Food & Drink

"Grog" Etiquette

Known as kava elsewhere in the South Pacific, the slightly narcotic drink Fijians call yaqona (yong-gona) or "grog" rivals Fiji Bitter beer as the national drink. You will likely have half a coconut shell of grog offered -- if not shoved in your face -- beginning at your hotel's reception desk. Fiji has more "grog shops" than bars.

And thanks to the promotion of kavalactone, the active ingredient, as a health-food answer to stress and insomnia in the United States and elsewhere, growing the root is an important part of the economy in the South Pacific. When fears surfaced a few years ago that kava could be linked to liver disease, locals commented that if that was true, then there would be few healthy livers in Fiji!

Yaqona has always played an important ceremonial role in Fijian life. No significant occasion takes place without it, and a sevusevu (welcoming) ceremony is usually held for tour groups visiting Fijian villages. Mats are placed on the floor, the participants gather around in a circle, and the yaqona roots are mixed with water and strained through coconut husks into a large carved wooden bowl, called a tanoa.

The ranking chief sits next to the tanoa during the welcoming ceremony. He extends in the direction of the guest of honor a cowrie shell attached to one leg of the bowl by a cord of woven coconut fiber. It's extremely impolite to cross the plane of the cord once it has been extended.

The guest of honor (in this case your tour guide) then offers a gift to the village (a kilogram or two of dried grog roots will do these days) and makes a speech explaining the purpose of his visit. The chief then passes the first cup of yaqona to the guest of honor, who claps once, takes the cup in both hands, and gulps down the entire cup of sawdust-tasting liquid in one swallow. Everyone else then claps three times.

Next, each chief drinks a cup, clapping once before bolting it down. Again, everyone else claps three times after each cup is drained. Except for the clapping and formal speeches, everyone remains silent throughout the ceremony, a tradition easily understood considering kava's numbing effect on the lips and tongue.

Don't Miss a Meke

Like most South Pacific islanders, the Fijians in pre-European days steamed their food in an earth oven, known here as a lovo. They would use their fingers to eat the huge feasts (mekes) that emerged, then would settle down to watch traditional dancing and perhaps polish off a few cups of yaqona.

The ingredients of a lovo meal are buaka (pig), doa (chicken), ika (fish), mana (lobster), moci (river shrimp), kai (freshwater mussels), and various vegetables, such as dense dalo (taro root), spinachlike rourou (taro leaves), and lumi (seaweed). Most dishes are cooked in sweet lolo (coconut milk). The most plentiful fish is the walu, or Spanish mackerel.

Fijians also make delicious kokoda (ko-kon-da), their version of fresh fish marinated in lime juice and mixed with fresh vegetables and coconut milk. Another Fijian specialty is palusami, a rich combination of meat or fish baked in banana leaves or foil with onions, taro leaves, and coconut milk.

Most resort hotels have mekes on their schedule of weekly events. Traditional Fijian dance shows follow the meals. Unlike the fast, hip-swinging, suggestive dancing of Tahiti and the Cook Islands, Fijians follow the custom of the Samoas and Tonga, with gentle movements taking second place to the harmony of their voices. Only in the spear-waving war dances do you see much action.