Nothing beats an indigenous cuisine made and served in an ‘asanka’ (earthenware bowl). Asanka Local is a Ghanaian eatery that serves all kinds of locally-made dishes for all pocket sizes. Located at Osu, a prime area in the Greater Accra region, this local restaurant has provided people with nutritional meals for more than a decade.

Asanka Local occupies a vast area that can accommodate over 100 people at a time. Its menu includes dishes such as ‘fufuo ne ebubu ebubu nkwan’, ‘waakye’, ‘ampesie ne abomu’, and ‘omotuo ne nkatenkwan’. Due to the local menu, waiters are trained to assist customers who may be unfamiliar with Ghanaian food. In some instances, customers are offered a variety of foods to choose from. Asanka Local opens at 8 am every day of the week. The restaurant features a bar and its services include dine-in, table service, and takeout.
Eating local foods has proven to have many health, environmental, economic, and social benefits. Research shows that the antioxidants from foods are very important in fighting reactive molecules called free radicals that contribute to disease. Locally produced food usually doesn’t have to travel very far or sit in storage for long. This allows it to retain most of its nutrients, benefiting the health of consumers.

Furthermore, patronizing local food may boost the local economy. This is so because local businesses provide jobs for citizens who in turn pay taxes for national development. Business owners and employees are more likely to cycle their incomes back into other local stores and institutions. Hence, money is likely to continue to circulate within the local economy.

Local foods support healthier ecosystems. Patronizing local food supports farmers to maintain green spaces in a country. Local farms that use sustainable practices help boost biodiversity, promote clean air, water, and soil, and protect pollinators vital to healthy ecosystems. Plus, a lot of local foods, especially farm produce, are sold without packaging. This leads to less waste, particularly in plastic packaging.

Eating local means enjoying more locally produced foods from farmers and producers in your community. You might also want to do it the local way- eating from an ‘asanka’ with a clean hand.

REFERENCE

Information from https://viewghana.com/restaurants/asanka-local/, https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/why-eat-local-food#4.-Purchasing-local-food-benefits-the-environment and https://www.pulse.com.gh/lifestyle/food-travel/best-restaurants-in-ghana-these-are-the-best-5-local-restaurants-in-accra/dvvvhq4 was used in this story