Venez manger! (Part Two)

This post is a continuation of yesterday's post, Venez manger! (Part One).  Hopefully, the indication of "Part Two" gave that away, but in case you were just too excited to read my new post, feel no shame.

III. Snacks, sweets, and street food
Dakar isn't the best place if you're craving a warm slice of apple pie or luscious piece of chocolate.  Even if you want potato chips, you'll have to go to a Western grocery store to find something of quality.  But if you're looking for a cheap bite without having to walk to far from you path, the street stands and in-let "boutiks" will get the job done.  Is it healthy?  Probably not.  Is it tasty?  If you know what to get.

The Simple Snack: Peanuts

On nearly every corner of the busy streets of Dakar, you'll find the yummy result of one of Senegal's biggest agricultural booms: peanuts.  Roasted in sand, de-shelled, and bagged, peanuts are a quick grab if you have spare change in your pocket.  Tiny bags are about 10¢ USD, bigger glass jars are about $3, and then there's everything else in-between.  Varieties include raw, roasted, crushed, and praline, the latter three being pictured above.

The Sugar-coated Delight: Beignets

"Beignet" is French for "fried doughnut."  I really need not say more but might as well for the fun of it (and because this post is fueling my appetite).  Around 4:30 pm until well after dark, beignet stands pop-up along the streets, behind which plump Senegalese women sit, rolling dough and stirring pots of hot oil.  Beignets are either made with white flour or the dark, sand-textured millet, and each are equally delicious.  They are usually further rolled in sugar or flaked coconut while still hot.  Such a great evening snack!  A pack of 4 typically costs about 30¢.

The Smell I Wake-up to Every Morning: Fatayas

The family next to us runs a fataya factory out of their kitchen.  Since my bedroom shares a window with their courtyard, it often smells like fataya factory too.  I wouldn't say this makes me happy, but I'm certainly not complaining either.  Anyhow, these heavy, meat-or-fish-filled pockets are more like a meal than a snack in my opinion.  Smaller versions are prepared by making tiny dough squares, filling them, and frying the little buggers in hot oil until crispy.  Larger fatayas are more sandwich-like where a fat, soft, salty beignet (pre-cooked) is sliced open and stuffed with hot meat and onion sauce.  A newspaper filled with 15 small fatayas is about $2 while a meal-sized, large fataya is just under $1.

The Cookie: Biskrem

A thick, vanilla wafer filled with Nutella-like chocolate paste.  That's Biskrem in a nutshell.  At any given location in Dakar, it would only take you about 30 seconds to find someone selling Biskrem.  Fruit stands, bread boutiks, NesCafe carts— everyone seems to have to a little multi-pack box somewhere in the corner.  The funny thing is, these little cookies aren't even Senegalese, let alone African.  They are Turkish.  But that doesn't matter.  They are about the same price as a pack of beignets.  But when the beignets aren't out yet and you need a quick sweet-fix, a cheap four-pack of Biskrem will get the job done. 

The Surprisingly Tasty Mush: Lakh

Not quite a "sweet" or a "snack," lahk only fits under the category of "street food" since you can buy it in a plastic bag from some random vendors in town.  More typically, families will eat it as meal at night.  Most students hate it, some don't.  I find it odd to admit, but yes, I actually enjoy eating a cup of soured milk poured over warm, slimy millet.  Maybe I've been away from quality oatmeal for too long, but this is the closest I've found in Senegal.  Slightly sweet and cinnamony, this West African dish turns away most with it's chunky texture and vomit-like appearance.  Seriously, once you get over the texture and the fact that your spooning soured milk into your mouth, you can really appreciate the flavor and warmth.  I personally wish it was served more often in my house but have only been offered it once or twice.  It's a much more common item in other students' homes.



IV. Drink up!
Just like the case of snack food, Senegal is not the place to come for satisfying beverages.  The coffee is powdered, the soda is too sweet, and most fruit "juices" contain no juice at all.  I tend to stick to water most of the time.  But nevertheless, there are a few drinks that cannot go unmentioned.

The Tea: Ataaya

Served in a tiny glass cup that resembles a shot glass, ataaya is the afternoon necessity of most Senegalese, especially the men.  It's super fancy preparation of tea leaves, mint, and sugar makes a frothy foam atop a thick, strong liquid.  Like many things in Senegal, it's definitely an acquired taste.

The Soda: Ananas

You know those photos that show the physical amount of sugar in each can of coke?  I can't imagine what one would look like if they made posters for Senegalese Ananas.  This bright yellow, sugary soft drink is a favorite of kids and adults alike, but it's a bit too sweet for me.  It does however taste a lot like pineapple.


The NesCafé Substitute: Kafé Touba

As I mentioned in my breakfast post, powdered coffee is really the only option for your morning kick, unless you're a tea drinker quite unlike myself.  However, there does exist a slight varient to powdered NesCafé: Kafé Touba.  Sold in tiny plastic cups from street carts and corner boutiks, this super-sweet, steaming-hot liquid is like a cross between black coffee and chai tea.  In reality, it's just black coffee Senegalese-style— lot's of sugar, lot's of spice.  I've asked my favorite boutik vendor what's in it besides powdered coffee and sugar, but the best answer I've gotten so far is a rough translation of "other stuff."  So I guess that's where I'll have to leave this description.  Other stuff.



The Good Stuff: Juice!

No, Juice! is not the brand of some artificially-colored and -flavored bag of Dakar sugar water (though I wouldn't put it past them).  I'm actually talking about real juice.  The exclamation point is too indicate my excitement and emphasis on the fact that I'm referring to the real juice.  Rather than apple, orange, or grape that American kids may like to sip-on, we in Africa get the delicious choices of bissap, pain de singe (baobab), mango, and ditak (my personal favorite, pictured above).  The house down the street from us makes fresh, homemade juices in their kitchen and sells a 1.5 L bottle for about $2.10.  A little expensive for normal Senegalese consumption, these juices are always a nice treat in my house.