The Mercado do Peixe on the Costa do Sol is a Maputo institution and the city's best-value seafood experience. Pick your fish, prawns or lobster from the morning's catch at one of the long marble counters; pay by weight; then carry the bag across the courtyard to one of the small restaurants ringing the market, where they will grill or fry the lot for a small cooking fee. Add a salad, a plate of xima and a Laurentina, and you have a feast for half the restaurant price.
It is busiest at lunchtime on weekends, when extended families take over the longer tables. Most cooks come from the surrounding fishing community and know what they are doing. The market is about 8 km north-east of the centre — a taxi from Polana takes 15 minutes in light traffic.