Forodhani Gardens

I have a dirty vegetarian secret.  It's different from my mother's dirty vegetarian secret which is that one time she ate a chicken nugget - she claims - in order not to waste it when cleaning up dinner many years ago (I know it's really because they're delicious).  Mine, however, is that I love...LOVE...seafood.  Maybe a little too much.  For a person who doesn't eat red meat (or chicken, turkey) in part because I believe you should only eat what you'd be willing to kill yourself, I sure can throw down on seared tuna steak and calamari.  And oysters, squid, shrimp.  Oh, and mussels.  Ok, let's keep this moving before I - oh and CRAB - get too excited.  

Although Zanzibar seemed to be short on a lot of things - governmental competence, any discernible plan for trash collection or processing, reliable electricity - there was no shortage of fruits de la mer.  It flowed like wine at an Episcopalian social gathering.  Alex and I spent two nights in Stone Town and ate at the same place both times - a magical market the stuff of a pescatarian's dreams, Forodhani Gardens.  A beautifully renovated open air courtyard and market, the Gardens serves as the marketplace where local fisherman will describe in almost pornographic detail each of their succulent and fresh-from-the-sea offerings to both old-school Zanzibaris and starry-eyed newlyweds alike.

The market is set up in a grid of tables and grills and the fisherman have a team of a few young guys who grill customers' orders while their boss does his best salesman pitch for why his Mahi-mahi is exceedingly superior to his neighbor's.  Most of the seafood came in two versions - plain and spicy.  I can personally vouch for the spicy octopus.  Just try not to think too hard about the tentacle suckers as you're chewing away.

One of Alex's favorite was the whole grilled red snapper, which is apparently a traditional Jamaican thing.  I can't remember the exact price, but I want to put it somewhere in the range of $3 - $4.

In addition to kebabs of just about every seafood you could put on a stick, the fisherman's tables also sold an assortment of grilled bananas, coconut bread, potatoes, and other generally starchy and delicious items.  My personal favorite, however, was the freshly-squeezed lemonade at about 50 cents a glass.

On our second night, we basically ordered one of everything, including the largest crab claw I've ever seen.  We piled on all the starch items Alex could handle (believe me, this is a LOT), and ordered drinks to wash it all down.  The final bill (including a 20% tip for Fisherman Eddie)? Just under $30.  I tearing up just thinking about it.