My first sight of ampesi, a meal featuring slices of boiled tuber, was at Florence's, a Ghanaian-Ivorian restaurant on Frederick Douglass Blvd. in West Harlem. At lunchtime the TV set, a boxy unit that rested on the counter, commonly showed old episodes of Law & Order, which were largely ignored by the cabbies, businessmen, and other customers engaged in often animated conversations that shifted freely between politics and finance, in English, French, and West African languages. All long gone — Florence's closed ten years ago.
These days, restaurant TV sets rarely take up precious countertop space. On a recent visit to The Point, on Webster Ave. in the Bronx, a wall-mounted screen played CNN, the default channel at many of New York's West African restaurants. My dining buddy and I tuned in instead to our ampesi, which was filled out by spinach and tomato sauces rich with stewed mackerel and goat. The word "ampesi" can refer either to the meal as a whole or to the slices of boiled tuber; ours, I'm reasonably confident, were yam (rather than cocoyam, let alone cassava or plantain). To eat ampesi, hold a slice in the fingers of your right hand, then spoon sauce atop it, or use the slice like a scoop and dig right in.
Also shown: a biteaway view of kaakoro, spicy plantain fritters, courtesy of the counterwoman; and a certificate of appreciation from the U.S. government. It gives thanks "for your support in raising awareness of and inviting participation in the 2010 Census. Your efforts to help achieve a complete and accurate census count have made a lasting impact on the nation." What outreach, do you imagine, has the Census Bureau planned for 2020?
The Point
2037 Webster Ave. (179th-180th Sts.), Fordham Heights, Bronx
347-270-1985
www.ThePointAfricanRestaurant.com
