La Kribienne is a restaurant specialising in grilled fish whose name turns heads on the beaches of Cotonou. A meeting place for lovers of Kribi’s culinary delights, it attracts Cameroonians, Europeans, Beninese people and tourists alike. Kribi is a seaside and port city in Cameroon’s South Region, renowned for its sandy beaches. The restaurant’s creation stems from a love story between several communities.

People can take pride in their roots in their homeland. This is certainly true of Michelle Atingnon, a Beninese entrepreneur and the CEO of a restaurant holding company in Cotonou, Benin. With a maternal grandmother from Kribi in Cameroon — a coastal town that captivates tourists and nature lovers alike with its fine sandy beaches, coconut trees and grilled seafood — she takes pride in her Beninese nationality and Cameroonian heritage. Her eyes light up when she talks about Kribi, the homeland of her grandmother and the source of the inspiration and legacy that have made her seaside restaurant in Cotonou famous. It is aptly named La Kribienne.

“Both my grandparents are Beninese and from Grand-Popo. Many Beninese fishermen go to Gabon, Cameroon and the Congo to work. My maternal grandmother is from Kribi,” she says proudly.

Michelle Atingnon has always worked in the restaurant business, doing a bit of everything, but specialising in grilled fish. She regularly travelled to Cameroon for her other business activities, particularly to sell jewellery, fabrics and handbags that she had purchased in Lomé, Togo or Benin.

Michelle’s aunt owned a restaurant at the Ongoye jetty, which they considered ‘home’, so she would often go there just to eat. “I had a feeling that this grill was different from those in Benin. That’s when I approached my aunt and told her that I wanted to learn the Cameroonian grilling technique from Kribi,” she recalls.

In order to do so, she imagined what it would be like to work in a professional kitchen. Yet memories of her aunt, who had passed away about five years earlier, resurfaced. “That’s when she took me under her wing.” May she rest in peace. ‘She’s no longer with us, but she literally took me by the hand…’ she says, her voice trembling with emotion.

Upon returning to Benin from her training, she started to balance life as a young mother with closing her former restaurant near the stadium, launching her new project, and fulfilling her other commitments.

“I feel that cooking is really my calling. It’s my passion and it’s what I do best. I do other things, but the restaurant business is really my calling,” she admits.

An entirely Kribi-inspired concept!

Originally based at Cotonou’s Friendship Stadium, La Kribienne was forced to move following a public space clearance operation.

“I used to have an aquarium. The tilapia were alive – you could literally pick one from the tank. As for the sea fish, we presented them on a tray to clients, just as they would be presented at the jetty in Kribi. It was as if the fish had just been caught right there on the beach,” says Michelle Atingnon.

Seeing the restaurant’s name sparks curiosity. People come from far and wide to discover it, including members of the Cameroonian diaspora, locals from Benin and tourists.

“Many of my fellow Cameroonians have asked me if it’s real or just a gimmick. I show them my neighbourhood and my home to prove that I have family there. I’m partly from there. I’m a mix of it all: Ghana, Benin, Togo and Cameroon,” she says proudly.

Drawing inspiration from Cameroon, Michelle Atingnon’s menu features grilled fish, ndolè du village, poulet DG and ébanja broth, a spicy fish soup typical of Kribi. She proudly showcases her roots in Cotonou.

“We have three restaurants: a fast-food spot, a restaurant serving traditional Beninese dishes such as leaf sauces, krain krain (jute mallow) and pounded yam, and La Kribienne, our beachfront restaurant. There, it’s all about grilled fish. The only local sauce we make is ndolè, to honour our origins. Some people mistake it for the sauce made here with ground pumpkin seeds, but it’s not the same,” she explains.

The story of the restaurant is one of embracing and affirming her heritage. “La Kribienne has been on the beach for about six years now. But the name originally came from the Friendship Stadium – back then, it was called Chez Mich (Mich’s). After returning from training with my aunt, I decided to rename it Chez Mich La Kribienne. Later, I thought, “Let’s go bold: just La Kribienne,” she recounts.

Flavours of Cameroon in Cotonou

“Many Cameroonians come to my restaurant to eat. The only problem is that they can’t find bâtons de manioc (cassava sticks) here in Benin, as people aren’t used to them. However, I sometimes manage to get some, as I have suppliers who can fulfil special orders – for example, when the Cameroonian Consul visits. My spices also come from Cameroon. There are peppers and seasonings here, but they’re not quite the same. The aroma from over there is completely different,” she says.

Economic ties with Cameroon, advantages in Benin and integration

‘I don’t face any difficulties. No doors are closed to me and I’m not rejected with comments like, “Oh, you think you’re Cameroonian”. In fact, I even have Cameroonian employees working with me,” she says.

She highlights that Benin is a welcoming country whose people are open to foreigners.

‘I’m proud to be Beninese and to have Cameroonian roots through my mother, which I honour. I’m proud of both countries,” says Michelle Atingnon, whose grandmother is surnamedSouthy.