When people in southern Africa think seafood, Maputo is one of the first cities that comes to mind. The city combines the best flavors of Portuguese cooking along with some African flair to create a culinary experience like no other. While you could just go down to the big fish market and get everything you need, sometimes it’s better to go to a nice restaurant. From classic prawn spots by the water to elegant dining, here are the best places to get seafood in Maputo.

Sagres Shellfish Restaurant

This restaurant is known for its quality seafood and is one of the best examples of a traditional Portuguese restaurant in the city. The huge lobsters are a restaurant favorite, and the octopus salad is some of the freshest you’ll ever have. While the restaurant is a bit pricey, the food is well worth it.

Zambi

For fine dining, it doesn’t get much better than Zambi, located just a few meters from Maputo Bay. The restaurant specializes in seafood and has a large selection of mouth-watering dishes like langostine sashimi, crab samosas, seared tuna steak, and piri piri prawns. The classy interior has a large indoor seating area, which is perfect for hosting a large group of people.

MarNaBrassa

Portuguese for ‘grilled from the sea,’ MarNaBrassa is another local favorite and one of the best places to get prawns in the city. The restaurant lets you pick out your prawns from queen, king and tiger prawns — some measuring about a foot from head to tail. The restaurant also pays strong attention to detail, and the red and black decor is relaxing after a long day in the city.

Manjar dos Deuses

This lovely Italian restaurant is one of the best in the city, and while it has all kinds of items on the menu, it’s particularly known for its seafood. In fact, many locals consider the restaurant to have the best prawns in the city. Some of the best items on the menu are of course, the Mozambican prawns, along with the grilled calamari.

Casa do Peixe

Located right on Maputo Bay, this restaurant is the perfect place for a date and slings out good seafood all day long. The outdoor area is the best place to eat and offers a cool breeze coming in from the bay. There’s all kinds of seafood by the kilo on the menu which you can hand pick, including fresh fish, lobster, squid, clams, and more yummy options. 

Maputo Waterfront

This conveniently situated restaurant might have the best view in the city, but it’s not the only reason foodies flock here. The restaurant features a daily lunch buffet with fish curry soup, filet of fish, grilled calamari steak, and more, along with plenty of other items that can be ordered from the menu. Many people prefer to go all out and get the seafood platter, which includes fresh snapper, prawns, calamari and crayfish.

Delagoa

This French restaurant is one of the nicest in the city (and also one of the most expensive), but the food on offer is well worth it. The seafood is particularly good and offers everything from lobster tail with pumpkin veloute, to cumin-spiced fish, to crab ravioli. The chefs at Delagao have been trained by the two-star Michelin chef, Edouard Loubat, so you know the food is going to be top notch.

Miramar

Located on the Maputo coastline, Miramar might have something to say about which restaurant has the best view in the city. Some of the best items on the menu include the grilled redfish, which is cooked head-on with the skin, bones and scales intact. Other delicious entrees include butterfly fish, combo platters with Portuguese steak, and a Bubba Gump-esque selection of prawns, cooked just about any way you can think of.

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