Foodies, listen up! If you’re anywhere near Independence Square today, Dec. 26, 2025, (or wishing you were), Ghana is dishing out the ultimate holiday treat at Taste the Culture: A Black Star Experience.

This massive celebration is happening right now – think steaming bowls of fufu paired with rich peanut or palm nut soup, fiery jollof rice debates, grilled tilapia straight from the coast, and spicy kelewele that’ll make your taste buds dance. It’s not just food; it’s a full immersion into Ghanaian heritage with live music, bold fashion showcases, and that unbeatable festive energy.

Headliners like Nigerian star Omah Lay, alongside Ghana’s own Gyakie and King Promise, are blending Afrobeats with highlife classics, while vendors sling authentic eats that highlight our rich culinary roots. Pro tip: Go for the mixed soups on your fufu (peanut butter meets palm nut – trust us, it’s life-changing), and don’t skip the street-style waakye or red red with plantains. Sustainable vibes are strong too, with eco-friendly stalls promoting local ingredients and zero-waste goals.

Detty December’s food game is on fire across the country – from Accra’s buzzing street vendors to regional pop-ups.

Earlier hits like the Ghana Food Festival (Dec 5-6) and Gastro Feastival showcased everything from vegan twists on classics to farm-to-table fusions. Now, as we wind down the month, spots like Labadi Beach and Osu are packed with roadside grills and chill spots perfect for late-night bites.

Whether you’re a diaspora returnee craving home flavors or a global traveler hunting authentic eats, Ghana’s December menu is unbeatable: hearty, spicy, and full of soul. Pair it with fresh coconut water or a cold Star beer, and you’ve got the perfect festive fuel.

Hungry yet? Dive in – the flavors of Ghana are calling! #TasteGH

Accra’s street food scene in 2025 is not merely a culinary attraction—it is a living, breathing expression of the city’s rhythm, resilience and identity.

As Ghana continues to position itself as a global cultural and tourism hub, especially during the December-in-GH season, the capital’s roadside kitchens remain one of its most powerful ambassadors to the world.

From sunrise porridge joints to midnight grills glowing under yellow bulbs, Accra’s streets tell their story through food—loud, spicy and unapologetically communal.

Where chaos meets cuisine

Eating on the streets of Accra is an immersive experience. Vendors serve customers amid traffic fumes, prayer chants, trotro horns and mobile money alerts. In 2025, rising food prices and shrinking portions have changed the economics, but not the passion. Nearly every vendor now accepts digital payments, and queues remain the most reliable indicator of quality.

For locals and visitors alike, the tour is less about comfort and more about authenticity—an unfiltered look at how the city eats, survives and celebrates itself.

Waakye, jollof and national pride

At the heart of the street food culture is waakye, Ghana’s iconic rice-and-beans dish that doubles as a social equaliser. Served with shito, gari, eggs, spaghetti and fried plantain, waakye remains a staple of daily life and public debate. Nearby, jollof rice continues to fuel West Africa’s most famous culinary rivalry, with Ghana’s smoky, coal-pot version holding firm ground against Nigerian claims.

Both dishes reflect more than taste—they represent heritage, competition and national pride.

Spice, smoke and survival food

Kelewele—spiced fried plantain—remains a favourite night snack, while fried yam with shito has evolved into what many jokingly call “poverty gourmet”: simple, affordable and deeply satisfying. Chofi (deep-fried turkey tail) and chinchinga (seasoned meat skewers) cater to the bold, drawing night workers, partygoers and late commuters.

Banku and tilapia, often described as street food royalty, still reign supreme. Served roadside on plastic chairs, the dish blurs the line between informal dining and cultural ritual.

Morning fuel and seasonal staples

At dawn, Hausa koko and koose power Accra’s workforce, from market women to students. Red Red—beans cooked in palm oil with fried plantain—offers comfort and nostalgia, while roasted corn and Kofi Brokeman (roasted plantain with groundnuts) mark the rainy season and the daily commute.

Street drinks such as sobolo, asana and iced kenkey complete the experience, cooling mouths scorched by pepper and spice.

More than food

In 2025, Accra’s street food remains a social institution. Conversations about politics, football, fuel prices and family life unfold over shared plates. It is one of the few spaces where class distinctions blur and community takes precedence.

For Ghana’s growing number of international visitors, the street food scene offers something no luxury restaurant can: an honest taste of the city’s soul.

As Accra continues its rise on the global cultural map, its streets remain the real parliament—where the nation debates, survives and eats together.

Nearly three years after travel-tips blogs advised commuters on how to “avoid traffic” in Ghana’s capital by planning around peak hours and asking locals for back-route shortcuts, Accra in 2025 remains a city deeply gripped by congestion — with broader implications for the economy, quality of life and long-term development.

Traffic in Accra has long been shaped by rapid urban growth, infrastructural strain and rising car ownership — conditions that persist today.

Peak congestion still occurs during weekday morning and evening rush hours, particularly along key arteries such as the Spintex–Coca Cola Roundabout, Madina Zongo Junction and the Circle Interchange — areas where stand-still conditions are routine.

Practical Advice Meets Persistent Challenges

Earlier guides encouraged commuters to travel outside peak times, use bicycles or ask locals for lesser-known routes to save time. While these approaches still help individuals eke out time savings, they highlight the individualized nature of coping strategies in the absence of systemic solutions — and the limits of that patchwork approach.

“Knowing which hours to avoid and which inner roads can bypass congestion does help — but the fundamental problem is structural,” says Dr. Emmanuel Gyamfi, transport planner and lecturer at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. “Without coordinated public transport and road-network upgrades, you’re treating the symptom, not the disease.”

Real Impacts on Costs and Productivity

Traffic isn’t just a commuter irritant — it’s an economic drag. Congestion increases delivery times, raises fuel consumption and contributes to higher goods prices, especially for markets and small traders.

Recent analysis shows transport costs directly affect retail prices in Accra’s major markets, absorbing labour and fuel costs into consumer prices.

Beyond the price tag, long travel times lower productivity and reduce discretionary income. A 2025 study by the Ghana Institute of Urban Studies estimates that time lost in gridlock costs commuters billions of cedis annually in combined productivity and fuel waste — a burden felt most severely by low- and middle-income workers. Traffic is thus not merely a quality-of-life issue — it’s a macroeconomic one.

Government Interventions: Progress and Limits

Both local and national authorities have moved beyond individual tips and into policy responses:

• Decongestion campaigns: The Accra Metropolitan Assembly has committed to sustained operations reclaiming public road space from unauthorized vendors and street obstructions — a major source of bottlenecks in the downtown CBD and market zones.
• Public transport expansion: The Transport Ministry recently deployed buses along four major corridors to ease peak-hour congestion — a tactical step toward reducing reliance on private cars.
• Smart mobility systems: Emerging smart traffic management pilot programs are testing real-time signal adjustments and data analytics to smooth flows at key junctions, mirroring innovations cities like Kigali and Nairobi are deploying.

Despite these efforts, gridlock persists. Roadworks associated with expansion projects such as the Accra-Tema Motorway and Tetteh Quarshie Interchange, while promising long-term benefits, have temporarily reduced lanes and complicated travel for commuters through 2025.

Experts Call for a Shift in Strategy

Urban planners argue that piecemeal fixes will fall short without a more systemic transformation:

• Modern mass transit: Integrated Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) and phased light-rail systems would absorb many private vehicles off the road — easing congestion and lowering emissions.
• Land-use and planning coordination: Aligning residential, commercial and transit planning can reduce the need for long commutes altogether.
• Enforcement and discipline: Stronger traffic law enforcement and driver education could mitigate unsafe behaviours that exacerbate jams.

“Commuting habits and local knowledge only go so far,” notes Dr. Gyamfi. “Real change requires strategic investment in transportation infrastructure and enforcement — combined with data-driven traffic control.”

Looking Ahead

As Accra continues to expand — fuelled by both rural-urban migration and sustained demographic growth — traffic management will remain both a transportation and development priority.

The solutions of 2025 blend innovation with investment, and community awareness with structural reform.

For residents and businesses alike, the message is clear: traffic is not just an inconvenience — it is an urgent economic and planning challenge.