Kigali Delicacies

I think the food here is great. I’m not sick of it and I’m not sick from it, so really, given my track record, I can’t complain. I’ve been frequenting the infamous Rwandan buffets for lunch – which, for $2-3 you can pile your plate as high as you want. The catch is you can only go up once, so Rwandans use some sort of, what I can only believe is magic, to pile their plates ridiculously high.

I also eat a lot of brochettes, which are beef or goat pieces in a kabob form. There is no nice way to eat it; it’s basically being oh so ladylike and ripping meat off of a stick with your teeth. Luckily, they give you toothpicks afterward.

I eat a lot of omelettes as well; my personal preference is to eat them with potatoes cooked in, which sort of tastes like fries in them. Conor – if you’re reading this, which you should be – you’d be in heaven here. There’s also the traditional samosas (a pocket of meat and onions), chapati and chips (fries) galore.

Prices here are not what you would think. In Africa, you can live cheaply, but I’m not dousing myself in champagne and caviar every night. Some restaurants are more expensive or comparable to DC - $10 for a drink, $20 meals…I don’t think so.

I have a place down the street from me that I go to ohhh once a day, at least. Samosas and chapatis are 100 Rwandan francs each, which is about 20 cents. So I can eat dinner or lunch for under $1. Plus, the owners are so friendly, and I can practice my Kinyarwanda. So for now I really enjoy the food. I am realistic in knowing that I’m a ticking time bomb when it comes to getting sick, but for now I’m perfectly satisfied.