Nyama Mama

This is an new style of restaurant. New in that feels African. From the decor to the dishes being serve and they way they are being served. It makes one very proud. There are two locations in Nairobi, one at Delta towers and the other at village market. I have been to the one at Delta towers a couple of times and each time the experience is new. There was this time I was invited by a musician friend of mine who was playing there that evening. Once you enter you notice all the colour all the African themes. Its amazing. The spacing is also good so if you are looking ti bring a date or hold a business meeting, this place is it. I found the band already playing. Would you believe that the music sounds better in that African set up? I was quite hungry so I got the tilapia fillet which cost 1200/= The service is good and the serving is plenty. I’m surprised I dint doze considering how full I was. The night was very enjoyable.

The restaurant is a half open space in a new building with Kenyan Retro style decorations. It is perfect if you’re looking for African style food done in a modern contemporary western way. I’d heard a lot of good about Nyama Mama before my visit and hence my expectations were extremely high. They were however dashed on arrival as the reception was absolutely terrible. We had to find our own table and as if that were not enough we were seated for a while before we were approached by any waiter or waitress. The waiter was very clueless about the menu when we asked him to describe certain dishes. We eventually settled on burgers, chicken stew and quesadillas. The burgers were great but the rest of the food was just average. I had a vanilla milkshake with popcorn toppings which was absolutely disappointing as it made the entire milkshake taste burnt. In my opinion, you could get better elsewhere for a similar price. Their cocktails however, washed down the disappointment. They were extremely good and the presentation was even better as they serve them in Beer Steins which gives off such a good traditional vibe. The setting is perfect for business meetings as well as the environment is so serene .

The name Nyama mama sounds a little bit traditional and I don’t know why the first time I heard it a restaurant in a tiny maasai hut serving some traditional food came into my mind. In actuality that’s sort of not far from the truth except their is no hut. Instead a very very elegant restaurant with African themed decorations is what we have replacing it. The food still remains the same African cuisine inspired from travels all around Africa. There are several branches in Kenya and I’ve visited the one in Village Market and the one in Delta towers. The one in Village Market is very simple with very little sitting space but the large food court in the mall compensates for it so you can get your food and eat it there. The one in Delta towers on the other hand is something else right from the entrance what welcomes you is all the vibrant colors from the African themed seats and the paintings. Immediately I got in ,the inner photographer in me was awakened and if the seats could talk they’d tell how fed up they were of posing after my twentieth take. There was so much originality not only in the decor but also in the kitchen ware and food that was served. They served food in nice little cute African kitchen ware and the metallic cups especially reminded me of my grandmother. She’s the only one I knew who used such cups. I think that’s the whole Mama concept this place was going for.It was a little cold so I had a cup of coffee to warm myself up. The coffee was great. We ordered the next thing and of course we had to try the famous mama chapati wraps. I ordered the braised pulled pork wrap which was 800/=. It’s essentially just pork with a lot of BBQ sauce that’s neatly wrapped in a chapati and served with a side of masala chips. Lemme tell you it was my first time and how well those wraps were done still amazes me. My partner had ordered the seared chicken tikka chapati wrap which was also the same price. When I had a bite of the chicken wrap I was obsessed. I really appreciate how it was such a simple meal but the spice and the authenticity took the experience to a whole other level. There was this lovely band performing and I can’t really remember the name since it was like a year ago but the stage was so lively I couldn’t put my feet down.Overally a beautiful experience.