International Women's Day in Dakar: An Outing at Ge'eza

To mark International Women's Day, on 8 March, with colleagues or friends, Ge'eza, in Point E, works well for a shared lunch or dinner followed by a group coffee ceremony, at 7,000 F per person, ideally booked 24 hours ahead. Ge'eza does not announce any particular event for the date, and the house opens Tuesday to Sunday, 8am to 10pm: in 2027, 8 March falls on a Monday, the closing day, so the outing moves to Sunday 7 March or Tuesday 9 March onwards.

A meal built to be shared

8 March often falls on a weekday (a Monday in 2027, hence the case for Tuesday 9 March), which suits a lunch among colleagues or an evening dinner among friends just as well. Ethiopian food, served on injera and meant to be shared by hand, fits this kind of outing naturally: a beyaynetu, the seven fasting dishes gathered on one plate, from 7,000 F for one, or a meat dish such as doro wot at 9,000 F, placed in the middle of the table for everyone to share.

Booking for a group

Beyond six people, booking becomes essential, and beyond eight, it is worth also writing on WhatsApp at +221 78 660 07 07, in addition to the online form, so the team can set up the table properly. Booking a large table in Dakar covers the process in more detail depending on the size of the group.

The group coffee ceremony

To extend the moment, a group coffee ceremony closes a lunch or dinner among women particularly well. Green beans are washed and then pan-roasted in front of guests, who are invited to breathe in the smoke, before being ground by hand in a mortar and the coffee poured from height out of the jebena, in three rounds, Abol, Tona and Baraka. The full ceremony costs 7,000 F per person and lasts around 45 minutes. Booked ahead, ideally a day in advance for a group, it is then confirmed by WhatsApp. The coffee ceremony page walks through each step.

Stopping by the gallery

Before or after the meal, a stop at Ge'eza's gallery lets you see the works on display in the gallery lounge, on the same hours as the restaurant. For an 8 March outing, contemporary African women artists at Ge'eza gathers what is known about several women artists shown by the house, with no invented biography, worth reading before a visit.

Putting together a meal for a mixed group

The fasting dishes, all vegan and prepared without butter, sit naturally alongside the meat dishes on the same table, which makes things simple when a group brings together different tastes and diets. One or two beyaynetu in the middle, topped up with a meat dish for those who want one, and a few sambusas to start at 2,000 F for the meat version or 1,500 F for the lentil version, are often enough to put together a meal that suits everyone without ordering too many separate dishes.

Something to drink together

To go with the meal, the house juices, bissap, ginger or baobab (bouye), at 2,000 F, or an Ethiopian tea at 3,000 F, suit a daytime table well. In the evening, a spris at 6,000 F or a tej, Ethiopian honey wine, at 5,000 F, can close the meal before the coffee ceremony, for those who want one.

No event announced for the day

Ge'eza does not announce any event or special menu for 8 March: in 2027, that Monday is a closing day in any case. The house does offer regular formats, a bookable coffee ceremony, brunch and live music during exhibitions, tastings and maker markets, but nothing specific is planned for this particular date.

A format that works at lunch or in the evening

Depending on the group's schedule, the same format works just as well for a lunch among colleagues as for a dinner among friends. At midday, the meal tends to run shorter, which suits a break between meetings. In the evening, there is nothing stopping the group from taking its time, on the terrace under the trees or in the gallery lounge depending on the weather and the mood, to carry the conversation on after the coffee ceremony.

Pairing the meal with the gallery

The gallery lounge, where the house's works hang, sits in the same space as the dining room, which makes it easy to move from the meal to the gallery without changing venue. For a group of colleagues or friends who might not usually visit a gallery, this works at its own pace, with no guide or set commentary, simply stopping in front of whatever catches the eye.

Planning your visit

For an 8 March outing, it is worth booking a few days ahead, especially if the group goes beyond six people or wants a coffee ceremony after the meal. Giving the exact number of guests and any allergies at the time of booking, online or by WhatsApp, lets the team arrange the table and service without delay on the day. It also helps to say whether the group would rather sit on the terrace, in the gallery lounge or in the glass-roofed hall, so the space can be set up ahead of time rather than decided on the spot.