A colorful mural of a West African beach stretches across the wall in Baku’s, located at 197 North Pleasant St. In the mural, three African women are depicted: The woman on the left holds a basin of water, the woman in the middle carries papaya and mango, and the woman on the right carries a large yam. A palm tree frames the picture while the bright teals and purples line the scenic ocean setting.

This painting doesn’t just depict the beautiful beaches in owner Pat Ononibaku’s home country. More importantly, it reflects the values and beauty present in the food of the African continent. A meal at Baku’s offers a window into Nigerian culture and an inside look at a local restaurant that has been in Amherst for years. The atmosphere inside Baku’s is much different than the frigid temperatures and mounds of snow that still line the streets of this New England college town.

Ononibaku, who likes to be called “Mrs. Pat,” noted that West African cuisine is not mainstream in America. With her strong background in business and catering, in 2005 Mrs. Pat opened Baku’s, the only restaurant in Hampshire County that serves Southern Nigerian cuisine, and introduced the college town to a new type of food.

 “People just don’t get up and say, ‘Oh I’m going to Baku’s African restaurant.’ Chinese and Italian and pizza have been around for a long time,” said Ononibaku.

So what exactly is Southern Nigerian and West African cuisine?

The food in West African culture combines rice, beans, and black-eyed peas with traditional meats and seafood. Mrs. Pat emphasized that dishes are flavorful from the use of cayenne pepper. Ononibaku puts the cayenne pepper spice on the side of each table to accommodate those who do not like spicy foods.

House specialties include jolloff rice, curry chicken, dodo, or plantains and foo foo, or pounded yam. These dishes reflect the traditional home cooking from Mrs. Pat’s background. Plantains and caramelized onions also serve as popular staples in West African cuisine.

“What people eat here is the real deal,” Ononibaku said. “The food is similar to what Americans call ‘street food.’ Food needs to come out natural the way it is supposed to. People are supposed to be able to recognize food.”

Mrs. Pat prepares everything in the restaurant from scratch. No canned foods or previously prepared ingredients make up dishes in the Nigerian culture. Items are gluten free, lactose free, and free of additional sugar and water. Ingredients at Baku’s do not come from a large distributor. She gets a lot of the fresh ingredients from ethnic and Spanish grocery stores in the area. The meat comes from Hatfield Beef and Ononibaku said she tries to buy produce from local farmers. Spices are purchased from Fair Trade vendors.

In addition to providing fresh food, Mrs. Pat hopes that her customers walk away learning something new. Opening this restaurant has allowed Ononibaku to become a resource not only for serving food but for involvement in the community as well. She sees herself as a mother to those who have worked for her.

“The restaurant has become something much larger than I had envisioned in a very positive way.”

Ononibaku travels to local public schools to give samples and educate about Baku’s. Mrs. Pat discussed how even professors from the five colleges in the area bring in their students and this has helped her become a prominent “resource for the community.” She also hires high school and college students who live in the Amherst area.

“I’m proud to say I have offered jobs to more than 50 kids since we opened nine years ago.”

She wants her patrons to see the beauty of African culture through the food she has to offer.

Prices at Baku’s are reasonable. Appetizers, small plates, and lunch specials range from $4.95 to $7.95. Entrees and house specialties start at $10.95 to $13.95.  Baku’s opens its doors from Monday through Thursday, 12 p.m. to 8 p.m., and Friday and Saturday, 12 p.m. to 9 p.m. There are also family meal specials starting at $29.95 for three people and $9 for each additional person.

Kaitlin Boyer can be reached at [email protected]