‘Nothing like it’: Okan serving up West African-inspired cuisine in Old Town Bluffton

A nationally recognized chef plus a prime location in Old Town Bluffton are adding up to the newest sensation on the Bluffton restaurant scene.

Okan opened June 22 in The Bridge Collective at the intersection of Calhoun Street and Bridge Street. Helmed by chef Bernard Bennett, a James Beard Foundation semifinalist, and business partners Matt Cunningham and Benjamin Carson, the restaurant offers African-inspired dishes that don’t typically grace Lowcountry menus.

“There’s nothing like it,” Cunningham said.

In fact, the menu at Okan includes a glossary for those unfamiliar with the cuisine. Still, the hope is that diners will be able to see the influences African culture and the slave trade have had on local foods.

“Rice is a big part of the story that we’re trying to tell,” Bennett told The Island Packet. “Rice was a cash crop, definitely during the slave trade. … Jollof rice, in my opinion, is the mother rice of several dishes — tomato-based dishes. Think of dishes like jambalaya, red rice, paella, all have this influence from jollof rice.”

Other menu offerings include bara, a flatbread popular in Trinidad, served with mango chutney; a fonio pilaf bowl made with a traditional West African grain; and obe ata potatoes inspired by a Nigerian red pepper stew.

Main courses like jerk goat served with carrots, duck and oyster gumbo, or cashew curry with lobster tails and pumpkin dumplings are fragrant and flavorful tributes to communal “hearth” cooking over a fire.

There are multiple vegetarian and vegan options as well, such as a hearty ital stew made with coconut milk and vegetables, or djon djon noodles, a Haitian dish that includes several different types of mushrooms.

Entree prices are generally in the $30-40 range, while shareable appetizers and sides are between $10 and $15. The restaurant has a bar with a menu of specialty cocktails, wine and beer.

‘It’s been packed’

While reservations aren’t required at Okan, they are highly recommended, Cunningham said. On Wednesday, which marked a week since the restaurant’s opening, there were 77 reservations on the books.

“It’s been packed,” Cunningham said. “The response from the community has been overwhelmingly positive.”

“I’m personally happily surprised that, even though we’ve just gotten started, we have already been seeing a lot of repeat guests,” said Carson.

Both men said it has been gratifying to be thanked for bringing a different kind of restaurant to Bluffton.

“An overwhelming response has been an excitement to have something new that pushes the boundaries and norms for cuisine and cocktails in the area,” Carson said.

Bennett grew up and went to school in Michigan but was working in Chicago during the pandemic when the restaurant industry took a hard hit, especially in the northern winter’s cold when it wasn’t comfortable for diners to sit outside. He made the decision to relocate to Bluffton because he had family here.

Okan, which means “heart and soul” in the Yoruba language of West Africa, is the culmination of a dream several years in the making. It started as a food truck last fall while plans were being laid and construction completed.

The food truck, which has been a popular addition to the Bluffton Farmers Market in Old Town and Starland Yard in Savannah, among other locations, is expected to return to a consistent schedule once the restaurant team is at full capacity.

In addition to Okan, The Bridge Collective is home to J Parker, a luxury apparel brand, and En Dentelle, a lingerie shop. Businesses yet to open include Fiddle and Shine, which sells home goods; a Bluffton Candles gift shop; and Collab, a clothing boutique. The development also includes 11 apartments, a mix of unfurnished long-term rentals, furnished short-term rentals and Airbnbs.

At a glance

What: Okan

Where: 71 Calhoun St, Suite 100, Bluffton

When: 5 to 10 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday; 5 to 9 p.m. Sunday; hours will be expanded

Phone: 843-949-3002

Website: okanbluffton.com

Facebook: facebook.com/okanbluffton

Instagram: instagram.com/okanbluffton