I finally had my way when my colleague from Sudan agreed to take me to a Sudanese restaurant. This newly opened restaurant in the Bani Malik area of Jeddah had never been visited before so we decided it was the right opportunity to experience food that I had never encountered before.

With no roof and open to the elements of nature, ‘Amo Zain’ has a captivating atmosphere and can be a great place to eat during the cooler month of the year. We let our Sudanese colleagues do the talking and they ordered a whole variety of dishes.

We ordered ‘Kwara’, ‘Shayya’, ‘Fattet Fuul’ and ‘Kibdah’. I knew what ‘Kibdah’ was but I had absolutely no idea what to expect with the other dishes. First came the soup ‘Shurbat Ful’, complimentary from the restaurant and then one by one, our table was decked with the items we had ordered.

‘Kwara’ is the Sudanese equivalent of the ‘Paya’ which happens to be the hoof of either the goat or beef cooked on low heat for hours with spices and usually eaten for breakfast in much of South Asia. This version was much milder than the Indian / Pakistani version with the spices quite subtle and the juices from the bone forming part of the gravy. It is best had with Naan and here we used Kuboos to wash this dish down.

‘Shayya’ is what most people would call grilled meat but this felt more rustic and the flavour of the meat was more prominent. I absolutely loved the edge the meat had with barely any use of spice. I would totally recommend you make this a part of your order.

‘Fattet Fuul’ was just like any other fuul, but had bits of bread incorporated with the beans. It was creamy, tangy and could be eaten on its own.

I didn’t enjoy the ‘Kibdah’ much since I was busy stuffing my face with the ‘Kwara’ and ‘Shayya’ which were clearly the highlight of our dinner.

Have you ever experienced ‘Sudanese Food’ and what were your impressions? If you think there is a place or cuisine I should try, hit me up on @foodwithshayne DM.

Location: https://goo.gl/maps/DoGo92LHk8UBsgDJ6