Nairobi’s barbecue haven

If there’s one thing that anyone can bet on and win, it is Nairobians’ love for meat. Every weekend nyama choma joints are filled to the brim and parking lots annoyingly inaccessible because everyone wants a piece of that barbecue goodness.

Well, I’m happy to announce that there is one more barbecue joint that will prove that you can quench any meat thirst in a classy joint without necessarily putting a dent in your wallet.

Situated in Viking House along Waiyaki Way, Fogo Gaucho has become quite a popular place within the Westlands area and beyond.

Its name, Fogo which means ‘fire’ in Brazilian and Gaucho meaning ‘cowboy’ culminates with the word churrascaria to simply mean a Brazilian steak house that serves you the best barbecue reminiscent of the cowboy ranches down in Brazil.

And this is no hype - they do serve their meat until you plead for them to stop. To serve you are waiters dressed as Brazilian cowboys.

This is an all-you-can-eat barbecue feast with about 12 different types of meats to choose from.

But instead of the flag that indicates when you need a small break from the nyama, there is a round card on the table, initially red in colour before you commence your feast and green on the other side to say ‘more please’.

But just before you embark on the meat haven, there is a salad bar, with 20 types of salads to choose from.

This is good if you are not big on meat or are on a diet that limits how much meat you can eat or simply a fan of the veggies.

Greek salads, jacket potatoes, dried tomatoes, lettuce, Mediterranean salad; all these plus more are available to tickle your palate.

As you eat, you can flip the card and the meat starts coming. The friendly waiters emerge from the kitchen with sizzling grills as they cut the tender meat on your plate.

It can be a bit overwhelming at some point because the service is quite fast so flip the card to red again if you want them to stop.

The pork sausage is absolutely delicious, oozing with juicy goodness and flavour as you cut through it.

The restaurant’s proprietor, simply known as Johnny tells us that this is because they prepare it with cheese and a signature recipe that gives it the unique taste.

If you don’t watch it, you can eat an unlimited number of those sausages!