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Nairobi, the capital city of Kenya, is a melting pot of diverse cultures, traditions, and cuisines. As a result, the city has become a hub for food enthusiasts, offering a variety of dining options, from local delicacies to international cuisines. For those looking for a unique culinary experience, Nairobi’s Carnivore Restaurant stands out as the go-to spot for exotic meats. I wanted to try different foods, like ostrich and crocodile, so I recently ate at this restaurant to see if it was worth the hype.
In this blog post, we’ll take a closer look at Carnivore and review their exotic meat menu, and I’ll provide my own recommendations on which foods were worth trying.
Table of Contents
The Carnivore Restaurant
Carnivore Restaurant in Langata, Nairobi, is a well-liked hangout for tourists looking for a unique dining experience. Carnivore was established in 1980 and has a long history of providing adventurous eaters with unique meats. This restaurant offers a “Beast of a Feast” dining experience, which includes a range of meats served on skewers along with a selection of sauces and side dishes. The restaurant’s website can be found here.
This restaurant is located a few kilometers outside of the Nairobi city center, just outside of the Nairobi National Park.
What are the opening hours of Carnivore Restaurant?
Carnivore Restaurant is open every day. Lunch is served from 12 PM to 2 PM, and dinner is served from 7 PM to 9:30 PM.
How much does it cost to eat at Carnivore Restaurant?
For the all-you-can-eat buffet, you will pay a flat fee of 4,200 Kenyan shillings ($32 USD). This also includes a dessert at the end. However, this price does not include drinks, as these will be an additional cost.
The Restaurant Experience
Once you are seated, the waiters inform you that you will pay a flat fee of 4,200 Kenyan shillings ($32 USD) for the all-you-can-eat buffet, and offer you drinks for an additional cost. They will ask you if you have any dietary restrictions or if you would like to order a drink. After you order, your first course will arrive shortly.
Appetizers and salad
First, you will be served a couple pieces of bread. After a few minutes, you will receive a rotating dish with three different types of salad on the bottom, and six types of sauce on the top. Each sauce is labeled and used for a specific kind of meat (mint sauce for lamb, garlic sauce for chicken and crocodile, etc). The waiter gives you a little plastic flag to put on top of the dish. As long as the flag is up, you will continue to be offered food. Once you’ve had enough, you “surrender” and take the flag down.
Main course/buffet
After about 10 minutes, the servers start bringing the meat. The meat is roasted on a large charcoal pit in the center of the restaurant. Waiters bring large hunks of meat that have been skewered by Maasai daggers to a heated plate on your table. They will ask you if you are interested in the meat, how many pieces you want, etc. You are able to request and eat as much as you want.
Dessert
Once you’ve put down your flag, the servers take your dishes away and ask what kind of dessert you want. If you’re like me, you will have already eaten too much and not really want any dessert. But it comes for no extra charge, so just order what looks good and try your best to eat it.
Menu at Carnivore Restaurant
Carnivore has a wide selection of meats available to try. Some of these include: chicken sausage, spicy chicken, leg of lamb, pork sausage, spare ribs, turkey, beef, ox balls, ostrich meat balls, and crocodile. In the past, Carnivore offered a wider range of exotic meats, including giraffe and wildebeest, but many of these meats were banned from being sold in Kenya in 2004. Despite this, Carnivore’s selection of meat is delicious and makes it worth a visit. Below are some of my ratings for the more exotic meats.
Ostrich: 8/10
If you’re feeling adventurous and want to try something new at Carnivore restaurant, the ostrich meat balls are a must-try dish. The chance to try ostrich was one of the main reasons I wanted to visit Carnivore. The meat is lean and flavorful, with a taste that is similar to beef but with a slightly gamier taste. It was much less dense than a beef meatball would be. Overall, it was delicious and I’m glad I got the chance to try it.
Crocodile: 9/10
Another reason I wanted to come to Carnivore was to try the crocodile. Crocodile meat has a mild flavor and tastes like chicken. While that might be a cliché statement, it is very true. To make it taste even more similar, the waiters recommend using the garlic sauce with it: the same sauce used with the chicken. Overall, the meat was delicious and I highly recommend it to anybody.
Ox Balls: 10/10
The idea of eating testicles may turn some people off, but in my opinion, the ox balls were the best food at Carnivore. It’s hard to explain what they tasted like, somewhere between chicken and beef with a gamey flavor. The texture was juicy and dense. These are used with the tomato relish sauce. In addition to the numerous benefits that come from eating this food, it is worth trying for the taste alone.
Tips for Visiting
Before your visit to Carnivore, here are 5 tips to ensure your visit goes smoothly.
1. If you do not want a certain meat, let the waiter know immediately
They will bring out a little plastic flag that is color-coded to indicate that you do not want a certain meat. I’m not a fan of pork, so they gave me a green flag. I didn’t have to worry about anyone offering me pork, and instead I could enjoy the meat that I actually wanted to try.
2. Don't fill up on bread or salad
They give you a lot of bread and salad before you start eating. I’m sure they try to fill you up before the all-you-can-eat meat buffet starts. Try the three different salads they provide, but don’t eat the whole thing. Save room for the main course.
3. Pace yourself
You can stay as long as you want. Don’t try to scarf down as much meat as fast as possible. I did this and wish I took my time. Nobody is going to take your food, so relax and enjoy.
4. Save money by skipping drinks
The drinks here are expensive, and especially the alcoholic drinks. I figured that would be the case, so I just ordered a small water. Some restaurant patrons nearby were shocked to find out that a single drink cost them $22 USD! Save the drinks for when you leave. You came for the food anyway.
5. Speak to the staff in Swahili
This restaurant attracts a lot of international visitors. Unfortunately, most of these visitors will never even attempt to learn a single word in Swahili. Stand out and say even one or two words in Swahili. Your staff will appreciate it.
Mambo? = How are you?
Asante = Thank you
This post is on point about the Carnivore. A very good review…..you can also ask for Ala carte although the beast of a feast is indeed the real carnivore deal
Thank you! I’m glad it was helpful.