Inglewood’s Popular Two Hommés Receives a Fresh African Californian Makeover
Two Hommés’ chefs recruited AfriCali author to turn a casual eatery into Inglewood’s hottest dining room
by Mona Holmes
Photography by Wonho Frank Lee
Dec 18, 2024 at 3:22 PM PST
Two Hommes dining room.| Wonho Frank Lee
Mona Holmes is an editor at Eater Southern California/Southwest, a regular contributor at KCRW radio, and a 2022 James Beard Award nominee.
Since its 2022 opening, Two Hommés’ chefs Abdoulaye Balde and Yaw Marcus Johnson dreamed of remodeling the dining room from its casual origins into one more harmonious with the menu. The owners knew that a fresh interior design was needed, but in 2024, the timing was finally right. They approached local designer and AfriCalicookbook author Kiano Moju to complete the task for their Inglewood restaurant with stunning results.
Two Hommés new dining room.Wonho Frank Lee
Before the remodel.Two Hommés
It’s an ideal match for Balde and Johnson’s modern West African-Californian restaurant with Moju, a Kenyan/Nigerian American born in California. Two Hommés built a solid customer base as a pandemic pop-up and quickly became established in the historically Black neighborhood on North La Brea and Centinela Avenues. It’s easy to see how they did it with jollof rice, honey- and berbere-flavored chicken bites, and root beer-braised short ribs with whipped yams.
Instead of redesigning the room right away, Balde and Johnson focused on perfecting the menu. Located within walking distance from 1010 Wine and Events, Emma Habesha Restaurant, and the always-popular Sunday Gravy, Two Hommés rounds out one of Inglewood’s busiest dining corridors. While saving up and prepping for the redesign, they met with a few contractors before approaching Moju in March. “No one gave us the energy that made us want to work with them,” says Johnson. “The mockups they sent — no one could execute the vision how we saw it. But once [Kiano] came in, the vision aligned.”
Lamb and white bean hummus with Senegalese yassa sauce and flatbread.Wonho Frank Lee
Moju’s Jikoni Studios collaborated with her partner Sage deLisser’s sustainable design firm Zōxa to complete the task. She produced the new interior for Two Hommés while putting the finishing touches on her book AfriCali: Recipes From My Jikoni, which was published in August. Moju and deLisser did most of the planning and building before the chefs temporarily closed Two Hommés in the fall.
“I’m so obsessed with what they’re doing and glad a restaurant like them exists,” says Moju. “They call themselves an Afrocentric eatery, but they are part of the AfriCali family. We figured out how to bring California essence with intentional African touches that fit with Two Hommés.”
Those familiar with Two Hommés will likely perform a double-take when entering the room. It took only nine days to remove the black paint, red barstools, and mainly four-top tables with bright walls, West African art and pillows, imported light fixtures from Ghana, custom banquette seating and shelves filled with knickknacks. The fully reconfigured room just feels more relaxed. Diners can try the new menu items like the grilled Chilean seabass with a cannellini and collard green stew, thyme coconut cream, and seafood broth. Other new items include Johnson and Balde’s lamb white bean hummus with Senegalese yassa sauce and flatbread.
New cocktails from left to right: mango Margarita, Mezcalifornia, blackberry Margarita, and Sobolo Spritz.Wonho Frank Lee
Timing is everything since Two Hommés recently won a liquor license lottery permit allowing them to serve full cocktails beyond its current beer and wine selections. As a result, they’re making a concoction called Young Fashion, a fresh take on the classic Old Fashioned, as well as multiple types of margaritas, including mango, blackberry, and one called the Mezcalifornia with Espadin mezcal, cucumber juice, and grapefruit syrup. The Sobolo Spritz is made with gin, hibiscus, pineapple, and sparkling rosé.
Since 2020, Los Angeles’s pop-up to permanent restaurant pipeline has produced some notable stars, including El Sereno’s Evil Cooks, Highland Park’s Amiga Amore, and Altadena’s Side Pie, the latter of which will revamp its interior in 2025. Though no longer a pop-up, Two Hommés’ new dining room has codified it in this lineup.
“Our goal with design was: can this be the date night spot in Inglewood?” asks Moju. “To make this where you can have a nice time that’s not too fancy in such a community space that people can feel proud to be in.”
Two Hommés is open Thursday through Saturday from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m., with Sunday brunch from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at 902 N. La Brea Avenue, Inglewood, CA, 90302.
Chefs Abdoulaye Balde and Yaw Marcus Yaw Johnson.Wonho Frank Lee
South wall.Wonho Frank Lee
Custom banquette seating and imported fabrics.Wonho Frank Lee
Custom bar with tiles.Wonho Frank Lee
Entry.Wonho Frank Lee
Honey berbere chicken bites.Wonho Frank Lee
Jollof rice platter with shrimp, spiced black beans, arugula, and plantain.Wonho Frank Lee
Grilled Chilean seabass with a cannellini and collard green stew, thyme coconut cream, and seafood broth.Wonho Frank Lee
Root beer braised short rib over whipped yams.Wonho Frank Lee
Full spread.Wonho Frank Lee
Wonho Frank Lee
RELATED
- 902 North La Brea Avenue, CA 90302
- (424) 227-6266
- http://twohommes.com/
Before sitting at Inglewood’s Two Hommés, take a moment to enjoy the neighborhood. The area surrounding Centinela and North La Brea Avenue brims with compelling restaurants and cafes, from Sunday Gravy and Kuku Cafe to Buna Coffee and 1010 Wines. Many Angelenos have lived here for generations, contributing to a close-knit community that is eager to support restaurants in the neighborhood. Two Hommés owners and chefs Abdoulaye Balde and Yaw Marcus Johnson built their following brick by brick, first as a pandemic pop-up that added a California lens to West African food before opening a permanent restaurant in 2023. The chefs took things slow, perfecting their sticky and vibrantly spiced honey chicken berbere bites; root beer-braised short ribs with whipped yams; and jollof rice, which can be topped with herby lamb chops, branzino, or barbecue jerk cauliflower. (The latter is deeply soulful and packs a slight heat.) As a bonus, the dining room got a modern refresh during the fall, making it an ideal place to order Two Hommés’ innovative dishes and the cooling Mezcalifornia cocktail made with Espadin mezcal, cucumber juice, and grapefruit syrup. Mona Holmes, editor, Eater Southern California/Southwest
