Angola Food and Drink

There is a noticeable Portuguese influence in Angolan cuisine, particularly in the spicy seafood, which creates a fusion between local ingredients such as cassava and non-natives like onion and garlic.

Meals generally consist of fish or meat stewed in a rich sauce with vegetables such as okra and served with rice or funge (an Angola staple that draws comparisons to polenta). At their most basic, dishes consist of funge and sauce alone.

With its long Atlantic coastline, the seafood is particularly good. Fish or shellfish including shrimp and lobster will often have been caught the same day by local fishermen.

The one downside to Angola cuisine may be the lack of restaurants, especially outside Luanda. Though new restaurants and cafes are popping up all the time, for the moment your hotel is still probably the best bet.

Specialities

Funge: Plain carbohydrate made from cassava with a texture like mash potato, generally served with a full-flavoured spicy sauce.
Calulu: Dried fish or meat layered with fresh fish or meat, onion, tomatoes, okra and sweet potato leaves.
Chicken muamba: Chicken seasoned with palm oil hash.
Mufete de Cacuso: Tilapia fish seasoned with pepper and lemon.
Farofa: Toasted cassava flour with a salty and smoky flavour.
Caldeirada de cabrito: Goat stew with rice traditionally served on Independence Day (Nov 11).
Frango peri-peri: Grilled chicken in a very hot chilli marinade.
Feijão de óleo de palma: Stewed beans in a palm oil sauce.
Gafanhotos de palmeira: Toasted grasshopper.
Mukua: Dried fruit from the baobab tree, often used for ice cream.
Kussangua: Traditional non-alcoholic drink made from cornflour.

Tipping

Where service charge is not added to the bill, 10% is acceptable, although tipping is not officially encouraged. Tipping can be in kind (e.g. cigarettes).

Drinking age

18.