In Tanzania, the establishment is where the action is. No need for such a primitive thing as bricks and mortar - Tanzania has leapfrogged the tedious evolution of restaurants from homes to inns to Michelin stars to fast food, and gone straight for the pop-up eatery.
Kahawa Chungu - the easiest way to get caffeine and companionship. These coffee shops consist of one peripatetic guy with a portable coffee heater (a pot on coals with a long handle), a bucket of water for washing up, and a tray of kashata (peanut brittle/croquant). These men walk from street corner to street corner and a few benches turn into a café. Pay TSH50 for a cup (or has it gone up to 100?) of 'bitter coffee', and sweeten it up with a piece of considerably more expensive kashata if you like. Chat solemnly with your fellow coffee connoisseurs. Return the cup in a disdainful manner and pay without too much fuss. Some coffee vendors also have hot sweet ginger (tangawizi) drink. (AfriRoots' Reality Bike Tour takes you to visit the coffee guys' HQ where they roast and pound beans and make kashata.)
Zanzibar Mix - a tart green mango-based soup with savoury bits added to your taste: sliced grilled banana, bhajia (chickpea or lentil fritters), coriander, crispy vermicelli bits, chopped potato, mini-mishkaki. Delicious. Places I know that sell zanzibar mix include a hole-in-the-wall opposite Manyema mosque in Kariakoo (close to Lumumba St on Mafia St), New Coco Beach, and the corner of Malik and Mindu street in Upanga (after 5.30 PM).
Deep-fried cassava - deeply unhealthy but super good. The unforgiving cassava roots turns into something soft, tender and friendly and get doused in lime, salt and chili. One woman has her cassava wok off the road at Savei on the way to UDSM; others serve it at New Coco Beach. By the way don't walk to Coco beach anywhere near dusk and don't carry anything except a bit of cash.
Coconuts: green coconuts are called madafu (sing. dafu. Hard brown coconuts are 'nazi', soft z please). These are sold off the backs of bikes all around, but you can find them for sure at the beach downtown off Ocean Road (now Barack Obama Drive). Chopped open at your convenience. Drink the water and ask the dude with the panga to dig out the flesh for you. Coco beach too.
Oranges: same thing, sold off the backs of bikes. You can usually smell the vendor form about 20 meters because of the delicious aromas from his (usually it's a man) peeling the fruit. The vendor peels off the green part of the skin and slices the orange nearly in half, so you can suck out the juice without staining your hands. Likewise: green mango with chili and salt in season.
Roast maize: rub the ear of maize with a slice of lime from the stall, shake over salt and chili and take your time chewing.
Deep-fried snacks: I wouldn't recommend eating these if you have a metabolism any slower than that of a 17-year old marathon-running boy. But a quick guide if you must: mandaazi = unsweetened donuts. Vitumbua: slightly sweet puffy UFOs from rice flour, ideally containing cardamon. Chapati: thoroughly oiled grilled flatbread. There's a great guy known as 'Mstadhi' (he's religious) running a little bakery with top-quality snacks (including, sometimes, crépes - 'chapati za maji' - with a bit of chopped onion and coriander) in Upanga: on Malik St just to the south (=towards Diamond Jubilee Hall) of the crossroads with UN Road, one or two doors towards the crossroads from the Congolese Embassy and diagonally opposite the scout house.
Streetside breakfast: All of these baked goods (although they're deep fried not baked) can be had at a streetside breakfast stall, with hot sweet spice tea (but no coffee until the afternoon). Combine the stuff you like: cassava, chapatis, mandaazi... One standard combination is a plate of beans (maharage, poss. with sugar) and a chapati. For some reason the breakfast stalls are usually run by women. Once you start looking around in the morning you'll see where they set up. One small cluster is outside IST secondary school on Chole Rd; another near the bus stop outside Thai Village.
There's a big one at the dangerous curve of Kimweri Avenue - just downhill from Thai Village where Kimweri Ave makes a sharp left, at the entrance to the alley with the mosque and Fitness Centre. There are at least ten stalls there, specialising in different things so you get a food court effect. (By the way when I say 'stall' I mean stool, bucket and wok.) The women fetch dishes from each other and must have a fiendishly sophisticated accounting system to keep up with who owes who 300 TSH. There are tables and benches for the customers.
Tuesday 25 November 2014
Sunday 23 November 2014
Courier services - by bike!
Did you know that there's a bicycle courier cooperative in Dar? Oh yes. Fasta bike couriers are reliable, fast, environmentally sustainable, traffic jam-proof, professional and friendly. They are a spinoff of UWABA, the Dar bike users' association. I can recommend them both highly and warmly!
Check out their facebook page or this article about them in the Global Post. Contacts: Filbert at 07141FASTA (0714132782), 0714623774, 0714297272 Email: fasta@fasta.co.tz
Check out their facebook page or this article about them in the Global Post. Contacts: Filbert at 07141FASTA (0714132782), 0714623774, 0714297272 Email: fasta@fasta.co.tz
Re art: working women
A Brazilian visitor pointed out that she didn't feel like buying any Tanzanian handicrafts because they always show women working, and men being lazy. I started paying attention and wow, she is absolutely right. You'll see paintings, carvings, embroidery of women pounding maize, carrying water and children, cooking, farming... where men are depicted, they are usually Maasai guys leaning on their spears. Or old wazee smoking pipes. If women are depicted in some sort of leisure activity it's usually topless dancing in a grass skirt.
I guess this reflects real life, but this observation made me wish there was a bit more imagination and observation going into the Tanzanian arts and crafts. No need to keep reinforcing these oppressive gender stereotypes and letting guys think it's still OK not to help in the kitchen.
I guess this reflects real life, but this observation made me wish there was a bit more imagination and observation going into the Tanzanian arts and crafts. No need to keep reinforcing these oppressive gender stereotypes and letting guys think it's still OK not to help in the kitchen.
Mishkaki
Jasi’s Anti-Stress Mishkaki on Jasi’s Road, off Chole Road – turn left after Computer Connections and take another left at the t-junction. Continue forward a few gates. The 3rd gate (about) is Sunrise Pub, aka Jasi’s Mishkaki Clinic – next door to Jasi’s Anti-Stress Clinic.
The fish mishkaki is especially good. The food gets ready about three times faster than at Lukas Bar. (Tip for the massage clinic: keep your underwear on.)
Handicrafts and souvenirs (special for Christmas!)
Handmade from Tanzania is my favourite - handwoven fabrics, including bedsheet-wide ones. (Imagine the size of their looms.) Handmade from Tanzania use Tanzanian cotton hand-dyed and woven on the premises, and cooperate with Ifakara Women Weaver’s Collective (who are even more amazing, but based all the way in Ifakara. If you do head to Ifakara, maybe on the TAZARA, make sure to buy some of their colourful ingeniously woven kikois.)
So Handmade has sheets, bedspreads and other cool stuff made from the cloth – a little on the pastel side for my taste, but I bet you can commission fabrics where both warp and weft are from dyed thread and get some really intense colours. Most recently I bought some cool clothes (sleeveless hoodie: new favourite garment) that combine handwoven with kitenge. (Tip to the tailors: make the zipper seams tighter and add a lining...) They also have a cabinetmaking section with furniture – the original ‘discarded dhow’ wood – with Scandinavian designers frequently in residence. If you’re stretched for cash the picture frames are lovely. Handmade is on Uganda Avenue, right behind CCBRT. It's easiest to find by coming from QBar, heading towards Msasani, but taking the last right (Uganda Ave) at the T-junction at the end of the road. Handmade is on the right after about 50 meters.
At Slipway: I've always been disappointed by the souvenir sheds on the southern side of Slipway (across from the parking lot if you're at the hotel/shopping centre). All the sheds sell the same stuff, including purple wraps from Thailand, unimaginative paintings of Maasai and giraffes, mediocre beadwork. I'd head to the Souk at Slipway and ignore the higher-priced versions of the shed shops (identifiable by the rows of beaded sandals outside) and shop at the beads-keyring shop on the corner, and at Africraft where everything is recyled. I've been to Africraft's workshop in Mikocheni (not hard to find) and seen that they are genuinely creative: someone there has made a pair of men's cargo shorts from a cement sack. The Green Room (upstairs at Slipway, above the umm toilets) is usually a safe bet: just walk in and you'll find something in good taste. Well, lots of pastels but there's quirky stuff, chunky dark-wood jewellery, Sarah Markes prints and posters, breezy beachwear, plants and gardening stuff, furniture and furnishings...
The Green Room sells some things from Moyo, but their own shop at Oysterbay Shopping Centre is the epicentre. Moyo make fresh and fun home furnishings from kitenge fabric, with great colour combinations (not all of them wacky). You've probably seen their trademark fabric bobble corners on cushions on sofas all around Dar. I like their fabric-covered notebooks and beach bags.
Morogoro Stores (the alley next to Shrijees Supermarket on the Oysterbay end of Haile Selassie road) is the place to get berries from the Morogoro hills, wholefoods, cheap booze and Tingatinga Art Collective art. Along the alley a re a few handicraft/wholefood shops where you can get rye flour, those mysterious waxy giant seeds that are supposed to be so good for you, marmalade, seeds, honey and more cheese in case you missed Njombe at the monthly market. All made by disadvantaged people who will benefit from your spending. At the end of the alley is the Tingatinga cooperative where you can buy name plaques, spare tire covers, paintings, trays and mugs featuring all the swirling fish, curved-necked secretary birds and red-eyed hippos your heart desires. It's not very original but the members can't be blamed for producing what sells. As far as I know the other painting shops on the alley are not part of the collective.
If you do want original art by Tanzanians, check out Nafasi Artspace. They have studios for artists (including African artists in residence) but also host a range of cultural events - hands-on art workshops for all ages (the 'ChapChap' series), music gigs, movies, dance performances... Nafasi is in Mikocheni B(off Rose Garden Road, also accessible from Mwenge). Their artists often have exhibitions at Black Tomato café downtown too, if you just want to buy a funky drawing or print and congratulate yourself on a good purchase with a cappuccino and slice of cheesecake.
Speaking of Mwenge, the handicraft market there is pretty good. (From Mwenge junction drive a few blocks towards the university/Ubungo on Sam Nujoma Rd and the market is on the left). More variety and originality than at Slipway, and you get bigger pieces like carvings and spears and woodwork. You need to haggle.
And if you're in Iringa, check out Neema Crafts. The guesthouse is a nice place to stay and the shop has very stylish things made by disabled people.
At Slipway: I've always been disappointed by the souvenir sheds on the southern side of Slipway (across from the parking lot if you're at the hotel/shopping centre). All the sheds sell the same stuff, including purple wraps from Thailand, unimaginative paintings of Maasai and giraffes, mediocre beadwork. I'd head to the Souk at Slipway and ignore the higher-priced versions of the shed shops (identifiable by the rows of beaded sandals outside) and shop at the beads-keyring shop on the corner, and at Africraft where everything is recyled. I've been to Africraft's workshop in Mikocheni (not hard to find) and seen that they are genuinely creative: someone there has made a pair of men's cargo shorts from a cement sack. The Green Room (upstairs at Slipway, above the umm toilets) is usually a safe bet: just walk in and you'll find something in good taste. Well, lots of pastels but there's quirky stuff, chunky dark-wood jewellery, Sarah Markes prints and posters, breezy beachwear, plants and gardening stuff, furniture and furnishings...
The Green Room sells some things from Moyo, but their own shop at Oysterbay Shopping Centre is the epicentre. Moyo make fresh and fun home furnishings from kitenge fabric, with great colour combinations (not all of them wacky). You've probably seen their trademark fabric bobble corners on cushions on sofas all around Dar. I like their fabric-covered notebooks and beach bags.
Morogoro Stores (the alley next to Shrijees Supermarket on the Oysterbay end of Haile Selassie road) is the place to get berries from the Morogoro hills, wholefoods, cheap booze and Tingatinga Art Collective art. Along the alley a re a few handicraft/wholefood shops where you can get rye flour, those mysterious waxy giant seeds that are supposed to be so good for you, marmalade, seeds, honey and more cheese in case you missed Njombe at the monthly market. All made by disadvantaged people who will benefit from your spending. At the end of the alley is the Tingatinga cooperative where you can buy name plaques, spare tire covers, paintings, trays and mugs featuring all the swirling fish, curved-necked secretary birds and red-eyed hippos your heart desires. It's not very original but the members can't be blamed for producing what sells. As far as I know the other painting shops on the alley are not part of the collective.
If you do want original art by Tanzanians, check out Nafasi Artspace. They have studios for artists (including African artists in residence) but also host a range of cultural events - hands-on art workshops for all ages (the 'ChapChap' series), music gigs, movies, dance performances... Nafasi is in Mikocheni B(off Rose Garden Road, also accessible from Mwenge). Their artists often have exhibitions at Black Tomato café downtown too, if you just want to buy a funky drawing or print and congratulate yourself on a good purchase with a cappuccino and slice of cheesecake.
Speaking of Mwenge, the handicraft market there is pretty good. (From Mwenge junction drive a few blocks towards the university/Ubungo on Sam Nujoma Rd and the market is on the left). More variety and originality than at Slipway, and you get bigger pieces like carvings and spears and woodwork. You need to haggle.
And if you're in Iringa, check out Neema Crafts. The guesthouse is a nice place to stay and the shop has very stylish things made by disabled people.
Posh groceries
One recurring lament of the expat in the tropics is "cheese!"
Luckily lots of businesses have sprung up in Dar in recent years to smother your cravings in coop mozzarella and sustainable chocolate.
Bread: Oysterbay Deli, at Oysterbay shopping centre. Sesame bread, multi-grain bread, even gluten-free bread… mkate wa ufuta (puffy chewy sesame flatbread), bagels and muffins… plus a fridge full of spreads and cold cuts. Spinach and feta pie and different flavours of fresh pasta at the deli counter. All the above handmade. Wine. Cheese. A café with Italian ice cream and a halloumi salad deep in halloumi. The owners, Tino and Samiha, are also building a Mexican-themed hotel in Lushoto – watch this space! deliltd@yahoo.com, 022-2600050.
Chocolate: Chocolate Mamas. A chocolate company making Tanzanian chocolate and cocoa from Tanzanian cacao beans (of course sourced at good prices from smallholders in the Southern Highlands) plus Tanzanian cashews, chili, coffee bits, and all the other flavours I can’t recall at the moment. Chocolate Mamas have built this from scratch – even commissioning the cocoa butter machine from Tanzanian artisans (and university professors). www.chocolatemamas.com
Cheese: Njombe Milk Factory, sold by the good people at Italian NGO Cefa. My favourites are the fancy mozzarella and the ricotta: try using it for making Nigel Slater’s orange zest and ricotta pancakes. I believe these guys also supply Zuane. I heard a rumour that Shrijee’s would sell their cheese but when I checked it was sold out. You can buy Njombe cheese at the monthly Oysterbay market or at Cefa’s office/hostel in Mikocheni B – or call 0756916853, njombemilkfactory@gmail.com
Coffee: Msumbi Coffee house blend -- or espresso roast?? Both are divine. Go to their shop upstairs at Seacliff shopping centre and get it freshly ground, cheaper.
What else do you want? Wine? Sadly the three Dodoma wines I’ve sampled have all been abysmal.
Luckily lots of businesses have sprung up in Dar in recent years to smother your cravings in coop mozzarella and sustainable chocolate.
Bread: Oysterbay Deli, at Oysterbay shopping centre. Sesame bread, multi-grain bread, even gluten-free bread… mkate wa ufuta (puffy chewy sesame flatbread), bagels and muffins… plus a fridge full of spreads and cold cuts. Spinach and feta pie and different flavours of fresh pasta at the deli counter. All the above handmade. Wine. Cheese. A café with Italian ice cream and a halloumi salad deep in halloumi. The owners, Tino and Samiha, are also building a Mexican-themed hotel in Lushoto – watch this space! deliltd@yahoo.com, 022-2600050.
Chocolate: Chocolate Mamas. A chocolate company making Tanzanian chocolate and cocoa from Tanzanian cacao beans (of course sourced at good prices from smallholders in the Southern Highlands) plus Tanzanian cashews, chili, coffee bits, and all the other flavours I can’t recall at the moment. Chocolate Mamas have built this from scratch – even commissioning the cocoa butter machine from Tanzanian artisans (and university professors). www.chocolatemamas.com
Cheese: Njombe Milk Factory, sold by the good people at Italian NGO Cefa. My favourites are the fancy mozzarella and the ricotta: try using it for making Nigel Slater’s orange zest and ricotta pancakes. I believe these guys also supply Zuane. I heard a rumour that Shrijee’s would sell their cheese but when I checked it was sold out. You can buy Njombe cheese at the monthly Oysterbay market or at Cefa’s office/hostel in Mikocheni B – or call 0756916853, njombemilkfactory@gmail.com
Coffee: Msumbi Coffee house blend -- or espresso roast?? Both are divine. Go to their shop upstairs at Seacliff shopping centre and get it freshly ground, cheaper.
What else do you want? Wine? Sadly the three Dodoma wines I’ve sampled have all been abysmal.
What's this?
The consumer recommendations of a longterm European Dar es Salaam resident. This blog is focused on where to buy sustainable-chic stuff - non-essential indulgences while supporting ethical businesses: chocolate, cheese, handicrafts.
Check it out if you don't have a long time available to familiarise yourself with Dar shopping and want to avoid transnational bulk carvings, ugly paintings of maasais and industrial Thai tie-dye.
Check it out if you don't have a long time available to familiarise yourself with Dar shopping and want to avoid transnational bulk carvings, ugly paintings of maasais and industrial Thai tie-dye.
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