We each had hovered over our computer at 12 pm, 28 days before we wanted a reservation at Tatiana, Kwame Onwuachi’s hot new restaurant at Lincoln Center inside David Geffen Hall.

No luck.

Instead, we met outside the restaurant, hoping to get one of the six bar seats. Four people were already ahead when we arrived just after 4 pm. Lucky us. At 5, we were seated at a table and instructed they needed it by 7 pm.

Kwame’s is a small 64-seat restaurant—named after his culinary muse, his sister—that takes inspiration from his diverse background.

We tried their fancy Jell-O shots, followed by margies. I had their spicy one with Mijenta tequila and Aji Amarillo pepper paste; my dining partner ordered Don Julio reposado with fresh lime juice and agave.

Teo, our waiter, brought each order as ready. The egusi dumplings filled with Jonah crab, Nigerian red stew and pickled pear onions ($21 for 3) were our first small plate and my least favorite. I would have liked more crab.

Oddly, Neo apologized for the kitchen not having the M’semen to accompany the black bean hummus, then brought us that traditional flatbread ($26) with that small plate with Berbere spiced lamb and pickled sultana raisins.

The piri piri salad ($26) of fresh Persian cucumber, grapes and crispy quinoa is refreshing. Sadly we didn’t get to finish it as Neo scurried away with our half-uneaten salad, explaining that he needed room for our seafood boil ($120), only to discover the kitchen had given it to someone else.

To make up for that, he brought what ended up being my favorite small plate, the curred goat patties ($26 for 3). I’d return just for that spiced, tender meat inside the flaky pastry with the curry-spiced mango chutney.

The seafood boil did fill most of the table. There’s one large vessel atop a stand with another deep one inside. The smaller one came filled with three head-on prawns, large sea scallops, chunks of salted cod, purple potatoes and sliced andouille in spiced butter. , Razor clams garnished the rim, and a plate of toasted buttered sourdough bread accompanied the feast.

We had no room to sample dessert.

I’d recommend a try if you’re heading to Lincoln Center.

Tatiana
(Inside David Geffen Hall)
10 Lincoln Center Plaza
New York, NY 10023
(212) 875-5222
tatiananyc.com