Dynast Amir Eating A Meal He Didn’t Like In Liberia

Don’t Be Afraid to Eat a Bad Meal

If you do not risk the bad meal, you may never find the magical one.

That is one of the biggest lessons travel has taught me.

Not every dish is going to change your life.

Not every meal is going to make you close your eyes, look toward heaven, and thank every ancestor responsible for seasoning.

Some meals will be average.

Some meals will confuse you.

Some meals will simply remind you that curiosity comes with consequences.

That is part of travel.

And honestly?

That is part of the fun.

Food Is One of the Fastest Ways Into a Culture

If you want to connect with a people, start with the food.

Then pay attention to the dance.

Then listen to the language.

Those three things will tell you a lot about a culture.

How people eat.

How people move.

How people speak.

How people gather.

How they celebrate.

How they welcome strangers.

Food is not just something you consume.

Food is memory.

Food is geography.

Food is history.

Food is survival.

Food is family.

Food is somebody’s grandmother standing over a pot refusing to measure anything because “you just know.”

And somehow, she does.

If you travel somewhere and refuse to engage with the food, the music, the dance, or the language, I have to be honest:

You are not really traveling.

You are sightseeing with luggage.

You are a tourist, not a traveler.

Get Out of Your Comfort Zone

Now let me be clear.

If you have dietary restrictions, allergies, health concerns, religious restrictions, or anything serious that affects what you can eat, this is not directed at you.

Be safe.

Be wise.

Stay alive.

Nobody needs to prove cultural curiosity by breaking out in hives in the name of authenticity.

But if you do not have dietary restrictions…

If you can eat gluten…

If you do not have a seafood allergy…

If your stomach is not currently negotiating with your doctor…

Then what exactly is stopping you?

Fear?

Unfamiliarity?

The fact that the food does not look like something you grew up eating?

That is the point.

You left home.

Act like it.

You cannot travel across the world and then demand that every meal emotionally resemble Applebee’s.

At some point, you have to get out of your comfort zone and try the food.

I Have Had Bad Meals Too

I am not saying every traditional dish I have tried while traveling through Africa has been amazing.

Absolutely not.

Some meals were great.

Some meals were just fine.

Some meals were educational.

And by educational, I mean I learned that dish was not for me.

For example, in Liberia, tobergee and bitter leaf just are not my cup of tea.

I respect them.

I understand they are loved.

I understand somebody’s auntie probably makes a version that could change my mind.

But based on my personal experience?

Not for me.

And that is okay.

Because Liberia also gave me palm butter.

And fever leaf.

Magical.

That is the trade-off.

You may have to eat something that does not move you to discover the thing that does.

Same with Benin Republic.

I did not really care for the gee.

It just did not connect with my spirit.

But the lapin?

Rabbit with jollof rice?

Magical.

That is why you have to keep trying.

Because if I had let one dish I did not love close the door, I would have missed something incredible.

It Is Just a Meal

Some of you treat trying unfamiliar food like you are at the crap tables in Vegas risking your rent money.

Relax.

It is a meal.

Again:

A meal.

You are not putting your mortgage on black.

You are not betting your child’s tuition on a hard eight.

You are tasting something new.

If you do not like it, congratulations.

You survived.

Try something else.

It is like a video game.

You lose in Fortnite, you respawn.

You try a traditional dish and do not like it, you respawn at the next restaurant.

No harm done.

Now you have a story.

Now you have context.

Now you can say, “I tried it.”

And that matters.

Because trying is part of the experience.

The Magical Meal Is Usually Hiding Behind the Risk

The best meals often require a little trust.

Sometimes they are not in the fanciest restaurant.

Sometimes they are not plated beautifully.

Sometimes there is no English menu.

Sometimes the person serving you looks offended that you even asked what was in it.

Sometimes you just have to point, smile, pray, and eat.

That is where the magic often happens.

At the roadside spot.

In the local restaurant.

At the market.

In someone’s home.

At a table where nobody is performing for tourists.

That is where the food is honest.

That is where the culture is alive.

And that is where you find the meals you remember years later.

Not because they were perfect.

But because they were real.

Expand Your Palate, Expand Your World

Food teaches humility.

It reminds you that your preferences are not universal.

It reminds you that deliciousness has many languages.

It reminds you that comfort can become a cage if you never challenge it.

A limited palate often creates a limited experience.

If you only eat what you already know, you only confirm what you already believe.

But when you try something unfamiliar, even something you do not like, you expand.

You learn.

You become a better traveler.

Because the point is not to love everything.

The point is to be open enough to experience it.

Final Thought

Do not be afraid to eat a bad meal.

The bad meal will not kill you.

Probably.

But the fear of a bad meal might rob you of a magical one.

You may not love every dish.

You may not understand every flavor.

You may not be ready for every texture.

That is fine.

But be curious.

Be open.

Be respectful.

Try the food.

Ask questions.

Let the culture speak to you through the plate.

Because sometimes the meal you were afraid to try becomes the one you never forget.

And if you want to expand and diversify your palate through a curated West African culinary experience, that is exactly what we create at Danfo.

Visit Danfo.Africa to learn more. — Dynast Amir