Broads Backpackers on Broads
Road, in Rhodes Park, fits the
bill. It’s got a bar that opens out
into a sort of courtyard area, a
large barbecue, so that the aroma
of grilled meat (if you like that
kind of thing, and I used to, a
lot) is always in the air, and a
cosy restaurant with indoor and
outdoor dining. I know most of
our readers aren’t vegetarian, so I
took a couple of friends with me
to sample the ‘non-green’ edibles.
Broads’ fare is unapologetically
Zambian. Nothing fancy, just the
good ol’ basics: nshima or rice
with relish (a catchall term for
any side dish). This ranges from
(sweet potato leaves), impwa
(African eggplant), vimbombo
(trotters), and smoked bream. We
also ordered French fries, just for
kicks. It was a veritable feast.
The rice was light; the nshima was
fresh and hot to the touch. It
was firm but not hard, perfectly
malleable to scoop the relish or
to dab in gravy. The vegetables
were not overcooked, which
leaves them soggy and drained of
nutrients. On the contrary, they
were bright and appetising to the
eye. The bondwe was surprisingly
sweet, balancing the savoury
thickness of the ifisashi. I found
the impwa quite bitter; however,
my workmate informed me,
“That’s what makes it good.”
beef stew, to village chicken,
to ox-tail on the animal side,
and from beans, to impwa, to
ifisashi on the plant side. (So,
home-cooked? Check.) Prices
start at K20 for vegetables and go
up to K50 for T-bone (Cheap?
Check) and almost everything is
served buffet style (Fast? Check).
Nothing pre-packaged, overlyprocessed, or saturated with
preservatives. (Healthy? Check.)
But, you ask, is it tasty?
After my friends and I were
seated outside, we ordered
nshima and rice, with beans,
ifisashi (vegetable cooked with
crushed groundnuts), delele
(ochra), bondwe (amaranth),
katapa
24
25
He was also a fan of the
vimbombo. Not too fatty but,
sitting in a pool of their own
juices, still fatty enough for the
requisite satisfied finger licking.
My other friend assured me the
locally sourced fish was up to
par. Eating nshima can be messy
business, and we found ourselves
making use of the convenient
kitchen sinks (complete with soap
and paper towels)
installed at either end of the
eating area as we went from dish
to dish. Unfortunately, time did
not permit them to sample the
grilled T-bone. So you do need to
get to Broads early in the lunch
hour, before it gets packed. All in
all, even if the flavours wouldn’t
impress a cordon bleu chef, you
know, offering a delicate hint
of this, a subtle trace of that, a
soupcon of the other, a meal at
Broads is immensely satisfying.
The only downside is that it
might leave you drowsy and
ready to take a nap, not great for
getting back to work. As for me,
here I was as a vegan, looking for
a specialty restaurant, and all I
needed to do was get back to my
roots.
(Oh, and lest I forget, Broads’
French fries are hands down the
best you’ve ever tasted. Period.)