‘This Is Us’: Meski Honors Ethiopian and Dominican Cultures With A Groundbreaking Experience In SF

“What excites me the most is bringing Black culture back to San Francisco.”

By EatOkra

Just a day after Meski’s grand opening weekend, April 4-6, Chef Nelson German is feeling invigorated, but also tired as hell.

Even so, his excitement is palpable through the phone—just a day after the three-day whirlwind—as he speaks with EatOkra about the debut. He’s still coming down from the overwhelmingly positive reception of his newest restaurant, which feels just as personal as it does professional.

The San Francisco-based concept, Meski, for which German is part-owner and executive chef, is special in many ways. For one, it has a powerhouse team behind it: German’s business partners are four-time NBA champion and Golden State Warrior player Draymond Green and restaurateur Guma Fassil.

Then there’s what the partnership represents: Meski’s menu blends East African and Caribbean flavors seamlessly (something German says he’s never seen done before), showing love to both German’s Dominican heritage and Fassil’s Ethiopian roots. The name Meski drives things home, a tribute to Fassil’s mother.

“Meski was his mom's nickname,” says German. “She opened one of the first Ethiopian restaurants in the Bay Area, in Berkeley. She was a big pillar of the community and made a huge impact.”

German himself is no stranger to impactful work. His widely regarded restaurants Sobre Mesa and alaMar Kitchen & Bar are fixtures in the Oakland community. The Top Chef alum is deeply committed to preserving and progressing the Bay Area’s Black culinary world—an effort that now extends to San Francisco.

EatOkra caught up with German to discuss how he’s doubling down on his efforts through Meski, how the partnership first came to be, and what he hopes this one-of-a-kind Ethiopian Dominican concept catalyzes.

How did this business partnership emerge?

Chef Nelson German: Draymond, his wife [Hazel Renee] and Guma came to Sobre Mesa one night as we were just closing the kitchen hoping to order some food. Of course, I told them, “I got you, come in and make yourself at home.”

Guma had been thinking about [a restaurant concept] for the last few years. Originally it was going to be California cuisine through an Ethiopian lens. But after he and Draymond tasted my food, they got super inspired. It turned into this idea to mix Ethiopian and Afro-Latin cuisine. And consulting for them turned into a partnership. It just kind of made sense. This was even more impactful, because this is us.

What are some of the menu highlights?

Chef Nelson German: Definitely the chicken sambusas! Sambusas are Ethiopian, but the inside is very Dominican: Pollo Guisado is my favorite thing to ask my mom and grandma to cook for me every time I visit. I wanted to honor them with this Dominican touch. Those are definitely a best seller.

Another top one is the Tomahawk Steak. It’s huge—it can feed three to four people. It comes with this beautiful Caribbean salsa macha, pepper sauce, charred scallion and red onions. It kind of reminds me of my mom’s bistec encebollado. It's really fantastic.

What are you most excited about when it comes to Meski’s impact?

Chef Nelson German: I think one thing it’s doing is showcasing brotherhood. The way we’ve come together to really respect each other and the way we all grew up, which is so similar in many ways, is a really meaningful thing to experience. We're out here getting our hands dirty. And it really feels in unison.

We wanted Meski to be a place that's new and unique, and that can inspire other things to happen. We're really digging into the diaspora, showcasing who we are as people, because there’s so much to our culture and to our food. And I think we just have to keep innovating in order to get more respect.

In the last few days, people have been coming up to me saying, “I'm so proud of you; we’re so happy that you guys are here. This is something we always needed.” When I hear things like that, it fills my heart.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

Photos: Megan Latify Photography