With another morning on the tropical island of Dominica ahead of me, I kicked off my day with a market tour of its capital at 9 in the morning! Let’s explore the amazing Dominican street food in Roseau, Dominica!
Roseau sits on the island’s west coast, by the Caribbean Sea. It’s full of charming colonial buildings, bustling markets, and green botanical gardens. The city is close to natural wonders like Morne Trois Pitons National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and the well-known Boiling Lake. It also has a breathtaking waterfront and often hosts cultural events and festivals.
This area of Roseau, Dominica was already packed, with lots of activity. My first stop was a street food vendor called Bolo’s Mobile. The guy there sells hot dogs, as well as smoked herring sandwiches and saltfish sandwiches made with hot dog buns. They’ve been selling them for 33 years!
The sorrel and passion fruit juice was very refreshing and tropical. Nate ordered a sorrel juice and a hot dog. Meanwhile, I got a saltfish and smoked herring sandwich with pepper sauce. The bun was fluffy, and I loved the briny fish. It was really tasty. I could have had two of them!
We then headed through the town, past some solder buildings that looked like they’d been built in the 1960s and 1970s. Then, we stopped at a vendor selling wild yams, plantains, breadfruit, and green oranges.
From there, we headed into the market, past vendors selling fresh produce, including bananas, onions, avocados, and ginger. We also saw some sorrel fruit, which are small and red and have a large seed in the middle. You remove the top, take the seed out, and keep the skin to juice it.
Inside the market, we saw lots of clothing, including second-hand items. There was also a vendor selling bread nuts. The locals eat it during their independence month! We met a woman who pointed us in the direction of some local food, which is what I wanted!
We found a vendor selling crab backs and some light bush rum. It had a nice fragrance. Then, I dove into the crab back, which is one of the foods Dominica is famous for. They had stuffed the shell with crab meat, bread crumbs, and various herbs and spices. It was extremely flavorful and tasty, and it also had a very spicy kick to it! It was my favorite dish on the island so far!
Then, we found another vendor selling sugarcane. They also have an extractor to make sugarcane juice. But it’s also good to just chew on! The guy cut off all the skin and gave me a small piece to try. It’s very sweet and full of moisture!
They also had some coconuts, and they cut one open for me. It was full of water, so I shared it with Bongo. There wasn’t much meat inside, though, but what was there was tasty!
Back inside, we found a vendor selling cow skin, which they say is a good hangover cure. It’s thin and gelatinous, but had a great flavor! I followed it with some brutal bush rum. I was loving Roseau, Dominica and its food so far!
At Patoe’s Snackette in Roseau, Dominica, I tried a delicious, smoky bake with saltfish that had deceptive amount of spice that hit me later! I followed it with some refreshing pommecythere juice. They also call it a golden apple. They also sell saltfish meals, four different bakes, macaroni, quiches, and more.
From there, we visited the butcher section of the market. There were four different butchers breaking down beef, lamb, and pork. They had heart, liver, lungs, and other organ meats in different baggies. Another had cut up some massive steaks, and further on were some guys with some huge live crabs!
Back outside, we drove to a vendor with a truck full of coconuts. I got a monstrous one filled with sweet coconut water. I’d never had a coconut this sweet in my life, and it cost us less than $2 USD. After we finished, they chopped it up so we could eat the meat inside. It was hard but very sweet and filling!
From the vendor, we drove to Football House so I could buy a Dominica kit! The building houses the Dominica Football Association offices. The jersey cost about $40 USD.
From there, we drove uphill through the jungle to Freshwater Lake. It’s the largest lake on the island. It’s surrounded by jungle-covered mountains. Swimming and kayaking are allowed there, but not beyond the buoys. The suction beyond the buoys is too powerful.
Nearby is the visitors center. Inside are signs where you can learn all about the lake. Then, we drove to Trafalgar Falls, twin waterfalls in the jungle. It takes roughly 10 minutes to hike through the jungle to reach them. They’re beautiful! What a way to end our tour of Roseau, Dominica!
Counter
101 Countries • 1432 Cities
