Sutra Gastropub

According to Delhiites, DLF Cyberhub is the only reason to venture over to Gurgaon and I am tempted to agree. Although Gurgaon has its fair share of decent restaurants it cannot compete with the many options scattered throughout Delhi's trendy neighborhoods. However, Cyberhub does offer Gurgaonians a place to eat out, take in some music, and barhop all in one location. While it doesn't have the feel of say a Khan Market or Hauz Khas, it's not far off from Connaught Place. Cyberhub embraces their suburbian-ness by marketing its nearly 50 restaurants, fast food, and lounge options to young professionals, middle-aged businessmen, as well as families. Furthermore, the open-air amphitheater regularly shows cricket matches on the big screen, hosts concerts, and offers the opportunity for wide-scale embarrassment for those gutsy enough to karaoke in front of the masses.

Photo credit

#SufiSutra with Indian Ocean 5 Nov 2014

First up for review is Sutra, a spacious indoor/outdoor bar on the Cyberhub’s 2^nd level pub hub. With unlimited ₹1 drinks every Monday, free drinks for ladies on Tuesdays, Wednesday Sufi nights, and live bands on Sundays, there is something going on at Sutra practically every night of the week. Most recently we visited on a Friday night and were pleasantly surprised with buy one get one happy hour specials until 8:30pm. Drink choices were limited, but still offered a wide enough selection to make everyone in our group happy.

Kampala Eateries

Disclaimer: If you're looking for an authentic Ugandan food experience, the restaurants listed here are not it. However, if you're in Kampala for a business trip and looking for some good eats or a fun place to hang then, by all means, read on.

When I headed to Kampala a few months ago for work, I received several recommendations of restaurants to check out. Despite my hectic work schedule, I still managed to chow down at quite a few including: Khana Kazana, one time sister restaurant to the Kigali restaurant of the same name, Lotus Mexican Cantina, Boda Boda, and Mammammia. 

Local Moshi Lunch Spots

While working in Moshi my work colleague and I both wanted to find affordable options for lunch so each day we walked around town and picked a small local place to try.  Here's what we found:

Name: Chrisburger / Club Alberto

Location: On Kibo Road next door to the Impala Coach office just near the clock tower roundabout

Price: Their fast food menu is quite affordable.  Samosas are 500 TZS each; veg rice is 1500 TZS; and chai masala is 1000 TZS.

Atmosphere: the covered patio is enclosed with greenery and is a nice place to relax over lunch. Apparently it doubles as a bar/club in the evenings.

The service here is just as slow, if not slower, than most restaurants in Kenya. They forgot to charge us for our samosas one day and when we returned several days later for morning tea they hit us up for the amount. In general I find that very unprofessional since it was their mistake and it's not like they gave us a written bill in the first place so they couldn't show that we hadn't paid. However, I was worried the money had come out of the waitress' own pocket so we didn't comment.  

Iguana's

As some of you may have gathered from my previous posts, I'm a bit addicted to Mexican/Latin food. So when my friend told me that there was a restaurant in Westlands that serves Mexican and Indian (weird combo, I know) cuisine I was all over it. I scheduled a Mexican night event with a group of friends; prepared to gorge myself on tortillas, chips, and salsa; and dreams of margaritas danced through my head.

Que Pasa Bar and Bistro

I had been hearing about Que Pasa since I returned to Nairobi and since I was in the neighborhood one Sunday for church I took the opportunity to grab a bite to eat there. The place was extremely quiet at the time with few other patrons but the service was attentive and the food came out promptly.

Photo credit: www.kenyabuzz.com

Location: Karen Shopping Center
Price: reasonable
Atmosphere: The ambiance is lovely; I loved the tile floors and stone walls. 

Black Diamond

Dance floor on a Saturday night.  Photo credit: George Riach

Location: Westlands- Mpaka Rd. between Muthithi Rd. and Woodvale Grove 
Price: 200 KSH (approx. $2.50) for beer
Atmosphere: Depending on the night it's a mix between expats and Kenyans alike, most of whom split their time between the patio balcony and the dance floor inside. 

Black Diamond is the kind of place you can go any night of the week and something is going on.  For example, after a rousing game of euchre some friends and I went to check out a live band playing there on Sunday night and the place was full.  Granted, it wasn't packed like I've seen it on most Saturdays but all of the tables were full and people were standing around.  Pretty impressive for a Sunday.

Gipsy Bar

Ah, Gipsys, how I've missed your Friday night dance marathons and fabulous people watching.  Upon my return to Nairobi this week Gipsys was where I headed on Friday night to catch up with friends.  It was no different than I left it three months ago; there were the same faces, same music, same fun atmosphere.


Location: Westlands- Waiyaki Way at Woodvale Grove across from Barclays
Price: 200KSH (approx. $2.50) for beers; 500-600KSH (approx. $6.25-7.50) for mixed drinks
Atmosphere: Friday and Saturdays it's packed, loud, and full of dancing fools.  The rest of the week it's more laidback and you can catch a game from the sports bar on the end or grab a bite at the restaurant over the dance floor on the other end.