Zenabou’s Dumbou Stand
Niamey’s greatest street cuisine! It’s well worth the journey. Take a cab to “Sonara Deux,” a large 9-story edifice adorned with tan crosses. If the cab driver does not recognize the name, say “Maternité Issaka Gazoby,” which is located across the street. Alternatively, you may go from Petite Marché, through Rip-off Row, and on to Sonora Deux, which is the second tall building on your right. Wrap your way around the building to the front (walking towards the bridge). On the right, she has a yellow and red Maggi hanger. Sit on the wooden seats, and when your time comes, she’ll gesture to you and ask what you want.
Because she is quite popular, expect a 15-minute wait to be served. Obtain the dumbou with everything. Dumbou is a popular Niger delicacy made out of maize couscous, steaming moringa greens, black-eyed peas, a tomato-squash sauce, and spices. Women may get 150F (waranza in Djerma) and males may receive 200F (way-tachi in Djerma). Meat is optional, but it makes an excellent complement to the dumbou. Try the pounded/pileéd guinea fowl combined with sesame and spicy pepper for 100F (in Djerma, say “Ham, waranka” to mean “meat for 100F”). Be cautious since the pounded guinea chicken flesh includes bones. Mon-Fri, 12:30-4:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. The man with the cooler next to her sells a gingery lemu-hari drink for 50F (small) or 100F (large), as well as PureWater and yogurt. If you’re in the vicinity of the Petite Marché or the Musée, this is a good spot to visit.
Nigerian Hot Pockets stuffed with curried mashed potatoes, and other goodies
To go to Rond Point Liberté, use a cab. Head north for about a third of a block, and she’ll be on the left, with the hot pockets on display in a glass case next to a little blue-painted business. She is Nigerian and fluent in English. The prices are reasonable. If you’re visiting the Grand Marché, this is a wonderful spot for a bite. Go to Côté Maourey from the Grand Marché and stroll down the road towards the Stade. You’ll see Pharmacie Liberté and the round point in a few blocks. She also serves delectable fried dough cakes encased in hard-boiled eggs.
The Meat Sandwich Guy
The meat sandwich vendor is located on the Mali-Bero road on the left, slightly west of the Stade road. Taxi to “Pharmacie Mali-Bero,” then walk a half-block to his red Nescafe stand directly beyond the technical school, with the pharmacy on your left. He is available to coincide with school breaks. He is available to service between the hours of 10 a.m. and 16 a.m. Most Peace Corps volunteers just swing over for his excellent meat sandwiches filled with fries. He is, however, more than simply meat sandwiches. His omelet sandwich is a must-try for vegetarians. His nacho fries, on the other hand, come highly recommended. This is a mountain of fries topped with seasoned ground beef or a fried egg, sauce, mayo, and other toppings at about 750F. Sit down, order the fries, and grab a cup of coffee to go with it. It’s really worth spending some time there rather than simply getting take-out.
Fried cheese (Wagashi)
This is a seasonal delicacy that comes to us from Benin and Togo. It is sold at the Petit Marché in the form of red discus-shaped rounds, which you can then cook yourself. It is not recommended to consume it uncooked. There are also two ladies who sell it fried and ready to eat. One is immediately behind Score, near the blue-walled Senegalese Restaurant. Ask around since she isn’t usually present. The other is at the petrol station “Station Katako” on the road heading into town from the Stade, among the trees that form the Tillaberi and Gotheye bush taxi station on the north side of the roadway. She offers a variety of chichena (fried bean cakes) and patatas (fried sweet potatoes), among other things, so the cheese is occasionally concealed within the pile. Look for it in a little plastic dish in the midst of her goods. Purchase some (25F each) and pair it with rice from the rice woman a bit farther west.
A great street food lady with fufu and wagashi under a big tent
Wagashi (friend cheese) is also sometimes offered in a very popular food tent that operates from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on the street heading south, across from the Grand Mosquée. It is located at a crossroads on the great mosquée compound’s south-eastern corner. A swarm of taxicabs is normally parked there while drivers have breakfast/brunch. Excellent pounded yam (fufu) with lemu-hari drink.
Good hand-made grilled sausage
Taking a cab to Cinema Soni, exit at Avenue Arewah. Begin your journey north on Avenue Arewah. Pass through one crossing and then search for him half-way down the school’s blank wall on the right. He is sometimes camouflaged amid the Ghanaian semi-trailers that utilize the wall as a rest stop.
“Pepperoni-style” hand-made grilled sausage
To go to Rond Point Eglise, use a cab. Head south to Marina Market. He’s a block or two down at a Maggi grill on the left. 250°F/sausage plus condiments In the afternoons and evenings, he is present. If he isn’t grilling, he may not seem to have sausage, but he keeps the cooked meat covered and warm, so ask!
Grilled Meat
A meat griller with a Maggi station is located down the road from the pub La Toulousain/Ebenezers. Cars are constantly parked nearby, ready for well-seasoned meat. President Tandja is said to prefer to obtain his meat from here. Grilled mutton, on the other hand, can be found on practically every street corner in Niamey and is always tasty. Indicate if you want meat or fat. A modest meal for 1-2 persons costs 500F.
Fried plantains
During the season, they may be seen on each side of the crossroads created by Avenue Arewah and Boulevard de l’Independence just north of the Grand Marché. One of these ladies prepares them as small fried banana bread balls that go well with sugar or her spicy salsa. She is Ghanaian and speaks English.
Delicious Kilishi (beef jerky)
Kilishi is a Niger speciality. There are three flavors to choose from: basic, hot pepper, and spicy peanut sauce. Never purchase it from Katako Marché since it is dried directly above the aluminum smelters (worth seeing sometime). Instead, try one of the smaller businesses in town, such as the drying racks immediately east of Round Point Liberté or the Yantala night market. If you purchase it on the street, ask the vendor where it was created since you don’t want it dried in Katako.
Dégué
Dégué are little millet balls that taste like whole-grain tapioca pudding when mixed with yoghurt. Excellent dégué is accessible at “Nigelec siege” in Plateau, only a short walk from the Centre Culturel Americain. Martine’s stall is tucked away next to a woman selling dumbou, but if you inquire, someone will send you in the proper direction. It is normally offered in sachets in increments of 150, 200, and so on, or you may sit down and enjoy the dégué with a plastic bowl and ladle. Dégué is also sold by vendors at the Grand Marché if you’re in the mood for a snack while shopping. Alternatively, inquire about where you are to see if somebody is selling out of their concession near where you are staying.
Best bisap and apollo in town
Bisap is a sweetened hibiscus-leaf beverage with mint. Apollo is a frozen slushy with a deep, rich taste created from the baobab fruit. For 200F, take a cab from the Grand Marché or Petit Marché to Lamordé Ganda. Pass the large mosque and exit through a white-walled square store with a blue-green entrance a little farther on the left. If it’s closed, go to the courtyard on the right and ask for Rashida.
Masaki’s
Masaki’s has live music on certain evenings. Take a taxi to Mairie Commune 1 and then walk east. Look for their flyers or call to find out what’s going on. A Frenchman and his Nigerien wife operate it. It also functions as a hotel with beautiful rooms.