Foodie: Nairobi Restaurant Week 2017 Review

I have taken part in every Nairobi Restaurant Week (NRW) since its launch in 2014. I’d heard of the concept from different countries and wondered what it would be like if I got the chance to experience it. In my mind, I thought I would have to travel out of the country one day for this but the experience got a lot closer to home when EatOut announced there would be a Nairobi edition.

Does NRW happen at a convenient time? Not really as it happens towards the end of January. It has improved somewhat as it runs a little longer now (10 days) and into the first week of February when most people have received their January salary. It would probably do better later in the year but it’s probably advantegeous to the restaurants as they get to boost the numbers in January, which could be considered a slow month.

As always, I checked out the EatOut website for the particiapting restaurants and set out to pick the restaurants I would be trying out. I have to say that it was difficult to navigate as the list didn’t include menus. Some of the restaurants had their menus posted on their own site but most didn’t. I liked the option for a 2 course lunch at an affordable Ksh 950 with a 3 course dinner at Ksh 1950. There was also a 5 course dinner option at select restaurants at ksh 3950. Both dinner options came with a complimentary cocktail courtesy of Absolut whic was the title sponsor.

I tried out 3 places: 2 lunches and 1 dinner.

Nyama Mama (Yaya Centre)

I had heard of the place and even passed by it on my way to Sierra, but have never tried it out. I thought NRW would be a great opportunity to do so. The options for starters were ugali fries or lamb samosa with the main options being chicken tikka wrap and falafel wrap. I ordered the ugali fries and chicken tikka wrap with my date ordering the falafel wrap so we could get a taste of the whole menu. The ugali fries came with a tangy dipping sauce and were delicious. They were a bit dry though but quite filling. The lamb samosas were also quite delicious and came with a pineapple dip. For the main, I had the chicken tikka wrap with a side of kachumbari while my date had the falafel wrap. The chicken tikka wrap was great but also a little dry. My date didn’t like the falafel wrap and only ate half of it. I ordered a cocktail off their regular menu as they didn’t have the free cocktail offering. It wasn’t the best cocktail I’ve had and I felt it was way too small an amount especially as it cost Ksh 800.

The ambience is good, service okay, the creativity in the food is great and the presentation is great too. The cocktail was served in one of those enamel cups that remind me of upcountry visits to my grandma. Overall, I’d give my NRW experience here a 2.5/5.

Ocean Basket (The Oval)

This is one of my favourite restaurants and I was looking forward to try out the NRW dinner menu as I mostly have the platter when I go there. The options for starters were Rock Shrimp Tempura, Red Tuna Tartare and Green beans and melted haloumi salad. My date and I both had the Rock Shrimp Tempura and it was delicious. It was perfectly spicy and the portion was generous. The options for the main were Sesame crusted Tuna, Salmon and a Vegetable Curry. I had the Salmon with a side of Butternut mash and my date had the Tuna with vegetable rice. I enjoyed my meal very much and was surprised at how much I liked the Butternut mash. The salmon was cooked and seasoned well. My date liked the tuna which was a little too spicy for my liking but perfect for him. The dessert options were a scoop of icecream and affogato. We both had the affogato which is vanilla icecream with a shot of espresso. As it was dinner, we got two free Absolut cocktails – Havana Mojito and Chivas Collins.

The ambience is great, sevice great and food excellent. The cocktails weere nothing special though. Overall, I’d give my NRW experience here 4/5.

Urban Gourmet Burger (The Village Market)

I have to admit that this lunch was unplanned as we were actually looking for Doormans for a quick takeaway but found that the space had been taken up by Urban Gourmet Burger. It was the last day of NRW and I decided to take advantage of it. The NRW menu had onion rings and home fries for starter options and tonnes of burger options from cheese, chicken, lamb, veggie to falafel among others for the main with sides of fries or salad. I had the home fries for my starter and a chicken burger with a salad for my main. The meal was more delicious than I expected and quite filling and I had to takeaway my burger. We also happened to be there during happy hour which is a buy one get one free on beers and buy two get one free on cocktails.

The ambience was great, service great and food excellent. The cocktails were also really good. Overall, I’d give my NRW experience 4.5/5.

Nairobi Restaurant Week is always a culinary adventure. I would have liked to try out more places but time didn’t allow. There’s always next year and I’m looking forward to more variety and more experimental menus.