French Guianese Cuisine

French Guianese cuisine is a vibrant and remarkable melting pot, reflecting the territory's extraordinary cultural mix of Creole, French, Amerindian, Caribbean, Hmong, Brazilian and African peoples. At its heart is Creole cooking, rich with spice, chilli, coconut and fresh herbs. The signature dish is the celebrated bouillon d'awara, an elaborate Creole stew of smoked meats, fish, prawns and vegetables simmered in the pulp of the awara palm fruit, traditionally shared at Easter. The rivers and sea yield superb fish and prawns, made into spicy fricassées and blaff, while Hmong market gardens, Brazilian grills and French bakeries add their own flavours, all crowned by an abundance of exotic tropical fruit. Colourful, spicy and diverse, it is genuinely exciting food.

Highlights

• Bouillon d'awara - the elaborate Easter stew in awara-palm pulp.
• The fresh fish and prawns - the spicy fricassées and blaff.
• The Creole spice - the chilli, coconut and herb cooking.
• The cultural mix - the Hmong, Brazilian and French influences.

When to go

Year-round; French Guianese food is enjoyed across the territory, with the famous bouillon d'awara a special Easter tradition and vibrant Creole cooking, fresh fish and tropical fruit available all year. The markets and Creole eateries of Cayenne are the place to sample the diverse cuisine.

Things to know

The signature bouillon d'awara is an elaborate dish traditionally tied to Easter, so seeking it out may take timing, though the wider Creole and multicultural food is available year-round. As a vibrant tropical melting pot of Creole, French, Amazonian and Asian flavours, from spicy fricassées to fresh river fish and exotic fruit, though, French Guianese cuisine is a genuinely exciting delight.

Nearby

The markets and Creole eateries of Cayenne serve it.