There, right next to the Angu go Gomes restaurant, Largo de São Francisco da Prainha number 13, was the spot where Casa de Zungu functioned in the 19th century. These kinds of houses were known for selling the same delicacies as the modern restaurant: angu, made of corn, which is similar to the ‘funge’ eaten until today in Angola. At the time, this square was at the edge of the sea, whose coast ended where today you can find Sacadura Cabral street. Take a look at the 1830 map: this was the beach!
Angu was served cheap to the longshoremen and freed slaves who littered the coastal region. Many of them worked in market stalls in the area between the Candelária and Harmonia markets. They were the grandparents of the street vendors who sell their wares here today.
According to the Passados Presentes project, the Zungu houses also functioned as boarding houses, where African descendants sang and practiced their religions. Because of this, they were eventually prohibited in the beginning of the 19th century.