With Dōgon, Kwame Onwuachi Sets His Sights on the Stars

The opening comes eight years after Onwuachi opened his first restaurant in D.C., the short-lived Shaw Bijou. Since then, his culinary star has continued to rise: He opened (and later closed) Afro-Caribbean restaurant Kith/Kin at the Wharf, authored a memoir, opened the lauded Tatiana in New York, and racked up numerous accolades, including a James Beard Award.

Onwuachi brings more experience and a new perspective to this latest endeavor at the Salamander hotel, but he hasn’t forgotten his roots or the culinary favorites he’s known for. As he settles back in to D.C., we spoke to Onwuachi about his evolution as a chef, the lessons he’s learned, and the stories he’s trying to tell with Dōgon.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

How does it feel to come back to the community where you opened your first restaurant?

Kwame Onwuachi: It feels great. D.C. has always been like a second home to me. I spent half a decade here opening restaurants; I spent my childhood summers here with my family that lives in D.C., so it feels really good to be back in the city.

The city seems excited to have you back. Why did you feel like this year and this restaurant were the right moment for you to return?

We’ve been working on this for like three years, so I’m just glad it finally happened. There’s not a bad moment to come back to D.C. That was always the plan.

Still, it’s been a few years and you’ve had an amazing journey in New York. How have you changed as a chef and restaurateur since you left D.C.?

I’ve gotten older. I just do things different — I cook different and I’ve had different life experience. More experience managing restaurants. So I think overall, just because of my experiences, I have changed, but at the same time, I also still feel I’m the same person that I was years ago. I think it’s always good to stay true to yourself, but you can’t grow without changing.

How does this newest restaurant represent that growth?

It’s a new space, a new story that I’m telling: honoring Banneker and the Dogon tribe, and the cultures that make D.C. what it is. It’s always nice and refreshing to do something that’s really, really intentional. I think that’s the great thing about restaurants: You’re able to continue to tell different stories with each opening.

If each restaurant is different, what are you doing differently this time around? At the same time, what have you kept constant through every place you’ve opened?

The constant, I’ll start there, is definitely seeing through the lens of my culture: West African, Caribbean, and Creole influences in the food. So you’ll see those nods throughout. But with this restaurant, I’m also highlighting other cultures: Ethiopian, Salvadoran, true African American culture, with the greens and the cornbread. So, just really trying to tell the story of all the cultures that make D.C. special.

How does Dōgon tell that story, and how does it merge your own heritage with that of D.C.’s?

I tell that story through the dishes — we have a dish called H Street chicken, and it’s Berbere-roasted chicken with a lentil sauce and jollof rice with a fresh herb salad, so that’s the Ethiopian culture in D.C. We have this chile crab dish with a shito crunch and an aji verde, like a nod to the Peruvian places in D.C. There’s little influences throughout, still with a cohesive menu.

Does it feel familiar to be back? What do you think has changed about the D.C. restaurant community since you were last cooking here?

It feels familiar to me. I’m definitely more of a head-down person, so I’m just working all the time. And it definitely feels familiar, I don’t think it’s really skipped a beat at all. I think if anything, there are more restaurants that I’m excited to try out. I need to get out first — maybe when things settle down a little bit I’ll be able to go outside.

When you were choosing your team for the new restaurant, what were you looking for, and how would you describe the team you’ve assembled?

I was looking for like-minded individuals that wanted to do something special and really tell a story in a way that it hasn’t been told before in D.C. Some people came from my old restaurant, Kith/Kin. We have Martel [Stone], who’s the chef de cuisine; he was the executive sous chef at Kith/Kin. It was great to get the band back together, but also meet some new people. And then to partner with Salamander — I have a really great relationship with Sheila [Johnson, Salamander Collection’s CEO], so to have that support is really paramount to our success.

Which dishes do you think will diners recognize as your familiar signatures?

I let guests decide the signatures, but there are things that have followed me throughout my career. The piri piri salad is done in a different way, Mom Duke’s shrimp is done in a different way. The rum cake. So you’ll see a couple things here and there, but also it’s a totally new menu.

Is there something really surprising, something that people might not expect?

No, I mean, the focus is to have a really good time. I think that the room is good, the design is incredible — [Modellus Novus] did an incredible job designing the restaurant — the music is always important to me. So, I just think that they’re going to feel welcomed. And for me, for my restaurants, if a group of people are able to see themselves on a plate and celebrate a culture while celebrating a special experience, I’m excited for that.

Thinking about the concept as a whole, everything from the food and drink to the space, what aspects are you the proudest of?

Honestly, the team that we have built. I’m really, really proud of that. Everybody can cook, I’m sure you could make a dish and it’s really, really great, but assembling a group of people that are excited to be somewhere, that’s one of the most special moments of opening a restaurant.

Looking back at your experiences, what’s the most important piece of advice you would give to a young chef opening a restaurant?

Make sure you have your finances in order is probably the most important thing; that you have enough working capital to get through. It’s very, very thin margins, so just make sure you’re prepared for that. Also try to trust your team and let go and let them shine and lead and create. I think that’s really, really important.

Now that Dōgon is open, what are your hopes for the restaurant? How are you seeing it play out so far?

It’s funny, my team asked that. They were like, “Okay, what are we going for? Are we going for Michelin?” I was like, we’re just trying to look good in the mirror at the end of the day. I want to be able to look at this restaurant and say we did an amazing job. And that’s been the case for every restaurant that I’ve opened. I think at that point, it doesn’t really matter what happens or not. Are the guests happy? Are we creating memorable experiences for people? And do we feel proud of what we do? I just want to look good in the mirror.

Lani Furbank is a writer based outside of Washington, D.C. Her work has been featured in the Washington Post, CNN, BuzzFeed, Eater, Edible, Michelin.com, Thrillist, and Time Out. Follow her on Instagram. Follow Resy, too.