Many tourists expect that  when they come to Africa, they will only find wild and exotic things such as roast monkey eyeballs to eat. This is not true. While the menus in some countries can be interesting and involve a walk on the wild side, all African countries have standard foods that you’d expect to find anywhere else in the world.

In each country you’ll find a 7-Eleven or the equivalent where you’ll find bread, milk, peanut butter and other sandwich spreads, yogurt, eggs, biscuits, tinned food and the like. The point is: you won’t starve. You will find something your tongue is used to!

Dining in Africa – etiquette, courses and types of food
As with all cultures there are certain customs and etiquette when eating at a  restaurant and the same applies to dining out in Africa. When you order food from an African restaurant, it is important to note that the way the courses in a meal are named may be different to what you’re used to.

Soup is referred to as such on American menus but in Africa it is often referred to as “peppersoup”.

When you order from an African restaurant menu the best is to start with a drink. Typical non-alcoholic beverages would be malta, ginger, root or another kind of indigenous beer and water.

Appetisers or starters are normally a soup (peppersoup) that can comprise of vegetables, chicken, or goat meat. 

Common foods on menus
Many tourists will then surprised to see a vast selection of ordinary foods that they know well on African restaurant menus such as fish, chicken, beef, greens and salads. However, what ever type of dish you are ordering, make sure that you enquire as to the level of spiciness the chef has used. Authentic African food is often very hot and spicy.

Many African dishes contain peanut or peanut oil. If you suffer from any kind of food allergies, especially nuts, make sure from the waiter what ingredients are used in the specific dish you ordered. 

A basic and typical African meal consists of a combination of vegetables and sometimes meat, served with mash made from cassava (a spinach-like vegetable, most commonly consumed in west African countries) or porridge from grains such as corn, or on a bed of rice or millet.

West African cuisine
In the west of Africa, Jollof rice is the most popular dish. It is delightful and many tourists go away with a taste for the dish. Ingredients are easy to obtain and prepare. You will find Jollof rice as part of the menu at all typical West African restaurants.

There are a magnitude of variations to the basic Jollof rice which consist of broken rice, onions, red pepper, salt, tomato paste, and fresh tomatoes. Variations are created by adding various kinds of meat, spices and vegetables.

Central African cuisine
Fufu is the basic staple food in most central parts of Africa and is commonly served with a soup, such as peanut soup. Fufu is normally made from fermented roots of the cassava plant.

East African cuisine
In east Africa, ugali is the most typical dish and is normally served with kale, a type of cabbage. It is usually green in color, but a purple variation is also available. Maize forms the basis for ugali, which is prepared in the same way as fufu.

North African cuisine
The northern part of Africa is significantly diverse and so they have a wide array of “typical” dishes on offer.

Couscous, a kind of small wheat granule, forms the basis of most northern African dishes. It’s often served with a meat stew cooked overnight. Moroccan cuisine is known to be rich and spicy filled with full-bodied flavour where as Tunisian food is hotter and extremely spicy.

Food from Algeria and Egypt are known to be more less complicated and infused with fewer spices than what you’ll commonly find in the rest of North Africa.

South Africa
A famous traditional South African dish is Potjiekos (stew made on a black cast-iron pot on an open coals) that comprises any form of meat and vegetables. It’s generally served on pap, rice or stamp mealies(whole-grain corn).

Most South African dishes include large portions of meat and some form of starch. Colonial influences brought an array of Dutch, German, Italian, and British cooking to the southern part of Africa. These are still evident in typical South African meals today. 

Fast food
Fast food outlets such as Pizza Hut, KFC, and McDonald’s are a very common sight in the Southern parts of Africa. However, it is unlikely you’ll find any international fast food outlets in the central part of Africa.

In the northern part of Africa, such as Egypt and Algiers, you will be able to find some popular outlets, but not as readily as in southern South Africa.