De Smaak van Afrika – Rotterdam Restaurant

Last Saturday evening, found me in one of my favourite restaurants (so far!) in Rotterdam.  De Smaak van Afrika (The Flavour from Africa) was suggested by my friend Anna, who always has a good list of restaurants that are worth trying.  We were actually heading out to see the theatre version of the Full Monty and decided to have dinner before the show.


When you first walk into De Smaak van Afrika you are hit with three things – the smallness of the place, the wonderful smell from the food and the amazing décor.  The restaurant is small, especially in the colder months when the outside area is not in use.  But it still manages to fit in a good number of people without feeling like you are sitting on the lap of your unknown neighbour.  The décor features painted murals, colourful lights and a wide-range of African ornaments that you might pick up whilst on holiday in Africa.  For some it may come across as a bit cheesy but I think it added to the atmosphere.

The amazing smell you are greeted with when you enter the door is all down to the varied menu that the restaurant serves.  You have your choice between West and East African food and while their is a pretty wide selection, you are not presented with too many choices that only end up making your head spin.  No meal at De Smaak van Afrika would be complete without ordering a banana beer which is served in your very own kalebes.  There are other flavours, including coconut and mango, but one glance around the room will confirm that the banana beer is a firm favourite and I must admit that it was very yummy.

For my meal, I chose from the East African part of the menu, mainly because it comes with the added attraction of getting a ready supply of enjera’s, which according to the menu, are wholemeal pancakes.  You can see them in the photo, they are the items on the left.  Your meal isn’t served with cutlery, so you rip off a piece of your pancake (using only your right hand) and then you pick up some of your meat and vegetables with the pancake.  My dish was called Alicha Dorho and was made up of chicken, potatoes and vegetables.

For dessert, both Anna and I went with the caakiri (or at least that’s what I think it was called), which was couscous mixed with yoghurt and topped with fruit.  It was in fact very tasty, which came as a surprise to me.  Apologies for the rubbish picture.  It was very dark inside and the dish was of course, very white!


De Smaak van Afrika really was a fun place to visit.  The dishes were different, the eating method fun, the environment enjoyable and the food was really tasty.  I shall definitely be returning.


Off to find me a banana beer supplier…


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