Port Louis is quite intoxicating... because Mauritius is sea, sun and sand, and allows you many opportunities to experience the country in a different way. It was the most important port in the Indian Ocean for a long time, and that brought with it a melting pot of cultures. The flux has given it a lot of diversity in food.
I always tell visitors to start exploring...
Port Louis at the waterfront. There’s a lot of history here, including the Aapravasi Ghat World Heritage Site (which served as the island’s main immigration depot for indentured labourers from India), and the Intercontinental Slavery Museum. There are also lots of colonial buildings from the 1700s when the French were here. Also visit Les Jardins de la Compagnie, with its banyan trees and statues of important people in Mauritian history.
Your first foodie stop should be...
the Central Market. It’s a busy place to pick up fruit and veggies as well as souvenirs. While you’re there, try the dal puri, which is arguably the national dish. It’s a type of flatbread stuffed with yellow lentils and topped with atchar (a type of South Asian pickle) and various chutneys. If you want to be a bit more adventurous, order the alouda, a flavoured milk-based drink with chia seeds and a scoop of ice cream. It’s very refreshing. Another drink to try is fresh sugarcane juice mixed with starfruit and Mauritian lime.
Port Louis has a vibrant Chinatown...
and Chinese is my favourite cuisine, but it’s not traditional – it has been adapted to Mauritian tastes. For example, the boulettes, which are dumplings that originated from the Hakka Chinese. When they came here, they had to make them with what was available. It’s the same story with Mauritian fried noodles, which are similar to chow mein, but all restaurants in Port Louis have atchar and a bottle of garlic sauce on the table, to add umami. Also in Chinatown, Mr Chu bakery has been making traditional Chinese delicacies for 80 years, including rice-based sesame balls filled with papaya and peanuts.
When you visit, I recommend you find…
a good bakery. People forget we were colonised by the French, and they left us with their love for pastries and bread. My favourite is the puits d’amour (“well of love”). It’s a small tart filled with custard cream and topped with shaved coconut and a bit of strawberry jam. Another is napolitaine, which is two shortbread biscuits wedged together with jam and topped with icing sugar. It’s very sweet, so it’s traditionally eaten with tea.
When I escape Port Louis, I often go...
More Coverage
north for fresh seafood. It’s not so easy to get fresh seafood in Port Louis, but on the coast it’s excellent. Go to La Kaza restaurant in Grand Baie, where you can order an amazing seafood gratin – what’s in it changes daily, depending on what seafood the fishermen catch in the morning. In the south, I love Chez Francois, which is on the public beach in Bel Ombre. The must-order dish here is the ramen with octopus salmi. It’s a Creole dish with a lot of spices.
When you’re in Mauritius you must try rum
Production of rum dates back to the 19th century, after the Dutch introduced sugarcane to the island. There were about 40 distilleries back then; today there are only a handful. You can visit places like La Rhumerie de Chamarel and see how it is made before doing a tasting. There’s different qualities of rum, and they can come flavoured with everything from vanilla to coconut and exotic spices.
Best things to do in Mauritius according to a local - Escape
Read More
No comments:
Post a Comment