Explore traditional food at Panafrika

Peanut butter rice, road runner, goat stew and beef tripe at PanAfrika Restaurant

TUCKED away in a secluded close off Mazowe Street is Sapes Trust, a regional think tank where conferences take place and ideas on matters African are exchanged.
Green lawns, trees, and flowering shrubs surround the conference centre, a book shop, a library and PanAfrika, a restaurant serving daily specials, a weekend braai, and family lunch on Sundays, with swimming for children.
A buffet serving traditional foods ($30) is a regular feature on a Friday, the day I chose to visit.
The clientele (mostly male), in spite of the heat, were formally dressed, but the atmosphere was welcoming and laid back. We sat at a table on the verandah, overlooking a swimming pool, and before long a friendly waitress brought us a starter of boiled ground nuts and crisp-fried kapenta.
Apart from being a healthy snack that regulates blood sugar, lowers cholesterol and fights depression, boiled groundnuts are also delicious. I could have satisfied my hunger with the starter alone.
At 12.30 pm sharp, the lids on the bain maries were lifted, displaying steaming road runner stew, goat meat, knuckle bones, mazondos, maguru nematumbu and roast chicken.
In addition to sugar beans simmered in onion, garlic and tomato, and crunchy green covo, were white rice, and rice with peanut butter.
Piping hot from the kitchen came white sadza, made from finely ground maize meal, sadza rezviyo (rapoko), sadza remhunga (millet) and sadza remapfunde (sorghum).
I tasted matumbu for the first time, and found it full of flavour and well-cooked. Many people avoid eating offal of any kind, being put of by the different textures and appearance of an animal’s intestines and internal organs.
But be assured that many dishes made from offal are delicious, an excellent source of high quality protein, and frequently feature on fine dining menus.
The perfect foil to a traditional stew, and the outstanding dish on my plate, was rice steamed with crunchy peanut butter.
In addition to the beans and covo, I would have liked to see some black jack or pumpkin leaves, and definitely some braised or roasted pumpkin. George and I both chose a Pepsi to drink with our meal, other soft drink choices being limited to Mirinda Orange and Seven-Up.

Traditional buffet at PanAfrika Restaurant

Wine lovers can choose from an extensive list of good quality red, white and rose wines, either by the bottle or by the glass.
Musical entertainment, even at lunch time, is becoming a regular feature of eating out in Harare. While our buffet was being served, songstress Collina Mvududu and entertainer Alex Fairlie, who was once a member of the 5-Star Boy Band, took turns in singing a selection of bluesy songs about thwarted love, from George Michael, Elvis Presley and others.
Music always triggers emotional responses, and it seemed too early in the day for this kind of distraction. But Alex’s voice and delivery were so perfect, that by the time he sang Robbie William’s 2002 song, I just wanna feel real love, we were all enthralled.
Many regulars at PanAfrika will be familiar with the regular meetings on regional matters and the political and economic discussions taking place at Sapes Trust.
Political activist and controversial commentator Ibbo Mandaza is the executive chairman of this popular organisation. If you’re interested in Deborah Bronnert’s (former British Ambassador to Zimbabwe) take on The Future of Anglo-Zimbabwe Relations, or would like to read an analysis of China-Zimbabwe relations by Heather Chingono (lecturer in Political Studies, UZ), visit the Sapes library.
Be sure to attend the book launch at Sapes on Thursday 28 March, 11 am to 1 pm, for Democracy Works — Turning Politics to Africa’s Advantage, a ‘democratic playbook’ by no fewer than four distinguished authors, including Tendai Biti. Chew the cud afterwards at PanAfrika over a few beers, or stay on for lunch.
The special of the day on Thursdays is okra soup served with fufu (cassava).

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