Best Chapo in Nairobi!

Us foodies are not just about reviewing the restaurants you want to treat yourself to on a special occasion. We want you know know where the good, no, GREAT food is at in all sorts corners of the city! Quick tip to start you off this week! If you are a fanatic for chapos, you might wanna know where I have found the very best chaps available in this great city of ours. And no, I am not talkin' about your mother's or grandmother's ones (Yes, I went there).... Although I would love to contest bite-for-bite these with theirs :)

If you find yourself in the Westlands area somewhere near lunch time, I recommend you pass by Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI), on Waiyaki Way. You heard me right, I said KARI! They are perfection. I mean it! They are soft and have a sweetness to them that I have yet to have elsewhere. KARI actually has some really great and super affordable lunches ranging between 90KSH - 250 KSH. Njahe, stews, choma, liver fry, matumbo- all the greats with your choice of rice, chapo or ugali of course.  And all their ingredients are farm fresh - proteins included - given the nature of the institution's work! If you like your food salty, you will have to add some on your own, but otherwise, its my pick for quick, cheap meals on a tight lunch schedule.

But anyway, this entry is about CHAPATIS! The trick is to get there before 1:00pm because the food goes FAST - even the chapos. You can call in advance and make an order if you want to reserve a plate or place an order for 1, 2, or 7 chapo's for the week :) at 50KSH each its really worth it. TRUST!

Art Cafe: Lunch is better than Brunch!

They say breakfast is the most important meal of the day. I just think its the BEST meal of the day! Many world renown chefs of the highest level of training and skill say, "you can tell how skilled a chef is by their ability to cook an egg." Cooking it well, where the yolk is cooked, but still melts out when you cut into it, but the whites are fully cooked. No burning. no rubbery textures. maybe a little crunch around the edges. Its all about the mix of textures as well as flavors that your mouth can experience. For me, that is the greatest enjoyment about food.  They say the perfect egg is cooked in 6 minutes to achieve the that balance, that I have heard many chef's refer to as sexy!

In Nairobi, when you think about breakfast out of the house, where does your mind go? I used to first prefer Hong's Bakery. That has since been transformed into a Chinese restaurant/bar- no more buttery scones or perfectly seasoned chicken pies. Although I must say their eggs left much to be desired. Fried to a flat and crunchy. For most Nairobians, the institution of choice for breakfast (although make sure you get there before 10 on weekdays- strick time limit!) is Java House! We'll save comments for another day/review. On this particular morning, my foodie-pal and I just wanted something different. With time to kill (diverting the work day to a dining excursion), We headed out to Westgate to have brunch at Art Cafe. 

I had never been there for anything earlier than a lunch break, but was particularly interested this morning from a distinct recollection of the menu's listing of Eggs Benedict. Talk about a meal with layered flavors and textures. I was ready for it. The menu promised poached eggs on brioche with a hollandaise sauce. The platter was accompanied by a Mediteranian salad and 5-sauces. 

How did Art Cafe do on their egg skills? Well done I would say! The poaching was perfect. Well cooked egg whites, with solid yolks that broke beautifully when cut into. Just the way I like it! The hollandaise was deliciously prepared. You could taste the acidity of the lemon mixed with the creaminess of the butter and yokes used to make it. Well seasoned and just the right consistency to not run off the eggs but settle on it for a tasty bite! These two were by far the best components on the plate. The brioche was a terrible disappointment - especially considering the way that Art Cafe is well known for their in-house baking. It was completely soggy, and added no texture to the dish whatsoever. This says to me that it either that way too long in the window (read, service issues) or simply it was not prepared well. A great brioche will give you that textured crunch and be able to hold up the distance of plating to the table for at least the first few bites! Now on to the rest of the platter's let downs, that I had SO much hope for! The 5 sauces (as you can see) are not sauces at all. It lacked thought and creativity, and added no value to the conception of the dish. On my dish: Strawberry jam, tuna salad (yes! you read correct), olives, butter chunks and guacamole (which was not good). In my ideal world I would have been given a series of condiment sauces that would add additional layers of flavors and textures to the rich central component of the dish. Dishes should make sense, and you cannot fool someone when it doesn't- you don't have to be trained to feel like something is complete.  Add notes of chili, sweetness, or even some textured bites to it.  It simply lacked thought or cohesiveness to add anything to the dish. The salad also did not deliver.

I still cannot quite make out what made it Mediteranian. Was it the multi-colored bell peppers? or the olive oil? that's just not enough. It was a simple salad that was way too acidic to enjoy. Again, out of balance with the rest of the dish. In my ideal world that beautiful egg would have been perfect with a couple of well grilled sausages or some crispy bacon which, by the way, the management refuses to serve as a side order (one can only have sausages if its paired on the dish). Why the restriction? Not necessary at all! And actually, this savory addition would have made the meal much more filling and satisfying. In the end, I found myself spreading the 5-haphazard "sauces" on the multi-grain bread basket just to fill up. This was disappointing over all. My foodie-pal ordered the English breakfast. Her 5-"sauces" were even more random than mine, including  cubes of feta cheese. Her sentiments matched mine: The dish just wasn't filling. 

Overall, let me just say a few words on Art Cafe. First off, I am a huge fan. Although their food and services is not always consistent in what they present to you- their food is tasty and definitely leaves its clients wanting to come back for more. They have some of the tastiest pasta dishes: My favorite and most well flavored arabiata sauce in all of Nairobi (and I have tried nearly all). Their chicken pesto dish is just to die for. Not traditional in the italian cuisine sense, but an excellent interpretation mixing the classic flavors, with twists that let you know, this is not from an Italian restaurant. They have delicious burgers, and I am a huge huge fan of their chips (potatoes are also a special love of mine). Other memorable tasties from Art Cafe? Fabulous and fresh fruit infused sangria, chilled perfectly (not the sweetened pre-made bottled type- boooooo!). Perfect on a hot Sunday afternoon (served by the carafe). If you are a fan of heat: ask your server for some of their home made chili, served on the side. Hands down the best I have had in the city: a blended pure of chilis, garlic, dhania, vinegar and salt. I tried to taste out all the ingredients with our server. He said there is one secret I am missing. I love to add it to anything I order there: spread on the bun of a burger, mix into the pasta for an extra kick. Its a must try. 

In all let me sum up to say this: For breakfast, stick to Java. Art Cafe is best enjoyed for lunch, dinner or drinks! Would I go again? Absolutely... but for that chili paste and arabiata (I order mine with chicken, although not on the menu). 

Cheers and happy eating. 

Seven Seas: Consistency Will Make or Break You!

About 6 months ago a restaurant creeped up in ABC place, replacing a very hard to please Thai restaurant that was poorly matching prices with it's dishes. We used to work in the area, frequenting the ABC java house for lunch and let me tell you in the two years that I frequented that area, the Thai restaurant was open AND empty! Hmm.... So needless to say when construction began and finished we were eager to see of management (who to my knowledge remained the same) would get it better this time around with it's replacement, Seven Seas.

If you are a seafood lover, then it is indeed in your best interest to give this place a run for it's money. Seven Seas, hereby further refereed to as Seven, soon became a replacement for our lunch time catch-ups and even evening cocktails after work. Remember, part of our goal here (and similarly greatest dining frustrations are issues around consistency), if to go to each establishment re review at LEAST twice, if not more, to get a sense of their ability to deliver on a standard. Food, service...everything!

Where to begin with Seven. I think I may have tried close to everything on the menu! And I have to say, the Chef, ( who by the way, has an accent that can make you melt... Almost as if from new Zealand!) has put together some really fantastic dishes! For the most part , he has created palate pleasing dishes that capture perfect combinations of textures and flavors that compliment one another without blending together in a way that you miss out on getting tongue to twinge in it's different areas when your taste-buds recognize the sweet, tart, creamy, crunchy, chili notes that comprise each bite! It's really an enjoyable experience for a foodie.

Let's look at some specific dishes. Their "signature" crunchy fish and chips.depending on their catch of the day, the actual fillets used may vary. Most consistently in their preparation is rock cod. The dish delivers on it's promise. Well seasoned fish battered and fried for a crispy-crunchy covering, with almost a buttery-soft, lemon infused, fish-center. Their "secret ingredient" is not so secretive... Hello corn flakes! It's an obvious one, I mean you can see the entire flake fry-frozen into position on the fish. :) seven, you are fooling no one.  You do not need to squeeze the lemon on the top unless you like a little extra acidity to give it a bite.  Served primarily with chips (my favorite of most restaurants I've been to) are thin and crunchy.  Adding to the Seven "signature" style is a trio of sauces. There is a home-made chili aioli, made from a home roasted paprika and red bell pepper (delish); an oil-based herb sauce- which to the best of my palate's abilities is a combination of mint and parsley; and last but not least a roasted garlic cream sauce. They are great, and in my opinion are best slathered over the chips, as opposed to the main proteins which often are already well marinated and accompanied by their own home made tartar sauce or Bearnaise..... Perhaps the greatest weakness in this area is sauce OVERKILL. The staff provide no guidance on the intent behind the sauce options- how each one may bring out certain notes or what combinations are best served with a prawn, a fish or Squid. Which then leaves me to believe that they are not given much more thought then to be a bit of a fancy show off :)...yup, I said it. Keep in mind I love them, so I am not hating. But, I believe everything served should serve an intention for the diner.

The catch of the day is a standard menu option that is a hit or a miss depending on what day you go. There is no way to tell how successful it will be. (which begins the discussion of seven's greatest fault.... Consistency).  Sometimes the filet has skin, other times not. When it does, it does not get that fire-grilled crunch, and feels slimy and soft in the mouth. And even though very well seasoned, it is still a  Very unappealing experience. Insert here sauce overkill: there is the watered down version of the red-paprika sauce that the fish itself is marinated in, then the dish comes with a bearnaise accompaniment on the dish, and then the 3 sauces.  Another real hit or miss, more often a miss, is any chicken dish you choose. There are two: a grilled spring chicken and a chicken sandwich. The spring chicken (we ordered twice) each time came badly undercooked (blood and all) and it was more of a fall or winter chicken, if we are to make age an issue. The sandwich is a bit better, with a wonderful finely ringed onion fry on the top adding again the layers of texture to the dish, but when we come to seasoning, it seems to be prepared with two of the trio, which lacks creativity. Why give us more to add, if it's already there?

And I wouldn't suggest switching up the side-options. The chips are the way to go if flavor and freshness is priority for you. I, in my health conscious state of mind ordered their side of rice, which is a pilaf with vegetables. It would have been fantastic had the rice not been from two days ago. Ok, my timeline may be off but the key here is that it was NOT made that day. You could taste it, even in spite of the veges and seasoning. This was a bit of a disappointment. 

Each main dish comes with a side salad, which need lots more effort for it to be worth eating. I love salad. These ones clearly have no thought or intention attached to their preparation besides giving the patron more for their money. Its simply not worth it. The salad itself would not be so bad (it is jut a standard garden salad anyway), but its often soaking in vinegar, with a dash of oil. It has little to no taste except that it burns all the way down. More effort required in this department

            

Above from L-R : Trio of sauces, boring side salad and catch of the day with rice

The salads that clearly matter to the Chef are those you can order as a dish on the menu. I have also had quite a few of them. The seafood salad served with fennel and onion (too much onion, but great balance of acid with the fennel)' the duo of calamari (GREAT dish, but small portion, so make it a shared starter if you are very hungry) and the beetroot and feta cheese salad, sprinkled with sunflower seeds, and a lovely balsamic drizzle, this is by far my favorite salad on the menu. The mix of the creamy cheese with the acid of the balsamic vinaigrette and the sweetness of the beets. I could have this again and again.

Now....let's be real about seven's fatal flaws and I mean fatal because we stopped going, and now only go when a craving for the crunchy fish and chips is too great to tame or ignore.  Consistency. In what area's? Almost all. seven has fantastic cocktail menu. And they used to have a Thursday buy one get one free  offer, which I guess they didn't plan well for because it stooped and even before it stopped, one night we were there and cut off! (our office had some drinkers! Present company not withstanding). It doesn't seem like Seven is trying to be that kind of a place, where you can sit around after work at the bar with cocktails and bitings (no biting on the menu) and if that is the case, then it all makes sense, otherwise its just bad manners.

Then the service. It's either fantastic, too over-the-top friendliness or, so-slow-you-want-to-throw-the-trio-of-sauces-at-homeboy-with-the-short-tie FRUSTRATING!!! Actually there is one serever in particular, me thinks his mama dropped him a lot. He should now be in front of the house. Let him do prep in the back. If consistency in food preparation is also important to you, then seven is not for you to frequent. Like I said, hit or miss. Seven you need to step up your game here because this is enough for us and others to no longer recommend your restaurant. but MAJOR SHOUT OUTS go to one server named Kariuki. He goes above and beyond the call. He describes and recommends dishes well, is a very responsive server without EVER being over the top in your face too much. He is another reason I would go back. He treats all his customers like they value their dining experience highly. Well done Kariuki!!! help your brother who is a hot mess... You know who I am referring to.

Lastly but not lastly... The menu. It is very limited. Chef, can we get a daily specials option at least? I think after just a handful of visits in had exhausted my variety, hence my need to go only when the chips are calling my name.

I have to say we had SUCH high hopes for Seven.... You don't even know. It was an affordable and casual fine dining concept that delivered such tasty food! For the first two months of it being opened, we could not STOP telling the chef (who does drive-by's to the tables to see how you are enjoying the meal: Brownie points on customer service!) how fabulous and enjoyable the meal was. Then down the slope we all went as consistency dropped.  Its not too late to tighten things up though, and that coupled with a specials menu would make Seven a prime dining experience over all.... for now, its just nice for very specific things once in a while. 

So in sum for Seven...
Food: worth trying but lacks variety or consistency in some areas
Drinks: fantastic
Service: get it together! shoe-throwing may be necessary, especially if you get one brotha in particular, I think arrived from shags just the other day
Cost: lunch is fair dinner is not worth it
Ambiance: cool and trendy
Chef's accent: yummy!
Would we go back?  If Kariuki is the server, and the craving for chips hits... Yes.