(The masjid itself has pulled up stakes, but as of 2014 the occasional vendor still sets up out front.) The ladies in attendance at the folding tables outside the mosque sell a hodgepodge of merchandise and snacks, most with West African roots.
During a recent Ramadan visit the selection included not only the millet couscous dessert called thiakry but also two other porridgelike choices, one boasting larger millet couscous pearls and another made with corn ($2). Served warm, this "moni" (spelling mine) bore a passing resemblance to chaca, but unlike that and other Dominican sweets, my moni contained little sugar and no cinnamon, cloves, or similar spices, just a hint of vanilla. For that matter the kernels of corn, some of which had coalesced into marble-size lumps, had only a faint flavor themselves.
Previously: At the golden yellow, semi-ripe, khalal stage, barhi dates (a dozen or so for $2) are crisp, like an apple. These had been hand-bagged elsewhere, so regarding their source I had only the vendor's words — "South Arabia" — to go on. Perhaps she meant Yemen. Boxes of these yellow barhi dates sometimes wear a Southern California label, too. I've also sampled two-bite breads (four for $1) with a bare trace of banana flavor. If banana is your thing, be sure not to confuse these with the small spherical "flour" cakes.
Tables Outside Masjid Aqsa
2136 Frederick Douglass Blvd. (115th-116th Sts.), Manhattan
Late morning till dusk
