National Staple: Tô

Tô (also called saghbo) is the soul food of Burkina Faso. It’s a thick porridge made from millet, sorghum, or cornmeal, with a texture similar to slightly grainy rice cake, which can be formed into small balls when cooled. The traditional way to eat it is to pinch off a small piece and dip it in a side sauce: sauce gombo (okra sauce) is smooth and silky, sauce arachide (peanut sauce) is rich and savory, and soupe sauce rouge (tomato-spiced red sauce) is especially flavorful with rice. While it’s traditionally eaten with the hands, utensils are also provided in restaurants.

Classic Dishes

• Riz Gras (Rice with Oil): A staple dish across French-speaking West Africa, this rice is cooked with tomato paste, onions, and sheep fat, resulting in a rich, oily, and savory flavor. It’s often served with fried eggs or grilled chicken legs, and is a must for celebrations and hosting guests. It shares roots with Senegal’s thieboudienne (red rice), but has a heartier taste.
• Poulet Bicyclette: Free-range chicken, grilled until the skin is crispy and the meat is firm. It’s a signature dish at roadside barbecue stalls, often served with onion-chili sauce and fries.
• Brochettes (Meat Skewers): Small skewers of lamb or beef, grilled over charcoal, sprinkled with ground peanuts and chili powder, and served with chilled ginger beer.
• Attieké and Rain Tree Beans: Fermented cassava couscous, a coarse grain rice that has grown popular in recent years thanks to Ivorian immigrants, often paired with grilled fish.
• Vingt-Cinq (Fried Bean Cakes): A late-night snack made from Niger beans, served with spicy sauce, full of street-food charm.

Drinks and Desserts

• Bissap: A deep red iced drink made from hibiscus flowers, mildly tangy with a sweet aftertaste, widely enjoyed across the country.
• Gnamakoudji: A zesty ginger-lemon drink, spicy and refreshing.
• Dèguè: A dessert made from millet paste mixed with yogurt and vanilla, a festive treat classic.
• Kinkeliba Tea: A Sahelian herbal tea, great for digestion after meals.

Dining Areas and Price Ranges

The areas around the big markets in Ouagadougou, the Gattamarre neighborhood, and the old town of Bobo-Dioulasso are where you’ll find the highest concentration of street food. A portion of brochettes from a roadside stall costs 500–1,000 West African CFA francs, a plate of tô with sauce in a restaurant is about 1,000–1,500 francs, main dishes at mid-range restaurants range from 3,000–6,000 francs, and international hotel buffets are around 10,000 francs. For hygiene, choose stalls with high turnover, freshly prepared food, and avoid raw or pre-cut fruit. Always drink bottled water.