Food Tasting Experience Tour

In Luanda really excel at grilled fish, and our oceans and rivers are teeming with grouper, Cherne, and Pargo (red snapper). Chicala, a slum neighborhood on the southern side of the Ilha, is the closest thing we have to a street food fair. Numerous wooden shacks line the pot-holed dirt road that forms its main artery, and the women who staff them serve hands-down the best-grilled fish in town. The most popular dish here is called Mufete: grilled fish, usually tilapia or the flavorful and tender Calafate, smothered with an onion vinaigrette and served with palm oil beans, boiled plantains, sweet potatoes, and a local spice sauce called Jindungo.

You’ll find the traditional Picanha (rump steak) with black beans, as well as Portuguese staples cod fish and Cozido à Portuguesa, plus some seriously tasty feijoada. Traditional Angolan cuisine can take a bit of getting used to, but it’s worth the effort. Several of our most popular dishes are stew-based, such as Moamba de Galinha, chicken cooked in a red palm oil sauce called Moamba de Dendem, and Calulu, similar to Moamba but cooked with dried and fresh fish.

One of the most popular foods in Angola, Funje is an essential side dish accompanying breakfast, lunch, and dinner meals in many households of rural families throughout the country. It is a type of porridge made from cassava flour that is stirred into water.

Funje has a sticky, smooth, and creamy texture, while a slightly bland flavor makes it great for evening out the intense spices found in many Angolan dishes. Traditionally, at their most basic, the dishes consist of Funje and a full-flavored, spicy sauce.

In downtown Luanda, you’ll find these dishes in Angolan-owned restaurants. Most high-end restaurants in Luanda are filled with ex-pats, but you can find other options less fancy that attract many more Angolans and entire families on weekends, creating a boisterous, festive atmosphere.