kwasi sarpong

Review of Carnivore Nairobi

Now, this is a serious place!! These people have t...

Now, this is a serious place!! These people have the biggest barbecue grill I ever saw. And I've seen some in my short time on earth.

First, the environment and ambience... It's tucked behind their sister hotel, the Tamarind Tree, which is itself an excellent hotel (that's subject for a separate review). Carnivore is a deliberately cozy place that gets a "natural, rural" ambience just right. It's a perfect reflection of the spirit of Kenya with it's many parks filled with a wondrous variety of wildlife. It's set away from the hustle and bustle of the city, but still close enough to be easily accessible. The greenery is an excellent touch and, again, in sync with the Kenyan experience.

The service. Oh, Lord! Where do I start from?! Let me open with "excellent!!" Carnivore is run by a particularly helpful and respectful staff. As soon as one steps in, they envelope you with warmth. They bend over backwards to make you feel at home. They take their time to answer questions and explain the exotic theme that you're experiencing, if you ask them. When I was there with a bunch of Sub-Saharan African scholars and Civil Society reps, they 'conveniently' forgot to explain that as soon as you came in, Carnivore was at "war" with you. Their objective is to feed you a wild assortment of meat and to do so in great quantum until you surrender by knocking over the flag on your table.

And the food was good!! They opened proceedings with this heavenly soup. All along, some nice fellow walked from table to table putting together this beautiful cocktail called "dawa" for any who were interested. I took mine with a shot of vodka.
The meat is served on hot cast-iron plates. The folks there carry the meat to your table on these big swords and carve unto your plate until you tell them to move along. They helpfully indicate which of the sauces (by now there is already a variety on the table) go with what meat. And you should listen to them.

There is no way that I can do Carnivore enough justice with this review. I am not a linguistically gifted mortal. I'd just say, if you happen to be in Nairobi for any reason, and you want a memorable experience, you may want to put Carnivore on the itinerary.