Hoyo's Kitchen wants to make Somali food mainstream
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A mango chicken bowl from Hoyo's with a popular sambusa pastry. Photo: Alissa Widman Neese/Axios
Columbus has the second-largest Somali population in the U.S., so it's no surprise we're also a hotspot for authentic Somali cuisine.
Dining the news: Hoyo's Kitchen is working to bring it mainstream with approachable, fast-casual build-your-own bowls.
- One sign of success: A recent shoutout from actor Will Poulter.
Catch up quick: Brothers Abdilahi and Mohamed Hassan and their mother Hayat Dalmar opened the first Hoyo's on the Northeast Side in 2014, inspired by her lavish meals.
- "Hoyo" means "mother" in Somali.
- Today, they operate out of the downtown and Dublin North Markets.
The intrigue: Somalia's cuisine blends flavors from India, East Africa, Italy and the Middle East, due to its location and centuries of trade and colonialism.
What I ate: A mango chicken bowl with Somali-spiced rice ($18) and a ground beef sambusa ($4). They're two must-order items, per the restaurant.
- I topped the bowl with warm chickpeas and lentils, plus lettuce, cucumber and tomato. The cold veggies complemented the warm, aromatic spices — flavorful and mild, not spicy-hot.
- Sambusas are flaky, filled, deep-fried triangular pastries, similar to Indian samosas.
😋 My thought bubble: In a 2017 WOSU story, Abdilahi joked that sambusas are a "gateway drug" into Somali food.
- He's 100% right. I came for the bowl, but I'll keep coming back for those.
Stop by: Downtown hours. Dublin hours. Menu.