These typical restaurants of Côte d'Ivoire started life as makeshift eateries set up on the fly. But, over time, the simple and inexpensive "maquis" have become an institution, and have evolved to take on different forms. The only thing that doesn't change -- or at least, doesn't change much -- is the menu, where grilled fish or braised chicken are the staples.
In a makeshift shelter on a street perpendicular to the National Institute of Youth and Sports (INJS) in the Abidjan suburb of Marcory, "Mémé" cooks for her customers every lunchtime. This woman, who is over 70 years old, runs a maquis -- a typical restaurant in Côte d'Ivoire where you can fill up on very cheap, local food. She welcomes us into the maquis next door to hers, due to lack of space.
These restaurants are makeshift shelters in the open air, delimited by sheet metal. Recycled materials are used as furniture and trees as shade. Seated in the restaurant next door, we sit at one of the 20 tables installed under a shelter. Behind that, a dwelling with a solid structure is home to fridges filled with sodas, fans whirring at full speed.
"Do you have any bissap?" a customer asks. The young waitress says no. A few minutes later, she arrives with a bottle of the hibiscus drink that she places on the table. "When she doesn't have something, she goes to the next door maquis to get it," explains our guide Franck, a French expatriate living in the neighborhood. "There is a sharing of space and a very strong sense of mutual help and support here," he says.
Affordable food in a social melting pot
In a maquis, the menu is limited to a few dishes. And you generally find more or less the same thing -- braised fish or chicken accompanied by fried plantains (called "alloco"), or cassava semolina ("attiéké"). You can easily eat well on a budget of less than 5,000 CFA francs (about $8.3).
A few blocks away is Chez Ambroise, one of the most famous maquis in Abidjan, known for its grilled and braised foods. Run by Ambroise Kouakou, it has welcomed politicians, journalists, artists and soccer players. The owner even once told Jeune Afrique that when Didier Drogba comes, he politely asks everyone to let him eat first, on the promise of chatting with everyone afterwards. And apparently, it works.
This evening, tables and chairs are set up on the sandy ground that serves as a soccer field for children during the day. Around a big table are seated comedians and producers here for the Dycoco comedy festival, having dinner together after a documentary screening on the other side of town. Manioc semolina, ginger juice, rice and braised chicken fill the table. A "guitareur," a musician so-nicknamed by one of the comedians, plays his instrument in the rows and sings the names of all the customers in harmony.
With a culture of good, hearty food that's simple, fast and cheap, these places also play a major role in socializing and bringing different walks of life together. At Mémé's maquis, as well as Chez Ambroise, the young, the old, workers and students of the neighborhood come to tuck into a dish and spend a while.
The changing face of the maquis
These typical restaurants are changing with time. At Chez Joël, a maquis located on Boulevard des Martyrs in the commune of Cocody, you can eat like at most other maquis, only here, the walls are solid. Inside, the owner has taken care with the decoration. The chairs have seats in white leather, wooden slats make an original ceiling and flowers add an air of freshness. It's a chic and elegant restaurant -- just like its owner, Joel Eric N'Gadi, an Ivorian comedian, dressed in a blue suit jacket, a plaid shirt and red pants.
Other restaurants have become nighttime hangouts and attract a diverse clientele looking to dance and party. Neon lights on the walls spell out feel-good phrases like "La vie est belle," while a DJ and Instagrammable decors serve to keep the young crowd entertained all night long
