I did almost no research on the food before I traveled to The Gambia. I was there for a work trip, so I knew I would not have time to go to any restaurants or cafes on my own. Also, I did not even see any cafes or coffee shops there. Mostly, people drink tea, a thick sweetened green tea called Attaya. So I let my client dictate when and where I ate. A few interesting things to note:
People don't usually have lunch until 3:00 pm. I found this to be very late - I was getting hungry around 12:00 pm and had to wait. Dinner is also late, around 9:00 pm, which was again too late for me.
My internet research was correct in identifying no coffee shops; indeed, I did not find any when I arrived. Instead, I brought my own coffee and coffee maker from the US. I am glad I did, or else I would not have had any coffee.
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Attaya, packs of Green tea (that look like cigarettes) boiled for hours in sugar |
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Foreign food, mostly not good. Except for that Lebanese Shwarma in the top corner |
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Fruit, I did not come during mango season, but watermelon was abundant |
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Gambian banquet food, the best meal I had there |
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Gambia has the best juices: Kaaba, Ditakh, and Baobab |
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Fried meat cakes, rice, and more meat |
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AbCa's Lodge buffet dinner was excellent - the best chips I ever had |
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Gambian village food, served communal style, the curry is Domoda, a peanut stew |
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Wanjo juice, from the hibiscus, my favorite |