Dibi at Teranga

^{Photo: JOEL VEAK}

Everybody has a friend who's a dedicated food nerd (a term I much prefer to the infantile-sounding "foodie"): the person who races to every new restaurant minutes after it opens, subscribes to Gastronomica, and plans vacations around eating opportunities. My circle includes many folks who fit this description, but despite my raves (and the 2009 STUFF Dining Award I gave it for Most Welcome Debut), few of them have been to Teranga (1746 Washington Street, Boston, 617.266.0003). Maybe it's because we're mostly unfamiliar with African cuisines. We have a handful of restaurants from North Africa (Algerian, Moroccan, Tunisian, Egyptian) and the Horn (Eritrean, Ethiopian, Somali), but nearly nothing from West Africa. Who knows anything about Senegalese food?

As it happens, the cuisine of Senegal draws not just from native Wolof traditions but also strongly from nearby Morocco and the European colonial powers that once held sway in the country, including Portugal and especially France, which also introduced Vietnamese motifs. So its exoticism is cushioned by very familiar elements. Accara ($6), black-eyed pea fritters, sound unusual but aren't far from falafel. Nems ($7) is a likely a new word to you, but the dish is instantly recognizable as a close cousin of Vietnamese fried spring rolls. You might struggle to pronounce thiou guinaar ($12), but you'd realize this lunchtime stew of herb-marinated chicken, tomatoes, and vegetables would be at home in a country French kitchen but for the accompanying jasmine rice. At once beautiful, skillfully prepared, and comforting, dibi ($17) features thin-sliced, marinated, and grilled lamb shoulder chops drizzled with pan gravy, dolloped with a creamy, mustard-tinged onion sauté, and crowned with a pile of crisp sweet-potato fries and baby arugula.

Wines are thoughtfully chosen and affordably priced, like the 2008 William Fèvre Chablis Champs Royaux ($34), an unoaked Chardonnay that beguiles with alternating impressions of tart apple, lemon, and flint. Yet as much as with its food and wine, Teranga charms with its setting, a dimly lit, intimate South End room with a glowing view of Washington Street and Mass Ave, comfortable banquette seating, a cozy bar, and brick walls hung with oil paintings. The relaxed service and gentle pacing make it easy to stretch dinner over a couple of hours: this place is built for lingering and savoring, not grabbing a quick bite. Teranga's easygoing hospitality and soulful food ought to make Bostonians as comfortable with Senegalese fare as they'd be in the home of a friend who's a particularly gifted cook.