Rwandan food is built on a few staples: cassava leaves, maize, beans, pumpkin and grilled meat. This page covers the dishes to look for in Kigali, with the facts taken from published sources read on 11 November 2026.
Dishes to Try
Isombe: cassava leaves cooked with ground peanuts and vegetables.
Brochettes: skewered, grilled meat, usually goat or beef.
Ugali: a firm dough made from maize or cassava flour, eaten with beans, vegetables and meat.
Ibihaza: pumpkin cooked with beans.
The cuisine article on Wikipedia lists these as lunch dishes. Breakfast is usually tea or coffee, often sweetened and sometimes with milk.
Rwandan Coffee
Visit Rwanda says missionaries brought coffee trees to Rwanda in 1904, and coffee is now one of the country's largest cash crops. About 95% of the beans are Arabica Bourbon, which it describes as having a silky creamy body with notes of lemon, orange blossom and caramel. A patchwork of 450,000 small growers produce it.
The main coffee tour area is around Gisenyi and Lake Kivu. Plantations do not deal with tourists directly, so Visit Rwanda says to arrange visits through a tour operator or RDB.
Visit Rwanda says the harvest usually runs from February to May, when the cherries turn a deep cranberry red. Kinunu Washing Station overlooks Lake Kivu about 20 km south of Gisenyi and can be reached by boat or bicycle, and it combines well with a hike or cycle on the Congo Nile Trail.
Drink
Urwagwa is banana beer made from fermented banana juice. If you prefer something non-alcoholic, tea and coffee are the common choices.
Where to Eat in Kigali
Repub Lounge is at #16 KG 674 Street in Kimihurura, open every day from 12pm to 10pm, and asks for a reservation for four or more. Check its menu page for what it serves.
Inzora is a Kigali cafe whose site says its food is store-made and locally sourced, and its menu is split across separate coffee, food and cocktail pages, so check the one you want. Kigali Cultural Village, which Visit Rwanda describes as a traditional market space, has food vendors alongside artisans, and it hosts events, festivals and music.
Practical Notes
Carry Rwandan francs, because the hotel says cards are not accepted everywhere. Book ahead at Repub Lounge if you are a group of four or more. Tell any kitchen about dietary needs before you arrive, as the hotel asks its own guests to do.
Eating at the Hotel
Step Town Hotel serves a traditional Rwandan kitchen in its restaurant and cafe all day, with vegan options, and room service runs around the clock. Breakfast is included in every room. Dinner is a la carte or buffet, and the hotel asks guests to give dietary needs in advance. See the rooms page for rates, from $50 for a single room.
For more of the city, read things to do in Kigali.
Ask Us About a Meal
Tell us about any dietary needs before you arrive, through the contact page, and we will answer.