Zanzibar is famous for its rich and aromatic cuisine shaped by Swahili, Indian, and Arab influences. The island’s food combines fresh seafood, coconut, and spices such as cloves, cinnamon, and cardamom.
If you are wondering what to eat in Zanzibar, the answer goes far beyond just seafood. From street food in Stone Town to traditional home-cooked dishes, Zanzibar offers one of the most diverse food experiences.
Zanzibar cuisine reflects centuries of trade and cultural exchange. Traders brought spices, cooking techniques, and ingredients that shaped the island’s identity.
Today, Zanzibar food stands out because of:
You will experience this best while exploring Stone Town and Forodhani Gardens, where local food comes alive every evening.
Urojo is one of the most famous dishes in Zanzibar. Locals call it Zanzibar mix because it combines multiple ingredients into one flavorful bowl.
The soup uses mango pulp, flour, and spices to create a thick base. Vendors add potatoes, fried snacks, meat skewers, and tamarind sauce.
2. Octopus Soup (Supu ya Pweza)
This distinctively purple-hued soup is unlike any other.
This traditional breakfast dish highlights Zanzibar’s coastal identity. Cooks prepare it with fresh octopus, garlic, and onions.
It has a naturally salty flavor and pairs perfectly with lime and fresh bread.
3. Coconut Fish Curry
A common dish found in local Zanzibar homes is coconut fish curry, a staple of Zanzibar cuisine. While on the mainland it is often made with tilapia fish from Lake Victoria, in Zanzibar, it is prepared with freshly-caught ocean fish.
Coconut fish curry is a staple in Zanzibar homes. Chefs use fresh fish and combine it with coconut milk, tomatoes, garlic, and ginger.
The result is creamy, rich, and full of flavor.
4. Octopus Curry (Mchuzi wa Pweza)
Visitors to Zanzibar may find Octopus Curry offered at any time of day, including breakfast! Among beloved Zanzibar dishes, this is one of the most delicious ways to experience this unique seafood, even as part of your first meal of the day.
Octopus curry offers a richer alternative to octopus soup. It uses spices influenced by Indian cuisine.
Some versions include coconut milk, while others use tomato-based sauces.
5. Beans in Coconut Sauce (Maharagwe ya Nazi)
Vegetarians are not left out when it comes to Zanzibari cuisine. A common vegetarian/vegan meal is beans and rice, prepared in the Swahili style. Red kidney beans are boiled until soft and combined with a creamy coconut sauce.
This is one of the best vegetarian dishes in Zanzibar. It combines red beans with coconut sauce and rice.
A must-try for vegetarian travelers.
Pilau is a spiced rice pilaf which originated centuries ago in ancient Persia. It is a spiced rice dish cooked with cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, cumin, and black pepper.
It is widely served across Zanzibar and often includes meat or potatoes. Now, pilau is a staple food of East Africa, and each country has their own slightly unique take on this spiced rice. It is commonly eaten on holidays such as Christmas, or for Sunday afternoon lunch.
7. Biriyani
Throughout the week, you may not find many options for good biriyani, but on Fridays, Muslim day of worship, this dish is in the spotlight.
Biriyani is a meal of yellow-colored rice paired with a rich sauce of chicken, lamb or beef. It gets its rich yellow color from saffron, and is flavored with garlic, cardamom and cinnamon sticks.
This dish is very popular in Stone Town, so make sure to grab a plate of delicious biriyani if you’re in Zanzibar, another pillar of Zanzibar cuisine.
In the tropical heat, you may not have much of an appetite for lunch on a warm afternoon. If you’re not that hungry, take the opportunity to sample some of Zanzibar’s delicious snacks, central to Zanzibar cuisines:
8. Katlesi / Chops
Katlesi (sometimes spelled ‘cut-lass’) is essentially spicy ground beef, rolled into a ball and covered with mashed potatoes, then dipped in egg and deep fried.
Whatever the name, make sure to buy a few and enjoy while warm a tasty bite from everyday Zanzibar food culture.
9. Calamari Rings
Delectable, soft tubes of freshly-prepared calamari are often sold along the streets of Stone Town, either grilled or fried in oil for an easy lunch or afternoon snack. Calamari is served with a wedge of lime and a sprinkle of salt, usually wrapped in newspaper instead of an actual plate.
10. Zanzibar Pizza
Thin dough is piled high with your choice of ingredients, then folded over and ‘closed’ as a small, square pocket.
Finally, the outer ‘crust’ is fried to a lovely golden brown on a piping skillet until it becomes nice and crunchy.
11. Chips Mayai
The staple late-night snack across Tanzania is a tasty plate of eggs-and-fries, served hot with ketchup and hot sauce.
Chips Mayai takes regular chips (using the British name for thick-cut fries) to the next level by adding a hearty omelette on top.
It is the closest thing to ‘fast food’ available. While certainly not ‘healthy’, it is filling and tasty and worth a sample while in Zanzibar a true Zanzibar food staple.
12. Kalimati
Small, fried dumplings are rolled in sugar while they are still warm for a delicious treat, much like a large donut hole.
If you’re spending the night in Stone Town, wander down to the area of the Old Fort and look for a chai cart. The kalimati are truly delicious, so big that one can cover your palm, and come slathered in a thick sugar-glaze which goes perfectly with a tangy ginger tea.
You’ll also find kalimati at local bakeries or other shops that sell pieces of cake or biscuits (usually in glass displays at the front of the shop).
13. Date Cake
Tende is the name of the soft Arabian dates that arrive in Zanzibar’s port regularly. At local markets, you are sure to see glass displays packed with the dried fruits, sold by the kilogram.
Tende are pitted, chopped and blended into a popular and delicious confection: date cake, available at the many coffee shops in Stone Town.
If you’re looking for a sweet treat in Zanzibar, try a slice of date cake a classic in the food of Zanzibar.
Marinated beef skewers are not just for urojo soup. Enjoy them alone, or with hand-cut fries, or added to chips mayai for even more protein.
In Forodhani Gardens there are many grills serving piping hot mishkaki alongside seafood options, or find them at street vendors also.
15. Boflo
If you wake early in Stone Town and take a stroll on the quiet streets of the ancient town, you’re sure to see someone standing beside an enormous basket, filled with bread.
These small, soft white loaves, the size of your hand, are locally known as boflo and are a wonderful breakfast option. One could easily put away a loaf or two with tea.
Grab a fresh one and enjoy!
Zanzibar has an abundance of fresh fruits: pineapple, papayas, and mangoes are just a few of the many tropical fruits available across the archipelago. Here are two lesser-known ones:
Known as fenesi in Swahili, jackfruit has become very popular recently, with many vegan recipes using jackfruit as a meat substitute. However, in Zanzibar it is eaten as a sweet, fresh fruit, and not cooked. Jackfruit is the largest fruit grown on a tree; a single jackfruit can weigh up to 50 kgs, or 120 lbs! Due to its size, it either shared, or sold in small portions. 
17. Breadfruit
Have you ever tried breadfruit? Have you ever even heard of breadfruit?
While the name is a bit odd, as soon as you have your first taste, you will understand what it’s all about; while it is technically a fruit and grows on a tree, it has a very strong resemblance to starchy bread. While almost all other fruits are eaten fresh or juiced, this is one of the few fruits that is roasted on an open grill, often served alongside fresh seafood.
Ginger tea is a staple in Zanzibar. Served strong and sweet, it will certainly relieve any itch in your throat. Ginger tea can be found in any restaurant or cafe, but is also popularly served by sellers strolling streets with a flask of hot tea and a few clanging cups.
19. Zanzibar Spiced Coffee
No list would be complete without mentioning Zanzibar’s signature spiced coffee, which combines all the most-loved spices: ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom and black pepper for an exotic caffeine experience you will not find matched anywhere else.
Frequently served either hot or iced, often as an iced latte, a fragrant icon of Zanzibar cuisine.
20. Sugar Cane Juice
Zanzibar has many sugar cane plantations, processing raw sugar. But another way that sugar cane is used across Zanzibar is in fresh sugar cane juice. Pressed before your eyes, each piece of cane goes through the juicer once or twice, with bits of peeled ginger and lime added to make it even more delicious. Make sure to grab one when you visit for a taste of the tropics, a refreshing staple in the food of Zanzibar.
Question: What makes Zanzibari cuisine unique? Short answer: Zanzibar cuisine blends Swahili, Indian, and Arab influences and showcases bold, fragrant spices with super-fresh seafood and coconut. Expect cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, cumin, black pepper, ginger, and tamarind to show up in everything from pilau and biriyani to coconut-based curries. Street-side sweets and drinks also spotlight spices, think ginger tea with kashata and Zanzibar spiced coffee, while tropical fruits (jackfruit, breadfruit) round out the island’s distinctly aromatic, coastal flavor profile.
Question: Where and when should I look for specific foods in Stone Town? Short answer: Forodhani Gardens (evenings) is great for grills, mishkaki and seafood, with roasted breadfruit as a starchy side. For vegetarian-friendly plates like maharagwe ya nazi, try Lukman’s near the Old Slave Market. Fresh boflo bread appears on street corners each morning. Octopus soup is a common breakfast dish (often with boflo). Biriyani shines on Fridays. Chips mayai vendors pop up across Stone Town and villages, especially for late-night eats. For kalimati and chai, check carts around the Old Fort area. You’ll find classic Zanzibar dishes and Zanzibar food favorites in these spots.
Question: How do pilau and biriyani differ? Short answer: Pilau is a one-pot spiced rice pilaf, rice, pilau masala (cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, cumin, black pepper), onions, and often potatoes and/or meat are cooked together so every grain absorbs the aromatics. Biriyani pairs saffron-yellow, spiced rice with a separately cooked onion-tomato curry (commonly chicken, lamb, or beef); the two are layered or plated side by side. Pilau is common year-round in the food of Zanzibar, while biriyani is especially popular on Fridays.
Question: Are there good vegetarian or vegan options? Short answer: Yes. Standouts include maharagwe ya nazi (red kidney beans in coconut sauce) with rice, vegan pilau with potatoes, and customizable urojo (zanzibar mix) where you can lean on potato, bajhia, and crispies and skip meat add-ins. Sweet bites like kalimati and date cake, plus drinks such as ginger tea with kashata, spiced coffee, and fresh sugar cane juice, are meat-free. Tropical fruits — jackfruit and roasted breadfruit — also provide satisfying, widely available options across Zanzibar cuisine.
Question: What’s the difference between octopus soup and octopus curry? Short answer: Octopus soup (supu ya pweza) is a simple, purple-hued broth of octopus, garlic, and onions, naturally salty from the fresh catch, typically eaten at breakfast with lemon/lime and soft boflo. Octopus curry (mchuzi wa pweza) cooks octopus in a richly spiced sauce inspired by Indian curries often creamy with coconut milk (or sometimes tomato-based without coconut) and is served any time of day, usually with rice.
