Le Nouveau Maquis, the Togolese mother and daughter kitchen that first squeezed into a tiny market counter on Memorial Drive, has quietly turned into a two-stop operation in DeKalb County, now including a larger and more polished address in Tucker. Diners find a pan West African menu, walls packed with African memorabilia, and a soundtrack that slides between afrobeats and highlife. For Metro Atlanta, the expansion is one more sign that immigrant run kitchens are steadily redrawing the region’s dining map.
In a feature published March 18, 2026, The Atlanta Voice profiles owner chef Fabiola Agbale, who says, “I want to see the people that I’m serving.” The story notes that she and her mother now oversee locations in Stone Mountain and Tucker and that they hope to eventually open several more Le Nouveau Maquis spots across Georgia, the DMV, and Africa. The piece frames the restaurants as neighborhood maquis, communal hangouts built around familiar recipes and shared plates.
From market stall to full storefronts
What started as a roughly 10 seat counter tucked inside an African grocery evolved into a stand alone Memorial Drive storefront that opened in 2020, according to community reporting. 285 South/Canopy Atlanta detailed how Fanta and Fabiola pieced together the décor themselves and leaned on local African markets for ingredients. The restaurant’s official site now lists both the Stone Mountain and Tucker addresses along with a full menu, a tidy summary of how far the business has come since those early market days (Le Nouveau Maquis).
What to order
The menu roams across West Africa: egusi soup, beef suya, Senegalese thieboudienne and chicken yassa, Ghana’s waakye, and Côte d’Ivoire’s attiéké all make appearances. Eater Atlanta highlights many of these same dishes when surveying the city’s West African standouts, and delivery listings show egusi and beef suya as some of the most ordered items on platforms like Uber Eats. Reviewers consistently call out the generous portions and steady seasoning, which helps the restaurant pull double duty for both dine in regulars and takeout loyalists.
Tucker is a 'next step' for the brand
The Tucker outpost at 4073 Lavista Rd., Suite 369 represents Le Nouveau Maquis’ move into a higher capacity space, complete with an all you can eat grand opening on Feb. 22, according to earlier coverage. The Atlanta Voice reported on the launch and lists the regular hours, while the owners say the larger dining room finally lets them host bigger groups without losing the homey service that regulars expect. The room reads as an elevated spin on the Memorial Drive original, but it still centers the same recipes and hospitality.
As Le Nouveau Maquis grows, it is part of a broader wave of African run businesses turning Memorial Drive and other DeKalb corridors into cultural and culinary hubs, a trend local outlets have been tracking for years. 285 South/Canopy Atlanta and Eater Atlanta both chronicle how immigrant entrepreneurs transform modest corner counters into destination kitchens. For now, Fanta and Fabiola say they are focused on serving their neighborhoods well, even as talk of additional locations stays very much in the mix.
