that has its own bar. Happy hour runs all night on Fridays (normally 4 to 7 p.m.) with $12.15 bourbon mules and rum punches.
