The covered market on Place du Coq is the best place in Cayenne to understand the city's food cultures. Hmong farmers from the inland villages of Cacao and Javouhey sell pak choi, lemongrass and pineapples; Creole stalls dish out bouillon d'awara and blaff of fish; Brazilian vendors fry coxinha. Spices, dried shrimp and bottles of homemade pepper sauce fill the back tables.
Come for breakfast on a Wednesday, Friday or Saturday morning — the busiest days — and order a bowl of Vietnamese pho from one of the Hmong stalls, a Cayenne speciality you would not expect. The market winds down by lunchtime.