Street food is my everyday option. Around Yaba  especially near UNILAG, Tejuosho, and bus stops  you’ll find akara sellers, noodles spots, rice and stew joints, shawarma stands, and small bukka setups. The food is cheap, fast, and filling. With street food, I can eat well with ₦500 - ₦1,500 and still have money for transport or data. It’s not fancy, but it understands student life. When I’m rushing for class or coming back tired, street food always comes through.

Café food is a different vibe entirely. Cafés around Yaba are nice, calm, and Instagram-friendly, but they’re not everyday food for me. The meals are cleaner, well-presented, and good for sit-down moments, assignments, or meeting friends. The downside is the price. One café meal can cost the same as two or three street food meals. As a student, that makes it more of a treat than a routine.

What I’ve learned is this: street food is for survival, café food is for comfort. Street food keeps me moving without draining my pocket, while café food is for days when I want peace, soft music, and no rush. Living in Yaba as a student means knowing when to choose which  because if you eat café food every day, your budget will not survive the semester.

In the end, street food feeds my stomach, café food feeds my mood  and most days, my stomach wins.