After a successful experience in Nairobi, the Black Food Festival will come to Kigali on October 26, at Kigali Serena Hotel. 

Dubbed, Kigali Black Food Festival, the event is a celebration of unique and nutritious foods and products that are black or very dark.

"We decided to host this festival in Kenya first, and our Nairobi event last weekend was a great success. Kigali Farmers’ and Artisans’ market organisers indicated that they would like to organise a similar event in Kigali,” says Regina Boros, the festival’s founder, adding: "We started to collaborate shortly, and now I see there will be very impressive and diverse food and design vendors at our Kigali event. Rwanda will be our second location in Africa, and Kigali a second franchise partner of us after Tallinn, Estonia.” 

Contrary to the popular belief, black food is not just artificially coloured food, as some of the most sought after ingredients are black: from the finest coffee, decadent dark chocolate, luscious blackberries, to traditional balsamic vinegar that has been made for centuries using traditional methods. Black food is not only visually appealing to the eye but also good for the stomach. 

"It’s proven that black or dark foods are very high in nutrients and good for our health but oftentimes they are ignored.

Several unique products that are dark in color will be displayed. / Courtesy

"We, therefore, want to shake up the culinary world in Kigali by introducing consumers to them and hopefully open up their minds to dare to be adventurous while supporting local businesses,” explains Flo Mwashimba, founder of Kigali Farmers and Artisans Market, the festival’s organisers.

However, with over 20 exhibitors set to be showcasing their craft, the festival will not only display local black foods and drinks, but also black design and fashion items, accessories and decoration and throwing an underground party as well. 

Vendors will range from local skincare companies to handcrafted artisanal products, beverages, cuisines, tattoo artists and apparel, among others.

Entrance is free, and gates open from 3pm to 9pm.

Festival’s origin

The Black Food Festival was born out of curiosity, in 2016, for international cuisines and the experimental nature of culinary minds across the globe. The brainchild behind the concept is Regina Boros, a Hungarian food enthusiast, blogger, and marketing professional who wanted to create space for culinary creatives to experiment with flavours and ingredients, in a like-minded environment.

It debuted in Budapest in November 2018, and received great success, which inspired the Berlin, Tel Aviv, Helsinki, New York, and Istanbul events that followed. 

Due to popular demand, Black Food Festival took to the road and began a global tour visiting over 20 cities in a 24-month period, organising events and supporting franchise partners to realise Black Food events all over the world. 

The ‘black’ theme separates it from commonly accepted food colours. Black has a unique meaning in the food sector — it’s new, it’s strange, and it’s different from other known types of food.

The Black Food Festival is a newcomer into the world of food and the cooking industry as black, purple, brown and dark blue meals are very new everywhere, around the world. Currently, on a world tour, Kigali will be their second African city stop after Nairobi.

editor@newtimesrwanda.com