The best restaurants Zanzibar Archipelago

Timetable

In Zanzibar, we eat mainly in hotel restaurants, even if it means trying out those outside the resort where we're staying, unless we're on a full-board or all-inclusive package (more common on some of the island's isolated coasts). Restaurants are generally open from morning to night, every day. Breakfast service usually stops at 10:30 a.m., lunch service from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. and dinner service from 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.. But some of the more luxurious hotels offer continuous service, with a menu of lighter snacks outside mealtimes.

In Stone Town, Nungwi and Pajé/Jambiani, restaurant addresses are opening up more and more, encouraged by the proliferation of Airbnb rentals that offer potential guests without a restaurant where they are staying. Deli restaurants with sandwiches, wraps, salads and burgers, as well as local Swahili cuisine tables open at regular hours, have seized the opportunity to position themselves in this niche in Stone Town, Nungwi and Pajé mainly. But the trend is growing everywhere.

Budget & Tips

Local restaurants have long existed in Stone Town (Lukmaan and Mashallah are the best), and have multiplied along the coast. The best way to devour grilled lobster and slipper lobster, at a better price than in stuffy hotel restaurants. Today, freshness is flawless (unlike a few years ago), and these new addresses have their produce delivered directly by their fisherman friends in the village. The cuisine is authentic, full of flavors and spices, the plates gargantuan and the prices rock-bottom.

Many fishermen offer sandbar outings all around Unguja (Nakumpenda in Stone Town, next to Mnemba, Safari Blue), as well as in Mafia (towards Chole Island) and Pemba (on Missali), including a seafood barbecue on the beach. Here again, prices are negotiable directly with the fishermen, and the more you go, the better the deal. You're guaranteed a wonderful Zanzibar picnic day.

What costs extra

Prices include VAT, and there are no cover or bread charges. On the other hand, some restaurants display their prices in dollars. To your calculators! It's better to pay in shillings, that's for sure. If you pay in dollars, you'll be charged a lower exchange rate than at a currency exchange or at the airport (the latter being the most advantageous). If you pay by credit card, a 5% surcharge applies throughout the island. Finally, be generous with your tips- this isn't France, and tips are a major part of waiters' salaries here.

The local way

A Swahili menu is difficult to understand, but fortunately, both tourist restaurants and local restaurants that take good care of their clientele have translated their menus. This doesn't mean you won't get lost unless you know a little about Indian cuisine(tandoori, masala, chapati, curries, etc.), but some Swahili spice combinations have taken on Indian names without sounding the same. You'll be spoilt for choice, starting with pilau rice, the most classic dish.

To be avoided

Eating with the left hand is avoided, as in any Muslim country, it is frowned upon. The left hand is reserved only for intimate use.

Avoid arriving at the restaurant completely hungry, the service in the kitchen as under the straw huts is very pole pole, very slow, and often disorganized. You risk falling from starvation before the arrival of any dish.

Kids

Swahili people love children, and you'll see them running around in the villages and towns, in the streets, on the roadside coming home from school, etc. The welcome, already warm, is even more pronounced with children. The welcome, already usually warm, is even more pronounced with children. In restaurants, on the other hand, the wait is long, children or not, and few restaurants (except family resorts) have children's menus. Be early or order before you arrive to guarantee meals at reasonable times for the little ones.

Smokers

Almost all the restaurants are under makuti-roofed straw huts open to the four winds, and it's customary to tolerate smokers. Ashtrays are often on the tables, but some customers (generally from northern Europe and the English-speaking world) are less tolerant of smoke than Latin tourists or locals, and will ask you to go further away.

Tourist traps

In Nungwi, there are some tourist-friendly restaurants where freshness is not guaranteed. Avoid them, as the seafront is full of good addresses in the middle of this string of restaurants.

The Forodhani night market in Stone Town is the worst tourist trap there is for food. The candlelit seafood and fish kebabs look enticing, as locals and tourists alike stroll around. Apart from a few pigeons who didn't ask the question to the right people, no one dares to eat these kebabs, which are guaranteed to give you indigestion, if not serious food poisoning. The skewers are taken out every evening and treated with ammonia to eliminate bacteria, but this is obviously not advisable. Observe the Zanzibarites: they don't touch it. Only what they call pizzas (filled pancakes) made in front of you are valid, samosas in a pinch. Kebabs are full of inedible grease, but appreciated by the locals.