Accra food tour guide
Accra is one of West Africa's great eating cities — waakye at dawn, kelewele after dark, grilled tilapia by the sea. Here is how to taste it properly and safely.
The short answer
- Accra's food is best sampled across the day — waakye in the morning, kelewele at night.
- Chop bars serve the real thing: banku, fufu, light soup and jollof at honest prices.
- Osu, Jamestown, Makola and Labadi are prime hunting grounds for street food.
- Grilled tilapia with banku and hot pepper is the classic Accra plate to seek out.
- Eat where locals queue, favour freshly cooked hot food and be sensible with water.
- A guide or driver who knows the joints turns a good food day into a great one.
At a glance
| Signature dish | Grilled tilapia with banku and pepper |
|---|---|
| Breakfast classic | Waakye (rice and beans) |
| Best street snack | Kelewele (spiced fried plantain) |
| Where to eat | Osu, Jamestown, Makola, Labadi |
| Budget | Street food is very affordable |
| Drink safely | Sealed bottled or sachet water |
Why Accra is a food city
Accra eats well and eats constantly. From the roadside braziers of the early morning to the plantain grills glowing after dark, the city runs on food that is cheap, fresh and full of flavour. This is Ga country on the coast, so seafood and fermented staples star, but you will find dishes from every corner of Ghana on the same street.
As a team based in Kasoa who bring guests into the city every week, we always tell people the same thing: come hungry, follow the queues, and pace yourself. Portions are big, the pepper is honest, and half the joy is eating slowly across the day rather than cramming it into one meal. Prices are low enough that you can order two of everything and share, which is exactly how we recommend tasting the city. If you want the wider picture first, our Ghanaian food guide and Ghana street food guide set the table nicely.
Start with waakye and breakfast
A proper Accra food day starts with waakye — rice and beans cooked with dried sorghum leaves that give it a reddish-brown hue. It comes loaded: spaghetti, gari, boiled egg, fried fish or meat, shito (the dark, smoky pepper sauce) and a spoon of stew. Waakye is a morning food and the best joints sell out by midday, so go early and go where the queue is longest.
Other morning options include koko (spiced millet porridge) with koose or bofrot (fried dough), and tom brown porridge. Portions are generous and prices are low. Carry small cash — street vendors rarely take cards.
Chop bars and the heart of the meal
For lunch, head to a chop bar — the local eateries where Ghana's home cooking lives. This is where you meet banku and tilapia, fufu with light soup or groundnut soup, kenkey with fried fish and pepper, red red (bean stew with fried plantain) and, of course, Ghanaian jollof. Fufu and banku are eaten with the right hand — tear, dip, and do not chew the fufu, swallow it.
Grilled tilapia with banku and a fierce fresh pepper is, for our money, the definitive Accra plate. Ask for the pepper on the side if you are unsure of the heat. For sit-down versions of these dishes, our best restaurants in Accra guide has trusted names.
Where to eat: neighbourhoods to graze
Accra rewards wandering. Osu, around Oxford Street, packs restaurants, bars and street grills into a few busy blocks — a good evening base. Historic Jamestown serves brilliant, no-frills seafood and street snacks with real character. Makola Market is chaotic, dense and delicious for the brave, with kenkey, fried yam and every snack imaginable.
Down at Labadi and along the coast, grilled fish and kebabs (chichinga, dusted in a peanut-and-spice mix) are the order of the day. After dark, look for kelewele — plantain cubes fried with ginger, chilli and spice — sold from small stands; it is the city's finest late-night snack. Our things to do in Accra guide helps you build the rest of the day around your meals.
How to eat well and stay well
Street food in Accra is a joy, and a little sense keeps it that way. Favour stalls that are busy, where food is cooked fresh and served hot in front of you. Be a bit more cautious with items left sitting at room temperature or salads washed in tap water. Peel your own fruit where you can.
For drinks, stick to sealed bottled water or the ubiquitous water sachets, and skip ice if you are unsure of its source — our water and what to drink in Ghana guide goes deeper. Build up to the fierce pepper gradually; shito and fresh ground pepper can catch out first-timers, so ask for it on the side. If you have allergies or a sensitive stomach, ease in on day one and carry any medication you rely on. It is also worth learning a couple of greetings, as vendors warm up quickly to a friendly effort. None of this should put you off: eaten sensibly, Accra's food is one of the great pleasures of visiting Ghana, and half the fun is chatting to the cooks while they work.
Ready to eat your way around Accra?
The best food in Accra is not always the easiest to find — the truly great waakye stall or seaside grill is often tucked down a side street only locals know. That is exactly what we are for.
From your first bowl of waakye to a late plate of kelewele, we will help you taste the real Accra safely and happily. Plan my trip today with a Ghana-based team who eat here every week.
Questions people ask
What food should I try in Accra?
Start with waakye for breakfast, then chop-bar classics such as banku and grilled tilapia, jollof, fufu with soup, red red and kenkey. Finish with kelewele, the city's great late-night snack.
Where can I find the best street food in Accra?
Osu around Oxford Street, historic Jamestown, Makola Market and the Labadi coast are all excellent. The general rule is to eat where locals queue and the food is cooked fresh in front of you.
Is street food in Accra safe to eat?
Generally yes, if you are sensible. Favour busy stalls serving freshly cooked hot food, be cautious with room-temperature dishes and tap-washed salads, and drink sealed bottled or sachet water. Ease into the pepper gradually.
What is waakye and when is it eaten?
Waakye is rice and beans cooked with sorghum leaves, served with spaghetti, gari, egg, fish or meat, shito and stew. It is a morning dish, and the best joints often sell out by midday, so go early.
How much does a street food meal cost in Accra?
Street food is very affordable, with a generous plate typically costing only a few cedis. Carry small cash, as most vendors do not take cards. Prices change, so check current rates locally.
Should I do a guided food tour in Accra?
It helps, especially on a first visit. A local guide knows which stalls to trust, handles the language and pepper levels, and gets you to spots you would never find alone. It saves time and adds context.
What I know about Ghanaian travel comes from doing it: filing passport and visa applications, booking flights and hotels, collecting people from arrivals at two in the morning, and driving the Accra, Tema, Cape Coast and Kumasi runs week after week. Where this guide describes how something works, it is because we have done it.
Rules, fees and timetables in Ghana change. I have deliberately not quoted figures that go stale — where a number matters I name the office to confirm it with. If you spot something out of date, tell me and we will fix it.
Related guides.
Food & cultureGhanaian food, from jollof to kelewele
A plain guide to the dishes you will meet in Ghana, what is in them, how hot they are, and how to order and eat them without hesitating.
Food & cultureGhana's street food, explained
Some of Ghana's finest, cheapest and most joyful food is sold from roadside stalls and pans. Here's what to try, and how to eat street food with confidence.
Places & itinerariesWhere to eat in Accra
Accra eats well at every price. Here is how to find the right table — local classics, the Osu strip, upscale Cantonments and the seafood coast — without the tourist traps.
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