Curious about Lusaka Passport Meals? Meet our amazing Jiranileo hosts

Lusaka is an incredibly international community. The Jiranileo team found residents from different countries who were happy to invite people for a home-cooked meal with the dishes from their home country.

A Lusaka Passport Meal brings 8-10 people together to the host’s home to enjoy a full meal from another country. As the guests eat, they can freely ask about the ingredients and significance and learn about the host’s home culture.

Through the taste of the food, the comfort of a casual home environment, the language of the host, and the sounds of music from another country, our guests can have an international travel experience without leaving Lusaka (and for less cost than an airport taxi!)

We currently have three types of Passport Meals:

Pan African Passport meals take you on a stress-free African vacation in your own neighborhood to taste the best cuisines and cultures from East, West, North and Southern African countries.

Global Passport meals transport you off the African continent into homes with cuisines and cultures from Asia, Europe, North & South America, and the Middle East.

First Class Passport meals are the “extra” you are looking for in Lusaka with the “wow” factor of culinary and cultural exploration.

We are adding new hosts all the time. Scroll down to meet some of the women and men inviting you for connection, cuisine and culture over a home-cooked meal!

If you know someone who lives in Lusaka, and who loves to cook a cuisine from their home country, let us know and we can add their cuisine to our Passport Meals!

Nilufar has hosted Passport Meals in Lusaka since September 2021. She loves surprising guests with a different menu of traditional foods at each meal.

Home country: I am from Bangladesh, and I have lived in Lusaka for 7 years.

A word that describes you: In Bangla we say “snehomoyi” which means “loving” in English.

Traditional food craving: Polaw with chicken korma.

Favorite item in your kitchen? My clay pot.

If you could have 1 guest from anywhere in the world at your Jiranileo table, who would it be? My youngest uncle Zakir Hossain.

Passport Meal guest review: “I enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere and the hospitality of the host.” Rating of 5 smiles for the overall experience.

Follow our host on Instagram: @laylla_kitchen.

Curious to try Bangladeshi food in Lusaka? Visit our Book Now page to reserve your seat at her table.

Margaret has hosted Passport Meals in Lusaka since September 2021. Her speciality is vegan cuisine that showcases the fusion of African, Asian and indigenous cultures of Trinidad and Tobago.

Home country: My home country is Trinidad & Tobago, and I’ve been in Zambia about 2 years and 2 months.

A word that describes you: Dynamic!

Traditional food craving: I miss salted pigtails and incorporating it into my favorite recipes! Callaloo and pigtails; Ochro rice and pigtails; BBQ pigtails. They’re the perfect addition to several Caribbean dishes.

Favorite item in your kitchen? My immersion blender.

If you could have 1 guest from anywhere in the world at your Jiranileo table, who would it be? Rihanna. As cliche as it sounds, she would definitely bring the vibes!

Passport Meal guest review: “It was a food journey with lots of fun facts and history. The atmosphere and conversations were fantastic.” Rating of 5 smiles for the overall experience.

Follow our host on Instagram: @islandgyalflavours.

Curious to try Trinidadian food in Lusaka? Visit our Book Now page to reserve your seat at her table.

Denise (right) and Donna (left) have hosted Passport Meals in Lusaka since September 2021. Their specialty is bringing the Caribbean party vibe to Lusaka through their meals. Below, Denise shares a bit about her roots.

Home country: Jamaica

A word that describes you: Irie!

Traditional food craving: Too much to list! But if I have to choose, then ackee and salt fish, Jamaica’s national dish. That with some boiled green bananas, dumplings, and yellow yam – I would be in foodie heaven!

Favorite item in your kitchen: My electric pressure cooker. I am an impatient cook and I don’t like standing over a meal for hours. Anything that gets the job done quickly and still results in a good quality meal I am all for it!

If you could have 1 guest from anywhere in the world at your Jiranileo table, who would it be? A guess a fellow “yardie.” For us Jamaicans, food and music go hand in hand. Many friendships are formed over a good plate of food, a rum punch or two, and latest dance moves.

Passport meal guest review: “[I enjoyed] Meeting new people who were very diverse. And the food and explanation of how Jamaican food came about was great!” Rating of 5 smiles for the overall experience.

Follow our hosts on Instagram: @dndcaribbeancuisine.

Curious to try DnD’s Caribbean food in Lusaka? Visit our Book Now page to reserve your seat at their table.

If all you know about “Nigerian cuisine and culture” is “jollof and Nollywood”, then you have to eat with our newest host Kennedy to get the real story. As he says: “We even have Nigerian rice better than jollof.” (Wow. We want to know more!)

Home country: Nigeria

A word that describes you: Energetic!

Traditional food craving: Ewa agoyin and bread. Ewa agoyin is beans cooked with shrimp paste and palm oil, and is usually eaten for breakfast.

Favorite item in your kitchen: My knife! (Kennedy is a professionally trained chef.)

If you could have 1 guest from anywhere in the world at your Jiranileo table, who would it be? Jamie Oliver, the renowned chef.

Passport meal guest review: Coming soon!

Follow our hosts on Instagram: @leschef30bg

Curious to try Nigerian food in Lusaka? Visit our Book Now page to reserve your seat at his table.

Shadya is one of Zambia’s best kept culinary secrets. Although she left Tanzania and moved to Zambia many years ago, she still loves to cook meals with the Zanzibar spices of her home country and exudes the “karibu chakula” (welcome to eat) hospitality of Tanzania.

Home country: Tanzania

A word that describes you: Mpishi. (Anapenda kupika!) (Chef – She loves to cook!)

Traditional food craving: Ndizi mbivu, a delicious sweet banana dessert with Zanzibar spices.

Favorite item in your kitchen: The aroma of the spices.

If you could have 1 guest from anywhere in the world at your Jiranileo table, who would it be? Mama Samia Suluhu Hassan, the Republican President of Tanzania.

Passport meal guest review: Coming soon!

Follow our hosts on Instagram: @naabsfoods

Curious to try Zanzibari food in Lusaka? Visit our Book Now page to reserve your seat at her table.