One New Thing: African Food Festival

Today we trekked over to East Harlem to go to the African Experience Food Festival at the Museum for African Art (which doesn't actually open for another year). We have been watching for a couple years as the big colorful building that houses it has gone up, since it's on the bus route to Elliot's school. We weren't sure what to expect, but I knew they were serving different types of African food for $5 a meal, so I thought it was worth a go!

It was a little fair with food from three different restaurants, so we got a plate from each one, and we got to listen to African music while we sampled the dishes. I got a plate of Nigerian food, which I liked a lot. There was some kind of chicken in sauce that was very good, spicy rice, and a delicious side of greens. The only thing I didn't like was the melon seed side dish. I wasn't sure what to expect when they said it was melon seed. I guess I was expecting something sweet. But it wasn't at all sweet--it was kind of musky and savory. I couldn't get used to the taste. Elliot tried a plate from a Senegalese-French fusion restaurant. Poppy decided that Elliot should have to share. She grabbed his fork and raked it against the steps we were sitting on, while he protested loudly. Then she shoved it in his couscous and swirled the food around with it. After that, he refused to eat anymore and he said he thought he should get to have an ice cream because he was very hungry. But he also said that the chicken he tried before all this happened was tasty. And I got to try his couscous before the dirty fork incident, and it was really, really good and I don't even like couscous! Megan got a plate from another Senegalese restaurant. I will let her post about that.


Poppy LOVED the music. She nodded her head with a huge smile on her face, and tapped her feet to the music.

Fun day!

-Kristin

The dish on the right was mine. It was from a Senegalese booth. There was a cucumber couscous dish that was gross. I hate couscous, no exceptions to date. There was a piece of salmon that just tasted like salmon. No surprises. Some sort of beef dish that was good. She warned me it was spicy, but it wasn't! And then there was an interesting dish that consisted of black eyed peas and mashed up yams. At first I didn't like it, but then it began to grow on me. Would I make it? No. But I'm glad I got to try it!

I'm excited for next year. I'm sure it will be bigger and better! There were no crafts or art this time, which was very disappointing and also good because I would have probably spent money I don't have.

- Megan Leigh