Bamba Restaurant, along Amboseli Road in Lavington, could be Geco Cafe’s cousin. Consider their personalities; both are outdoorsy people. They both have a thing for that whole bohemian flair. They both dig African print fabric and live music.
Of course, they might protest this comparison. Maybe Bamba will protest the loudest seeing as it’s newer and would be keener to be seen as his own man…or woman. (Who knows what restaurants and bars identify as.)
Bamba is a cliche. To mean it’s what food writers would describe - rightfully- as a “hidden gem”. (Black gate, small signage. Easy to miss).
The last time I was on Amboseli Road I hadn’t grown a beard. Back in 2008. There was a bar where it stands, whose name I don’t recall.
It was full on the Sunday we visited. Loads of expats and middle-aged men with greying dreadlocks and dashiki. You know, the type who look like they paint or train dogs.
A unique small band of men on drums and some percussion instruments were playing renditions of the late Ayub Ogada’s song and other zilizopendwa. It was a good band but the same tune got monotonous.
I thought I saw someone who looked like Deejay Grouchi holding court. The bar was long, beautiful, and taken by the said groups of people standing there, holding cocktails and perhaps talking about hiking or conservation of Pangolins. A cold night, a jiko was brought near our legs.
I loved the food even though I know about food as much as I know about molecular cell biology. I was informed that it’s Lebanese cuisine.
To start with, we shared a plate of grilled eggplant with roasted cashew nuts and pomegranate seeds. That was fantastic.
For mains we had something called Shish Tawooq; marinated chicken thighs served with garlic sauce and lavash bread. Did I mention that the food was great?
“Is that DJ Grouchi?” I asked my lady. She turned indiscreetly to look and said he was. He looked bigger in person. TV, like YouTube, is a mirage.
