Kigali Restaurant Reviews

Rwanda News

2012-02-11T03:18:00.000-08:00

Hello once again. It's been while, but I wanted to spread the word about some Rwanda news.

Jay Rayner - one of my favourite food writers - and baker Ruth Clemens are coming to Rwanda with Save the Children UK to raise awareness of childhood hunger and malnutrition.

You can find out more here.

You can also follow Jay's visit on Twitter @jayrayner1

In the meantime, I'm currently blogging at nairobichoma.blogspot.com. I'm still in Kigali fairly frequently, and hope to tie up a few loose ends on Kigali Restaurant Reviews soon.

"Dr Cat is disillusioned with / a new cloud arriving"

2010-07-10T09:05:00.000-07:00

Indian Chef
For work reasons, I used to live in Hemel Hempstead. For those unfamiliar with 'Hemel', it is one of those joyless over planned Home Counties bumhole towns. The natives - Hemeloids - like to spend their time shrieking at each other, fighting outside pubs, and eating at Indian Restaurants. Hemel has more Indian restaurants than trees, and they seem to multiply faster than rabbits. Some are good, mostly they're bad.

Kigali isn't a joyless over planned bumhole town. The planners haven't quite finished yet. However, it still has more than its fair share of Indian restaurants. According to one Ugandan Asian of my acquaintance this is because East African Asians are better at doing business than they are at making pizzas. From what I've tried at Kigali's various Indian restaurants, they're better at doing business than they are at cooking curries too.

Indian Chef has a pleasant enough setting behind the Diplomat hotel, snuggled in the valley behind the parliament. The Surfer and I sit outdoors and are immediately surrounded by a circle of hovering obsequiousness. This is increasingly common in Kigali restaurants as owners and managers overcompensate in an effort to overcome Kigali's reputation for crap service. The result is that diners feel pressured into ordering quickly, ruining the relaxed flow of a good restaurant meal.

Like other Indian Restaurants in Kigali the menu here is too long, and includes some unlikely dishes which you just know the chef can't manage. Chinese dishes creep in at the edges, and cock-a-leekie soup even makes an appearance.

Sweet Jesus. Cock-a-leekie soup? At which stage in the writing of the menu did the chef sneak this one in?

Poppadums and so on are fairly run of the mill, and for some reason we're plied with salt and vinegar crisps. The Surfer orders a vegetable curry and asks for a little additional heat. I write 'vegetable curry' as the finished result is so generic that it is hard to remember what the original order was. The 'additional heat' comes in the form of raw green chillies stirred into the cooked curry at the end. They impart little of their heat to the sauce, but deliver eye-watering explosive surprises.

My chicken biriyani looks promising, but is spoilt by a slightly rancid flavour (bad ghee or cooking oil?) permeating the dish. The accompanying yoghurts and pickles are OK, but do little to hide the problem.

Oddly enough, the side dishes that The Surfer and I share are top notch. Garlic nan is light and fresh out of the oven, and cumin rice is well cooked and perfectly seasoned and spiced - we even decide to box up the remains for dinner the next day. I order a kulcha, but am eventually served something else entirely. This doesn't prove to be a problem, as the something else entirely is a feather light flatbread, slightly moist and flaky, tasting somewhere between a roti and a chapathi. The staff insist it is a kulcha, even though it is nothing of the sort.

Staff are friendly and attentive. Our young waiter engages us in a bit of chat about our time in Rwanda. Asked if we've learned any Kinyarwanda words, The Surfer leans over and whispers "Amabere" in his ear, and we watch him go spinning and giggling in embarrassment across the restaurant.

The owners hover a bit at the end, chatting about football and food. They keep shaking my hand and fishing for opinions, and it dawns on me that I've been rumbled. This happens occasionally, and is always a bit awkward. They hand me a suggestions book, which I sign as The Jiffler.

Diplomat Hotel Website

He's the one who likes all our pretty songs

2010-05-02T06:30:00.000-07:00

The Don leans over and expels smoke from the side of his mouth.

"This is no place for men like us to talk. I know somewhere we can go and have rotating chicken".

A taxi ride away in Kimironko, we draw up outside the Bloom Hotel. The restaurant has a tin roof that rattles loudly under the rain. We won't be overheard. The Bloom Hotel does a 6,000 RwF rodizio menu at the weekends. Good Idea.

With Waragi procured, the Don grunts at the waiter "Bring me that Kenyan". The Kenyan arrives and we negotiate ugali and sukuma wiki on the side to keep The Philosopher happy.

"This is Brazilian Nyama Choma" I explain to general indifference.

It's not bad to be fair. The place is scruffy and simple enough to resemble a proper churrascaria and the grill is a fairly authentic looking piece of kit. There are no feijao or farofa though, and the choice of meat is limited to goat, chicken and cubes of lovely salty beef. We finish with huge chunks of grilled pineapple covered in cinnamon and lean back in our chairs to pick our teeth.

"I think I'd like it in Brazil" muses the philosopher.

Bloom Hotel Website

Yeah, there's a great truth you should know

2010-05-02T06:13:00.000-07:00

Select is a proper restaurant. It is a cocktails in the bar, lashings of red wine, three courses, cigars and brandy restaurant. It is also, for Kigali, a bit on the pricey side (read: London mid-range pricing). If anything this improves the place somewhat, as it keeps out the young-gifted-&-white riff-raff who think it's acceptable to go out to dinner wearing flip-flops and a t-shirt with writing on. Instead you'll find senior civil servants, perhaps a politician or two, sharp-suited business men, and clean-shirted expats who don't wear baseball caps at the table.

There is a nice view of the city, as is compulsory these days, and the whole place is comfortably elegant. You know you're in a serious restaurant, but there is none of the stiff formality.

Most of the food is sourced locally, but a fair bit is air-freighted from Europe or the Swahili coast. I know this is naughty, but look at the menu: monster prawns, scallops, sea bass, Dover sole... and if you want to be really naughty you can order melt in the mouth foie gras.

Most dishes on the menu are European classics. Goat cheese tart is far better than it should be, and beef carpaccio is precise but perhaps a little too delicate on flavour. Did I mention the foie gras? Mains are pretty robust - how about a fatty, juicy heft of pork shoulder that is practically hanging of the plate (according to the owner, this is rapidly becoming Select's signature dish)? Coq au vin is traditional and without a trace of poulet bicyclette, and prawns comes as big as your hand. Oh yeah - the chips are good too.

The staff are charming and efficient. There's no need to double fist your Mutzigs here as the service is prompt and attentive without being pushy or lurking. The owner, Michel, has run restaurants around the world and welcomes you self-deprecatingly, while the head chef acts as his foil, making sure no lady's hand goes unkissed. A tour of the impressive kitchen reveals a relaxed and smiling team who believe in what they are doing.

Book a table. Go. Wear your best shoes.

Select Website

'Cause, this is where the one who knows / Meets the one who does not care

2010-03-16T23:11:00.000-07:00

Located behind the Union Trade Centre, Blues Cafe is a knock off of Bourbon Cafe only with a much lower population density of 21 year old white girls.

Oh yeah - that reminds me - have a look at this if you fancy a giggle.

Blues Cafe seems like a good spot to grab something quick on a Sunday afternoon. The menu is again familiar from Bourbon Cafe, with addition of a few burgers, and one of my favourite guilty pleasures - the Rolex (an omelette rolled up inside a chapathi. It was the clandestine consumption of these during extensive fieldwork in Kenya in the late 90's that kept me from strangling several of my colleagues and throwing them into the latrine. Anyhow, we'll leave that for the memoirs).

Eschewing the Rolex I opt for a Tramezzini, more to annoy myself than anything because:
a/ Tramezzini is the plural. How annoying. Not as annoying as 'Expresso', but getting there
b/ Tramezzino basically means 'sandwich' in Italian. It's a club sandwich for god's sake. Sure enough a pizza is a pizza and pasta is pasta, but a sandwich is a sandwich in English. You wouldn't order fagioli su pane tostato oustide of Italy. Actually you wouldn't order it inside Italy either. Can you imagine the mess they'd make of it there? There would be all manner of garlic and parmesan nonsense.

My companion, The Philosopher orders a chicken burger. We order large glasses of slightly sweetened fresh fruit cocktail, and settle in for a discussion of Kenyan constitutional reform. Settle in for an hour and fifteen minutes before we see our food. Add to this another 5 minutes for knives and forks to arrive, the request for which proves difficult to understand, despite being made clearly and slowly in six different languages (not Italian though maybe that's the problem).

So the tramezzino is alright. Chicken pieces are slightly curried and covered in a sort of pink approximation of marie-rose sauce (Yeah, me neither). There are bits of avocado. I like avocado.

What is the plural of avocado? Avocadi or avocados? Answers on the back of a voting slip please.

The philosopher seems more puzzled by his burger. It's foundation is a not insubstantial breast of poulet-bicyclette, but it is the fried egg sitting atop that is causing consternation.

"I'm not sure I should be eating chicken and egg at the same time" remarks the philosopher, frowning.

I see where he's going with this and ask: "Would you eat beef and milk at the same time?".

"No. That would be ridiculous".

"OK..."

"I mean, you have to leave a little bit of something don't you? Something for the chicken".

Like I say. The Philosopher.

Blues Cafe
Behind the Union Trade Centre
Tel: 078832366

So spill your breakfast and drip your wine, just wear that dress when you dine.

2010-03-08T08:17:00.000-08:00

Despite once drunkenly claiming it to be 'the best restaurant in Kigali', I don't go to New Cactus often enough. I think this is mainly because I can never find it in the dark.

The view here rivals the best of Kigali views, so it is a shame that it is hidden from most of the tables. A quick natter with Christophe - a charming waiter/front of house - secures us a decent view on the lawn, and boozy refreshments are delivered swiftly.

Shared Triangles of deep fried pastry-wrapped goats cheese and bacon dipped in honey are something of a taste sensation here, and disappear quickly. Massive avocado halves are let down slightly by a too heavy hand with the vinaigrette. Mushrooms on toast are from a tin, so avoid these.

Veal Cordon Bleu comes fist-sized (that's big - my hands are somewhat agricultural) and swimming in a rich cheese sauce which invites the dipping of perfect chips. Veg is that usual peculiar melange of frozen peas&brocolli&carrot a la Chez Lando.

After an initial confusion of orders, a steak arrives at our table shrunken and practically burnt rather than rare as requested. The Atilla the Hun of Restaurant feedback sends it back, and sure enough a properly cooked version swiftly appears along with an offer of extra chips.

So a screw-up then, but one quickly rectified and accompanied by all sorts of apologetic genuflection. How often do you find that in a Kigali restaurant? Complaints are usually met with an indifferent Sarkozy-esque shrug and a partial admission of responsibility...

New Cactus
Kayuku Street, Kiyovu I think...
Tel: +250252572572

Ooh, baby, do you know what that's worth?

2010-02-28T02:37:00.000-08:00

Tripadvisor still rates Heaven Restaurant as the number one in Rwanda, a statistic which Heaven proudly quotes on their website. Perhaps the casual diner would prefer to hear the views of the general public on Tripadvisor than what a smartarse with a blogspot account thinks, but just remember this: the general public like eating at McDonalds.

Do check out the Heaven website though - my partially exposed bumcrack still appears peeping slyly at you in a photograph on the Heaven homepage. What a glorious legacy.

Pleasingly, the menu has changed since my last visit, but my concentration span is low so I order the default burger which impressed me so much on my very first visit. I also got to taste a Turbo King beer, a dark beer with a Trappist vibe going on. At about 8% though, overconsumption might lead to errors of judgement.

An amuse bouche is normally the chef's excuse to show off a bit, but here we are presented with the same baby poo on chapathi chips as they were knocking out two years ago. Yawn. They still haven't listened about the Guacamole either. A squeeze of lime juice, an extra pinch of salt, and maybe a spot of chilli is all it takes folks.

The burger seems to have declined. Despite ordering medium, it comes well done, very dry, and about the size of a bottle top. The bun is also dry and slightly burnt, while the triangle of cheese is barely visible. Chez Lando do a better burger. Yes: Chez Lando. Chips (fries) are good though. Very crisp and more-ish.

Making fish and chips - proper British fresh-from-the-chippy fish and chips - is both a delicate science and a fine art. Either do it properly or don't do it at all. Likewise ravioli: it looks all handmade and nice, but why force it to swim in a big red puddle like some sort of bizarre alien crime scene?

So, top marks for chips (fries) and very good service. Top marks for that view as well. I had a quick poke around in the kitchen too, which seemed very clean, until I was politely ejected. I can't quite put my finger on why Heaven always strikes me as a bit weird though. It's a bit like going on the London Eye. You can enjoy the view, especially at night, but it's expensive, and you're in a bubble isolated from the people in the city down below, surrounded by overweight tourists.

Number 1? Nope, maybe top five on a good day.

It's okay, even better this way. That's what they'll tell you. That's what they'll say

2010-02-21T02:51:00.000-08:00

Just down the Hill from Mille Collines - in what I think used to be the American club - the Royal Garden is knocking out a mix of Chinese and Indian food, and minestrone soup.

The main thrust of the menu is the sort of vaguely Indian cuisine served at Khazana, although with the addition a whole page of ever reliable egg curries on the menu.

A few years back there used to be an Indian Restaurant in Kigali called the Minar, and I wonder if the chef at Royal Garden used to work there. Like the Minar, Royal Garden's curries are quite rich and creamy, and very heavy on the ghee. Fresh herbs are in evidence, but these fail to make much an impression against the heavy sauces.

Tandoori roti's are OK, a little over-cooked around the edges, and rices fine. Our paneer sizzler is delayed, and arrives only after one of our table ("the Atilla the Hun of restaurant feedback") wrestles a waiter to the ground and sets about him with a tightly rolled chapathi. What arrives is kind of weird, and involves cabbage, chicken, and cheese.

But lo - the manager takes it off the bill, and demands feedback. OK then, here is my feedback:
Lighten up the food and tighten up the service. Skim off some of that ghee and have more faith in your spices and fresh herbs. Keep the breads moving quick in the tandoori - they need to come straight to the table before they start cooling and going hard. Tighten up on service - it is very friendly and polite but the wait on the sizzler dish was a bit silly.
And take the tinned soups off the menu.

It is Valentine's night, and the place is packed with people wearing red. Our table are the only wazungu present, so it is sort of the inverse of Khazana in that respect. I reckon that could be a very good thing indeed. Once the restaurant settles in a bit, I'd say the food might easily match up to Khazana (and no Khazana-style "morning after" problems were reported). So Royal Garden: good luck.

Royal Garden
Kiyovu, Opposite the Bank National of Rwanda
Tel:0788 500073
Email: gardenroyal@yahoo.com

I go, I come back.

2010-02-16T12:54:00.000-08:00

I'm back. My usual table please.

Despite an absence of 18 months or so, the staff at Chez Lando greet me like an old friend. Some things have changed for the better - there are more hotel rooms and fewer tarts in the bar than previously - and some things have taken a turn for the worse. The best bar in Kigali, Jiffling HQ, is now a building site, and we're forced to take our Mutzigs around the corner were the old nightclub used to be. At least you can get a croque-monsieur now (well, a loose interpretation of one). All my lobbying finally paid off.

I see Ndoli's still sells Domaine Bergon for 8000 RwF, and that the hot snacks still make you ill. Sole Luna seems bigger, or maybe I just got smaller, and the young digital nomads still play the game of eyes with each other from behind their laptops at the Bourbon Cafe. Is it me, or is Bourbon Cafe getting a little scruffy?

Anyhow, recommendations please folks. Don't be shy.

Getting out of town

2008-12-06T10:14:00.000-08:00

Its been a little while, and material has dried up somewhat. In the New Year I'll update the Kigali 'long list' of reviews and sort them into restaurant types for easy surfing action.

For now though, lets have a look further afield. Some gorilla hunting types may end up spending the night in Ruhengeri on their way to visit our hairy cousins in Volcanoes National Park. With this in mind, here are a few reviews from Ruhengeri.

Having spent the best part of three months based in Ruhengeri, I'd recommend visitors avoid some of the more down at heel bars. As well as the usual annoyingly drunk 'friends' that strangers seem to accumulate in such places, I witnessed a fair few angry punch-ups. My interest in the grotty bars of the world remains strong, but it's important to know when it's time to leave.

Tourist Rest House, Rue Muhabura
Despite the general air of grubbiness and foot dragging service, this place remains my favourite place to eat in Ruhengeri. The Ugandan manager speaks good English and is eager to please. The menu is reasonably varied and its a good place to meet friendly folk from Ruhengeri who are having a quiet drink, as well as overlanders and backpackers.

Recommended:

Cheap, and reasonably varied menu. Very good chappathis.
Friendly and calm atmosphere.

Avoid:

When the power goes off the mice come out to play.

Hotel Urumuri, Rue du Marche
Hard to work out what is going on here, it seems a bit disorganised. Most things on the menu are off, but brochettes are almost guaranteed. You may have to wait some time while they go out and buy the meat though.

Recommended:

Cheap

Avoid:

Boring food
A bit disorganised - you'll have a long wait

Silverback Bar and Restaurant, Avenue du 5 Juillet (website)
This is a great spot for lunch as you can watch the world go by on Ruhengeri 'High Street'. Food is good quality - the usual brochettes etc, but with a few sandwiches and salads thrown in as well as a lunchtime buffet. There is a decent disco here, and a modern hotel. Its also a good spot for keeping an eye on bus arrivals and departures.

Recommended:

For people watching
Good, clean environment

Avoid:

Can get busy at lunchtime

Home d'Accueil, Avenue du 5 Juillet
Offers up a single massive plate of food at lunchtime, usually beef of some description, with all the carbs and beans you can eat. A little flirtation brings out the best in the staff and it's a pleasant place to spend lunchtime. Some senior military personnel like to eat lunch here, so everyone is well behaved.

Recommended:

Cheap with massive portions
Quick service at lunchtime

Avoid:

Little choice available

Hotel Muhabura, Avenue du 5 Juillet
Supposedly the only 'decent' hotel in Ruhengeri, this place suffers from the blight of many Rwandese hotels - they are happy to bump guests out of their rooms if a better offer comes in. The food is no better than Silverback, but the prices are higher. You might meet NGO types here.

Recommended:

Not a bad place for a drink
The food is OK

Avoid:

Overpriced
Bad service
Awful, awful coffee.

Some other tips on Ruhengeri that the guidebook neglects to tell you:

If you've just returned from Gorilla trekking and are eager to email your friends and family about your amazing experience, please take your muddy boots off before you go into the internet cafes. The owners are too polite to say anything, but they get very annoyed with the daily gang of dirty foreigners trailing mud onto their premises. Your courtesy will be acknowledged with kind smiles.

If you're travelling by bus keep a little spare change for the people who gather to beg around the bus stations. These people are not opportunists like you might occasionally find in Kigali, but are often people with mental health problems or who are very physically ill.

Don't walk on the grass in the middle of the main road through Ruhengeri, cross only where indicated.

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I'll post a guide to Gisenyi soon. Butare, being a university town has a few exciting places to eat - I've had some worthwhile stops there. I'm not that familiar with the town though, so ideas welcome.

Counting the statistics

2008-10-29T09:51:00.000-07:00

I've got this little bit of software that monitors how many visitors there are to my blogs. I doesn't steal your data or anything like that, just tells me when, how many, and where you come from, both in terms of links and search terms, and your actual physical geography.

Yawn. Most interesting is a little function that tells you the search terms entered into a search engine which then prompted the user to click through to Kigali Restaurant Reviews. There are a few popular searches, most disturbingly people (mainly residing in Switzerland and Belgium, it seems) searching for the promise of pay-as-you-go sex at some of the more popular hotels in Kigali. My warning remarks about a few places also work as a useful guide for the travelling scumbag.

Apart from all that, another popular, and altogether more legitimate search is for 'Heaven Restaurant'. It seems that the folks at Heaven have their own website now: Heaven Restaurant Website

It looks like they're doing a US election night special on the 4th November, so get down there and order some Obama burgers.

Also doing good trade at the moment are Torero in town. If they get that place right then Kigali may have a cultural hub worth talking about. Good Luck to them. They have a website too: Torero Cafe Website

Kigali: A 24 Hour City

2008-10-22T08:59:00.000-07:00

Kigali is not so much a city that never sleeps, as, as Alex Turner might put it, a city that never wakes up. What qualifies it as a 24 hour city, is that a lot of visitors only end up spending 24 hours there. As a veteran of Kigali hotels I can confirm that the travelling aid dealers, overlanders, and gorilla hunters tend to make their stops in Kigali as short as possible, before venturing on to excitement elsewhere.

So, in the absence of any real new material (or content, as I believe the kids call it these days), here's a cut out and keep guide to where to eat if you're in Kigali for 24 hours.

High End
Are you a luxury gorilla tourist, or a high rolling World Bank aid monkey? Here's how to spend those dollars:

Breakfast:
The buffet at Serena is hard to beat, but if you're not staying there it will set you back at least $20. Otherwise try the Panorama Restaurant at the top of the Hotel Mille Collins. The buffet isn't as spectacular, but the view makes a great start to the day.

Lunch / Snacks:
The Novotel buffet is one of those places to go when you have money to burn. It isn't much fun though. Better is the Bourbon Cafe, with branches at the Union Trade Centre in town, and the MTN Centre in Nyarutarama. Excellent coffees come with free wi-fi, leather sofas, and an international menu (i.e. club sandwiches, salads and burgers)

Dinner (or 'tea' if you're from my neck of the woods)
Its a choice between Indian Khazana, for curry and fancy dress waiters, or Heaven for a quality, local sourced menu that changes with the seasons. Both restaurants are in Kiyovu and will set you back a minimum of $20 a head - more if you order wine.

Late night drinking:
Head down to Republika in Kiyovu for cocktails and beers with a view across the valley.

Mid-range
For the NGO workers, journalists and solo travellers looking for a hassle free bite.

Breakfast:
At the hotel, or why not stop in and pick up a pain au chocolat from the bakery at the Novotel or the Nakumatt at UTC.

Lunch:
La Sierra, near the banks in town does sandwiches, samosas, cheese pasties and a buffet. Eden garden a few doors down has a well regarded buffet. $10 will buy a decent Italian buffet at the Sol e Luna in Remera.

Dinner:
Back to Sol e Luna for a choice of about 50 pizzas, decent pasta and pitchers of red wine. For a broader menu, head to New Cactus in Kiyovu. A reasonably priced and very tasty buffet can be found at Chez Robert, across the road from the Hotel Mille Collines.

Late night drinking:
Fine dine or Karibu in town for a few beers, then on to Planete nightclub for a dance.

Budget:
Overlanders, backpackers, volunteers, save your pennies for the following.

Breakfast:
A cup of tea and a few biscuits. Who needs breakfast?

Lunch:
There are good buffets to be had at the Kigali Business Centre, Le Banjo in Remera, and at Nile Grill (Rue Kalisimbi, city centre)

Dinner:
Load up on meat quite cheaply at Carwash in Kimihurura, or grab a buffet at Karibu. Chez Lando's (Remera) brochettes come pretty cheap.

After hours drinking:
Stay at Carwash, or Chez Lando, or head over to Fine dine. New Cadillac for dancing.

Nakumatt

2008-10-14T08:04:00.000-07:00

All hail the arrival of Nakumatt in Kigali.

For the uninitiated, Nakumatt is a successful Kenyan supermarket, that has recently opened itsfirst branch outside Kenya in the Union Trade Centre, smack in the middle of what passes for Kigali 'city centre'. They plan more openings around town soon. Rejoice.

Readers of Experimental Jifflings, or anyone who has shared a beer with me, may detect a whiff of hypocrisy here. I've been in the checkout queue to give the big supermarkets a kicking in the past, and I'll continue beat my little drum in future. But Nakumatt is a different case.

For one thing, it's Kenyan owned, starting out in Nakuru as a little store selling mattresses (hence the name Nakumatt). I'm pleased to see that the store in Kigali still sells mattresses. The real Nakumatt boom has only come in the last ten years, and they train and pay their employees well, and are an example of how East African business can do well in East Africa. Over in Dakar we have to make do with a grim monopoly of the French owned Casino supermarket chain.

Why is this good for Kigali? Well it's a firm kick up the backside to all the other supermarket owners who overcharge, underservice, and can't guarantee supplies. Nakumatt's economies of scale will bring a new diversity of products to the shelves, and will ensure keen prices. With any luck, Nakumatt's influence will overturn the poor service and silly prices that seem to be the accepted norm at most shops and restaurants in Kigali. Thats no excuse for the City Council to let them open a store on every corner (not that the City Council would ever, ever be open to any sort of persuasion), but a bit of exposure to an economy outside of the bubble is long overdue, and should sharpen everybody up.

And thank Nakumatt for one last thing: Those 8000 franc bottles of Domaine Bergon will be a thing of the past. Now we're entering a new era of Spanish and South african plonks in all the colours that go for less than 5 notes a bottle.

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In 1998 I rolled a trolley around a Nakumatt in Nairobi for the first time. We were there to fill up on supplies for 3 months of fieldwork under canvas, and it was an ideal one stop shop. I'd just come from Norfolk, UK, were I'd spent much of my time tramping around the Broads practicing my field skills. Roys of Wroxham (a supermarket hero) had provided me lunchtime sustenance on many a grey winter morning, so I was delighted to discover that my Nakumatt trolley proudly advertised 'Roys of Wroxham' on the handle. How the hell does one get a shopping trolley from East Anglia to Nairobi? That is one hell of a steal.

Uptight Eating

2008-10-07T04:57:00.000-07:00

H2O Restaurant, Kiyovu
I like a nice bit of decking. Waitresses who stare are even more fun, but please close your mouth now. Brochettes, brochettes, brochettes, steak and chips, brochettes. Owner has got religion in a big way and is considering banning sales of alcohol in the restaurant as well as smoking. If you think that sounds like a good idea then you're probably on the wrong blog.

Recommended:

The steak wasn't bad after all
Try throwing peanuts into the gaping mouth of the waitress.

Avoid:

If you're not comfortable with that whole creepy staring thing.
If you want to smoke, drink, have fun...

Belvedere, Centre Ville, by the banks.
Uncertain as to where this fits into the Kigali scene. Despite swinging saloon doors the punters are conservative types. Perhaps they're too aloof and snooty to eat at Chez Lando, because they might have to put up with foreigners, and smoking, and smiling, and the little people not doing as they're told.

Recommended:

It has saloon doors, that's quite good I suppose.
Staff are cheerful, despite being inefficient and not entirely honest

Avoid:

Toilets are a state
Shoddy service
Menu somewhat limited

Good Chips / Bad Chips

2008-09-30T02:33:00.000-07:00

Restaurant Emeraude (Emerald Restaurant), Boulevard de l’Umuganda, behind FAO and UNHCR.
Being so close to the FAO offices they do a brisk lunchtime trade here. Staff seem ultra-friendly and helpful and there is a sense of pride in the establishment. A well priced menu is mostly the usual Franco-International stuff, but has one or two surprises from what looks like a Javanese cookbook, along with healthier options. Ignore the healthy stuff though - the chips are thick cut and full of flavour.

Recommendations:

Friendly atmosphere and swift service
Good chips, acceptable fish
Plenty of parking space
Buffet lunch during the week

Avoid:

The chicken is like chewing an old slightly singed rope,

Passadena, Gikondo Nyenyeri
Done up like some sort of log cabin saloon, this out of the way venue has a funny sort of appeal. Its the kind of place where you might find someone miming to Celine Dion on stage, or doing bad breakdancing. For a real laugh roll up on Thursday night to check out the salsa classes. The last time I went the students enjoyed themselves oblivious to the bad jokes of their over-earnest British teacher. Like an awkward English sitcom. It might even be fun to join in...

Recommended:

Come for the weird entertainment, not the food.

Avoid:

Its a bit out of the way, hard to find a taxi or a moto home at night
Crinkle cut oven chips. Oh dear.

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A request for info:
Does anyone know the name of the hotel/bar/grill place on the airport road, on the hill opposite the Texaco garage? They do decent brochettes, but I've lost my notes.

As featured on the Guardian website!

2008-09-29T08:07:00.000-07:00

Marvellous news this morning. An article on the Guardian food website included a link to Kigali Restaurant Reviews. One of my favourite food writers, Jay Rayner, included the link in his blog-article about ethnically incongruous restaurants.

My hit counter has gone through the roof! Hopefully this means the blog will reach a wider audience than the current ex-pat crowd, and perhaps help to encourage a few people to visit Rwanda, see for themselves, and spend a few quid.

Its been a good week for publicity. A few days ago I discovered that a link to KRR had been included in Kigali's 'Loose lips' newsletter. 'Loose Lips' has the makings of a good listings and classifieds magazine for Kigali. You can subscribe to the electronic mailing list by writing to: Kigalinewsletter@gmail.com

A few more reviews coming soon, and I'm hearing good things about 'Torrero' and a new Turkish place opening up. Meanwhile, have a look at my other site: experimental jifflings for some foodie notes from my recent trip to Asia.

Another two:

2008-09-26T03:51:00.000-07:00

Two more reviews, and I'm not even in Kigali. Magic.

Le Banjo, Remera, on the road to the stadium
Some sort of safari saloon vibes going on here, but the welcome is friendly. Rwandese and East African menu, and there is a popular buffet at lunchtime.

Recommended:

Lunchtime buffet (carbs, carbs, beans and carbs) is good value at RwF1,500
Decent range of snacks - omelettes and so on.

Avoid:

Its not the most inspiring place. Alright for a quick lunchtime pit-stop.
The boulettes. Dense.

Freddy's Horizon Garden Restaurant, Kiyovu
Tucked just underneath Heaven, this place has a massive projector screen upon which they are promising to show films. Its a nice little spot to watch olympic gymnastics while partaking of a Mutzig pression or three. Buffet at lunchtime, slightly below-par snacks and brochettes in the evening.

Recommended:

It might be good for films, if they get the films right. Please: nothing starring Nicholas Cage.
Cheap. Cheerful

Avoid:

The goat brochettes have an unusual sweet marinade, but are as tough as tyres. Trying to extract a piece of meat with my fork resulted in it flying some eight feet across the patio, nearly striking a Dutch researcher
If you're on a date. Nobody looks good under UV lighting

KIGALI KRAWL

2008-09-13T02:23:00.000-07:00

Did you see what I did there?

Its the final weekend in Kigali. It could very well be the last weekend ever in Kigali. Why do I sense that this isn't over though? The sense that I'll be back here in the new year getting my back slapped by the waiters in Chez Lando.

So a pub crawl is in order. The Kigali Krawl. A gaggle of us, consultants, Australians, and other heavy drinkers. One day we'll publish an official route guide to the Kigali Krawl, they'll sell it in the ORPTN office at a hugely inflated price to amorphously-shaped American tourists. Grown men wearing baseball caps. Supposedly the most advanced nation on earth.

The Kigali Krawl

(Based on field notes, and inspired by the cheap wine lady)

Karibu
The Kigali Krawl Kicks off at Karibu.

Yes.

Every taxi driver, moto-rider, butcher, baker, candlestick maker, knows where Karibu is. An ideal, low key, place to start a krawl through town.

The waiter brings hot nuts. Good thinking Mr Waiter.

We're lingering a bit, need to get the momentum up.

Belvedere
Last time I was in here they were showing the A-Team dubbed into French: "Je plains l'imbécile". There are middle class eaters comprised mostly of tall women with a haughty camelid demeanour and men in bad suits. They stare disapprovingly at our noisy group. We eat our bad food and toddle off.

The voices in my head are singing:
You see I've been through the desert on a horse with no name
It felt good to be out of the rain
In the desert you can't remember your name
'Cause there ain't no one for to give you no pain
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la,la,la
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la,la,la

Don't know why. Good song though.

Fine Dine.
Packed with Anglophile Rwandese. They don't stare, but the wazungu in the corner do. Architecturally it has a post-colonial Asmara coffee shop vibe. I haven't been to Asmara. Thats the vibe though. I like it. There is a band. LIVE MUSIC WITH REAL LIVE MUSICIANS PLAYING AND SINGING AND PEOPLE SMILING AND DANCING. In Kigali. Thats not right. Has this been sanctioned by the correct authorities? I'll come here again next week. Ah. Too late.

Passion
Skip the Mille Collines, lets shoot some pool. Two shots to you. Two shots to you. Two shots to you. One shot on the black.

Nice potato wedges. I should've eaten more.

Informers make the smokers go outside. Funny. It doesn't seem like the sort of place that informers would drink.

Torrero
New. Look at this. Coffee tables, illegal gay waiters, and copies of wallpaper* magazine scattered around. We could be in New York.

US troops? what are they doing here? Stop staring at us. No, sorry, stop staring at the girls.

This is a Krawl - coffee is for cheats!

Those two South African idiots again. Lets move on.

Carwash.
Yeah.
Wot no ribs. Bring on the pork and chips. And more beer. Here's Boniface. Forgot to call him, but he found us anyway. Good.

Pork and chips. Drunkeness, perhaps if I just keep talking no one will notice I'm drunk

Lets walk to One Love. Who is this guy following us. Does he know kung fu?

"Do you know Kung Fu?"

"Eh?"

"Do you know Kung Fu?"

"Eh?"

One Love / Orion
Orion: No, rubbish.
One Love: Yes, good.
Open air reggae dancing. I am the only one dancing. Coca-cola to keep me sober.

"Do you know Kung fu?"

Taxi. Hotel. Bed.

It's a small town

2008-08-25T08:55:00.000-07:00

I've been continuing my quest to see what the man on the street thinks about eating out in Kigali, and stumbled across an interesting little coincidence...

Check out the reviews of the Heaven Restaurant in Kigali on Tripadvisor.

Lots of positive reviews. I concur - its a good place to eat. Now look a little closer:

Note the language used. Each of the reviews reads like a press release.
Check out the reviewer profiles. 4 out of 5 joined within a couple of days of each other, and immediately gave Heaven glowing reviews. They haven't reviewed any other places.
Where are the reviewers located? NYC, Boston, San Francisco... Next time you go into Heaven, ask the owners for a little potted history.
Google the names of the reviewers with the names of the owners. Hello there!

What an extraordinary coincidence.

Mixed but mostly very positive reviews of Heaven have already appeared on Kigali Restaurant Reviews and Jifflings. The reviews still stand (its still a great place to eat), but they are not due to another extraordinary coincidence.

By the nature of my eating habits, I have developed good relationships with restaurant owners and staff in Kigali and elsewhere, and yes - I sometimes get special treatment at some places due to my repeat custom, and maybe even because of this blog. However, the reviews are always impartial and not driven by any special service or favours I receive.

News of the best places always comes from genuine reviews and, more importantly, genuine word of mouth.

Three More

2008-08-25T08:49:00.001-07:00

Stella 2 (and VIP), Remera, close to Chez Lando
A bar in many parts. A slightly grubbier alternative to Chez Lando, the Stella VIP bar boasts private areas where you can talk politics without worrying too much about the thought police. Across the road at Stella 2 things are more public. Cheap as chips.

Recommended:

For plotting and skullduggery.
The whole barbecued tilapia smelled nice.

Avoid:

The waiter didn't tell me about the whole barbecued tilapia
Shrivelled up brochettes.

La Sierra, City centre, beside Bacar Bank.
Forgot about this little gem after my first visit in 2006. Near the banking area in town La Sierra does a brisk lunchtime trade. A buffet is supplemented by simple a la carte and a take away section inside the shop. Ham and cheese sandwiches on brown bread cut into slices leave me nostalgic for home.

Recommendations:

Proper butties!
Swift service
Decent a la carte
Samosas and pasties are well stuffed

Avoid:

The buffet is expensive (6500 RwF) - better value elsewhere
Not much going on in the evening here.

Flamingo, Kimihurura
I think this is the same Flamingo that used to be on the top of the telecom tower. In any case it offers upmarket Chinese food in tasteful surroundings with good views from upstairs. Popular during the week with Rwandese movers and shakers.

Recommendations:

Soups made with decent stock.
Super-hot towels

Avoid:

Staff can be a bit forgetful.
Main dishes are a bit heavy on the onion, go for the sizzlers

More soon. Click here to see the other reviews.

Downturn

2008-08-19T07:57:00.000-07:00

A couple of recent visits to Papyrus have been real disappointments. After the refit, new menu, and bakery section opened, Papyrus was one of the hottest places in town. Its still busy, but I think the reason the place is so full is because it can't turn the customers over quick enough. One has the impression of a busy restaurant, but the reality is of a restaurant where nobody is actually eating

A place serving pizza, pasta, and salad really shouldn't be keeping punters waiting for an hour. Customers walking out of the restaurant because a salad has taken two hours to arrive is not good news. They won't come back, and they'll tell ten other people not to go. Business evaporates.

A few nights ago my colleague visited Papyrus with a small group of friends. As they ordered their food over in Papyrus, I was across town meeting another, more hippy-like colleague, at the Novotel. We had two beers, walked over to Havana Club, ordered and ate a pizza, had one last large beer, hailed a motorbike taxi, and drove across the valley to Papyrus. As I arrived at Papyrus the first plates of my colleague's party's food were emerging from the kitchen.

Disappointing.

Rwanda foodie links

2008-08-16T05:07:00.000-07:00

Thankfully I'm not the only person daft enough to write about eating out in Rwanda on the internet. A few minutes googling throws up a number of hits, and I've spent a bit of time rooting about, seeing what the man onthe street has to say.

I found a review of the Chez Lando hotel, where I usually stay, written a couple of weeks ago:

This hotel is fantastic. The brochettes in the restaurant are top notch, but the pool is its crowning glory. What a swim!!

The brochettes are indeed very good. There is no swimming pool though.

What was it Johnny Rotten said about the man on the street? He was right. Tripadvisor has a lot to answer for. Here, idiots write about how some rancid pizza shop is the best restaurant in East Africa, or perhaps the epiphany they had when they tried mayonnaise with their chips for the first time. Here are some more choice cuts:

Menu with something to tempt everyone, including vegetarian and healthful foods as well a delicious variety of starters and entrees.

I love Indian fare...period!

Oh dear (ellipsis, period, exclamation mark).

Food blogs will never wipe out proper journo-reviewers like Jay Rayner, AA Gill, or Giles Coren. Those folks can write, all cleverful and professionful. They know a thing or two about what is on the plate in front of them. They are not cretins. Not even Michael Winner.

Anyhow, there is one good Kigali blog: cheap wines of kigali, written in a suitably drunken style by an anonymous lady who always carries a notebook in her handbag just in case there is wine. Check it out here.

Another short batch of reviews coming soon.

Kigali Restaurant Reviews

2008-07-14T10:16:00.000-07:00

Here are the reviews, first published on Experimental Jifflings. I will add and edit as and when - please post your ideas.

The Chez Lando Hotel, Remera. (The rooms are alright, and the staff friendly)
Foodwise you have the choice of the atmospheric bar and grill area, which shows international football and has a friendly crowd, or the rather stale, brightly lit, indoor restaurant, which has all the atmosphere of Crewe train station on a wet Tuesday in January. The menu is the same at both venues, so unless its raining, head to the bar.

Recommendations:

The goat brochette is probably the best in town
Steak and chips is pretty reasonable, but avoid the mushroom sauce
Tilapia to share between two is highly recommended, but takes a while to arrive.
Some people swear by the barbecued chicken. Personnally I would rather eat boiled bicycle tyres, they would be less chewy.

Avoid:

The pizza. I don't think the chef has ever eaten a real pizza, but has created this from the memory of a picture of a pizza, drawn on the side of a moving donkey by a four year old child, that he once saw 15 years ago, from a distance.
Solo visits to the bar. The prostitutes there are serious. There is no foreplay, they just come right up and ask you for your room number, then your phone number, then your name. Its easy to deny knowledge of the first two.
Same goes if you're a solo female - expect lots of uninvited male attention.

Sole Luna (Remera, near Chez Lando)
Probably the best pizzas in town - from a proper wood-fired oven, and reasonable pasta too. Smaller bites at lunchtime and reasonable red wine. Not great if its busy and if you're in a hurry, but why should you hurry? Decent music, friendly staff and a nice al fresco atmosphere. And they've sorted out the toilets too.

Recommended:

Good value lunchtime buffet
Pizza 'Sole Luna'
Bruschetta
Pitchers of red wine

Avoid:

The lasagne sucks
The large parties of christians. Don't blow smoke in that direction for god's sake.

Hellenique, Kimihurura, near New Cadillac
Greek (obviously), comes with a hotel attached and a view over the valley. Its pricey, but you get proper Greek food - taramasalata, feta, dolmades, souvlaki, moussaka, and plenty of obscurities (including rabbit dishes) in satisfying portions. There is some standard pasta stuff for the philistines.

Recommended:

Visit the well stocked bar for a chat with the owners and a glass of ouzo
Mezze
Steak with roquefort sauce - mighty!

Avoid:

If you want a big night with plenty of action - this place is seriously sleepy.
If your budget is tight.
The Congolese waiter trying to flog 'art'.

Novotel, Kaciyiru
Bland business hotel from the French owned Accor chain. All the things you need from a business hotel - pool, gym, shops, internet. Buffet lunch and dinner or a la carte dining.

Recommended:

For business lunches at the buffet
For a small fee you can use the pool all day.

Avoid:

Eating a la carte - rubbish burgers and the usual hotel muck.
Drinks prices are steep
Buffet doesn't change much.

Indian Khazana, Kiyovu, not far from Mille Collines
Probably Kigali's best regarded restaurant amongst ex-pats. Better food is available elsewhere, but pleasant surroundings and colourfully uniformed staff give it a touch of class/crass depending on how you look at it. Busy for much of the week.

Recommended:

The railway mutton curry
Pretty good breads
OK for a sociable work dinner

Avoid:

If you're a real curry snob
Sitting near the artificial waterfall (you can ask them to switch it off)

Chez Robert
Opposite the Hotel Mille Collines this popular restaurant serves a la carte and has probably the best buffet in town. Friendly service and a warm atmosphere.

Recommended:

The buffet is quick and has a great selection

Avoid:

The long wait for a la carte orders

Karibu, Avenue de la Paix
Relaxed restaurant in town. Offers a lunch and dinner buffet of the usual Rwandese carbs, a la carte pizzas and pastas aren't anything special.

Recommended:

The breakfast buffet is popular at weekends.

Avoid:

High expectations

Republika, Kiyovu
A bar / restaurant that goes on until the early hours. Republika has established itself near the top of the Kigali nightlife tree. Early doors its full of expatriates eating in large groups, who are then replaced by Rwandese movers and shakers who stay until late. The decor has an upmarket safari lodge feel.

Recommended:

Mutzig beer on tap
Sambaza - tiny fried fish
Steak Republika
The view from the balcony restaurant

Avoid:

The girls who congregate at the bar at the weekend

Havana Club, Next door to Novotel, Kaciyiru
Laid back pizza and pasta joint, not a patch on Sole Luna's food, but the atmosphere is fine and the prices are reasonable. Great for a meal or just a few drinks.

Recommended:

Mutzig beer on tap
Sweet and savoury crepes

Avoid:

The annoying American contractors who sit by the door spouting their racist, homophobic Republican views in front of whichever confused looking prostitutes they're sleeping with this week.

Barn Thai, Kimihurura, next to New Cadillac
Great, a Thai restaurant. No, I take that back. Barn thai has the longest menu in the great lakes region, illustrated by colour photographs of each dish. Don't get excited though, most things are not available. The food itself, when it eventually comes, is averagely disappointing. During a powercut we sat in darkness for 20 minutes while the waiting staff acted as if they'd never encountered a powercut in Kigali before.

Recommended:

If you want some Thai flavours to break the brochette monotony.

Avoid:

If you like to be able to see what your eating.
If you've forgotten the mosquito repellent

Nouvelle Planete, Remera, by Chez Lando
Slightly lower budget alternative to Chez Lando, with a very similar set up. A few more Rwandese specialities on the menu too.

Recommended:

If you're on your own and don't want to attract the attention of the Chez Lando girls
If you fancy a side order of sombe, or an omlette
The best (only?) lunchtime buffet in this neck of the woods

Avoid:

If you're with a group and want somewhere more atmospheric - try Chez Lando.

KBC, Kaciyiru
Probably the best and most popular lunchtime buffet in Kigali. Queue up with your plate for great avocados, and a good dollop of groundnut sauce. Friendly staff, and decent fruit juice.

Recommended:

For a quick lunch at a bargain price

Avoid:

It can get busy sometimes, so be prepared to share your table with random folks.

Papyrus, Kimihurura
After a previous pasting on Experimental Jifflings, this place has sorted its act out. Smart atmosphere, with not-too-intrusive music. There is a deli with local(ish) cheese, yoghurt and bread on-site, and cooking has reverted to the classic home made pizzas and pasta.

Recommended:

Most of the pasta dishes.
Supporting the deli
"The tower of Mutzig" - five bottles in a long upright tube.

Avoid:

Starters are a bit weak.

Unnamed Chinese, by Novotel/Ninzi Hotel, Kaciyiru
Nice vibes here if you can get one of the little snugs. The food bears no resemblance to anything Chinese, but a lot of Chinese people eat there... I suspect there is a secret menu.

Recommended:

If you can get hold of the secret menu.
A few nice pork dishes.

Avoid:

Watch out for the prostitutes on the street outside, 'Arse-biters' according to a colleague of mine.
Don't go expecting Chinese food

Hotel Mille Collines
Upper floor restaurant with great views and passable hotel food, poolside bar/grill with the usual brochettes and good-time girls.

Recommended:

For a quiet meal with a good view.
Relaxing by the pool during the day at the weekend.

Avoid:

More brochette boredom in the bar
Occasionally pushy prostitutes

Chez John, Kiyovu
Tucked away, you'll have a job to find this one. A nice airy space is let down by slow service. Franco-Rwandese international cuisine. Yeah right.

Recommended:

Not much, the fish - capitaine (Nile Perch) - is quite nice.

Avoid:

If you want to eat your food before 11pm.

Ice and Spice
The budget alternative to the Indian Khazana, some (including me) argue that the food is better. Ice and Spice is cosy and laid back, and has an extensive menu.

Recommended:

For better curry than the Khazana, at a more competitive price - you can live without the waiters in silly hats right?

Avoid:

The egg curry. You'll be suffering in the morning.

Carwash, Kimihurura
A great place to watch the football on the big screen. Carwash does the usual brochettes and steaks, but its the Kenyan style Nyama Choma (roast goat meat) that does the business. Take your friends and order a pile of ribs with plenty of beer and greens.

Recommended:

For Nyama Choma, and big football matches

Avoid:

Not much seating if it rains.

La Fiesta, Kimihurura
Bright little mexican restaurant with no pretentions. Swift friendly service, and a garden area for daytime dining, and bizarrely, volleyball.

Recommended:

Sizzling fajitas for a big portion

Avoid:

Slightly smelly waiting staff

Serena Hotel, Nyarugenge
Does bar food and also has a 'fine dining' restaurant. Both are expensive. The food in the restaurant is bland mutton-dressed-as-lamb but at foie gras prices. Serena is the kind of place that people with no palette go to 'have a nice meal'.

Recommended:

The club sandwich in the bar isn't bad (but it costs 7,000 francs)

Avoid:

Why bother when you can spend half as much somewhere else for something better?
Hanging around in the lobby late at night... for the usual reasons.

Gorillas, Kiyovu
A hotel with decent grub. Pizzas are OK, steaks and the usual franco-international stuff. Lots of well dressed Rwandese about - seems to be a place to go for special occasions.

Recommended:

Better than most hotel offerings. Pretty reliable grub.
Steaks cooked at the table - always nice to have a bit of culinary busking.

Avoid:

Service can be a bit on the slow side

Bourbon Coffee, Union Trade centre
What's this? Some sort of upmarket starbucks-esque coffee joint with wireless internet access and leather sofas. Normally in the UK I'd run a mile from this sort of place, but here... ahhh. Local coffee in all shapes and sizes, muffins and cookies, and a menu that wouldn't look out of place in an Islington cafe.

Recommended:

The coffee - marvellous
Sitting out on the balcony
Great sandwiches

Avoid:

If you're annoyed by American college students having 'an experience' in Rwanda during their vacation.

Cafeteria at UTC, Union Trade Centre
The hub of the UTC, order a pizza or buffet lunch from one of the windows, sit at a dirty table and wonder exactly how many days your food has been sitting around for.

Recommended:

I suppose its OK for people watching

Avoid:

Eating anything

Cafe at La Galette
Laid back cafe attached to La Galette supermarket. Perfect for resting your feet post-shopping. Sandwiches and brochettes seem to attract throngs of ex-patriates on Saturday afternoons, and there is a noticeboard advertising all the usual ex-pat gubbins - cars, rooms to let, etc etc.

Recommended:

Meeting friends on a Saturday afternoon.

Avoid:

Service is a bit slow when its busy.

Lalibela, Remera
Ethiopian. This one used to be in Kimhurura, and I thought it had closed down until a colleague pointed it out. Basic and a bit brightly lit, the food can be variable, but its worth a go for something different.

Recommended:

Beanyatu to share
Doro Wat

Avoid:

Having meetings in confined spaces the following morning.

Maestro, Outside UTC
Well, this looks swish, but does it always smell of drains or just when the wind is blowing this way?

Recommended:

Cheapish and convenient
Buffet is reasonable

Avoid:

Sitting on the terrace on a windy day

Heaven, Kiyovu
Probably the top of the class in Kigali restaurant terms. Heaven is stylish and the food is unique for the city. Expect it to be invaded by braying ex-pats and fat legged gorilla hunters before long. (for a more detailed review, click here)

Recommended:

For quick service
A great location with good views
Can cater for large groups
The food is pretty good, and the menu changes
Great burgers

Avoid:

The bloke who owns the place is a bit irritating
If you can smell rain, don't sit outside
The wine list is extortionate. Its the same Ndolis supermarket plonk, double the price. Ker-ching.

Cactus, Kiyovu
Nicely tucked away, this has a relaxed garden vibe to it. Food is good - the usual French/International menu. Carafes of wine are good value. Enjoyed watching the staff mis-pouring carafes and then necking it behind the bushes one Saturday night - now thats my kind of restaurant. Oh yeah, they do fondue, if anyone's interested.

Recommended:

Family friendly
Good steaks
Wine is reasonably priced

Avoid:

Make sure you check the bill at the end in case you've been charged for the cheeky staff drinks.

Thats all for now... there will be a few more additions before the end of August.

KRR

2008-07-01T08:27:00.000-07:00

Kigali restaurant reviews coming soon....