"Essence" x ChopnBlok
ChòpnBlọk Is Culinary Heritage Reimagined
By Shelby Stewart
View the Article on Essence Here
The fast-casual West African restaurant in Houston’s Montrose neighborhood, brings West African flavors to the forefront.
It’s no coincidence that Houston’s beloved West African fast-casual eatery, ChòpnBlọk, is opening just in time for Nigerian Independence Day—an intentional move by owner Ope Amosu. The new standalone restaurant is the realization of a collection of ideas that have come to fruition. ChòpnBlọk began as a pop-up and later found a home in Houston’s Post Market. Today, the restaurant has expanded into its own dedicated space, continuing its mission to bring West African flavors to the masses.
It makes sense considering that Houston is home to the largest Nigerian population outside of Nigeria. The population has formed a strong community, with established neighborhoods throughout the south west area of the city, where Nigerian culture thrives. It’s where Amosu, a 2024 James Beard Award Semifinalist for Emerging Chef, grew up.
As a child, sitting around the dinner table was where Ope Amosu and his family bonded over meals—a tradition that left a lasting impression on him, even if he didn’t realize it at the time. That sense of connection, community, and fellowship would eventually inspire the creation of ChòpnBlọk.
Even before launching his restaurant, Amosu’s connection to food was undeniable. In grade school, he recalls mixing mayonnaise, ketchup, and mustard in the cafeteria, dubbing the creation ‘Ope Sauce.’ By high school, his entrepreneurial spirit kicked in as he baked and sold Otis Spunkmeyer cookies to his classmates. Nonetheless, he’d take that ingenuity and put it into academia. Raised by African parents, Amosu opted for a more traditional route in school, earning degrees in business and entrepreneurship, working his way up into the oil and gas industry.
Until one day, it changed.
“When I had the idea in 2017, my parents were the first people I called. I was actually at a work conference. On my way to the conference, I saw a sign for an Italian street kitchen, and that’s when I was like, ‘I’m going to do this,’” Amosu tells ESSENCE. “I get to the work conference, and I can’t pay attention to anything they’re talking about. I’m looking stuff up, and I started seeing all these modern renditions of our traditional cuisine that different food bloggers were putting together. So when the conference was on break, I called my parents, [and asked them] ‘What are your thoughts on seeing people doing these, like adaptations of our food?’ And they thought it was an amazing idea. They didn’t realize that I was asking for myself.”
As time went by, he confessed to his parents that he was going to go into the restaurant business. While his parents’ response to this success of the restaurant is much different now, Amosu laughably recalls them saying, “You went to grad school at Rice, not to be cooking rice!”
ChòpnBlọk pays homage to Amosu’s heritage in a myriad of ways, starting with the name itself. Amosu wanted the name of his restaurant to reflect the culture, while also being broad enough to appeal to all, without confining it to a narrow perception of African cuisine. He was inspired during a road trip with his wife, driving from Austin to Dallas where they passed a sign advertising “fresh meat off the chopping block.” The phrase stuck with him, not only because of its connection to West African outdoor cooking traditions, but also due to its deeper meaning. In West Africa, “chop” means “to eat” in Pidgin English, so “ChòpnBlọk” became the perfect way to represent a welcoming place to enjoy great food, while paying homage to his roots.
Amosu envisions ChòpnBlọk as more than just a restaurant—it’s a mission-based business built on three key pillars. First, the stores themselves, which he views as community centers where people can gather and connect daily. Second, is community engagement, supported by programs aimed at fostering deeper connections. Lastly, there’s a storytelling pillar that shines a light on individuals advancing the community. To amplify this, they’re launching a digital platform called “Smallchops,” featuring snackable stories that extend the ChòpnBlọk experience beyond the restaurant and engage audiences on social media.
“Here where we’re located, is part of the historic Freedmen’s Town. It’s also a really important component to us, because it is really like continuing to celebrate our Black heritage and who we are as Black community in spaces where it doesn’t really get recognized as much,”Amosu points out. The restaurant’s new digs are located in Houston’s Fourth Ward, a vibrant area steeped in history and culture, a testament to the resilience and creativity of the Black community that has thrived here for generations.