High Commisioner South Africa to Kenya, H.E. Ms. Salome Zulu Baloi./HANDOUT
Taste of Capetown, a South African food and wine group, has opened its first permanent restaurant in East Africa, bringing authentic Cape cuisine and South African wines to Nairobi.
The restaurant, located in one of Nairobi’s upmarket neighbourhoods, seeks to deepen the culinary and cultural links between Kenya and South Africa.
The opening comes as ties between the two countries continue to grow, with Kenyans ranking among the leading international tourist groups visiting Cape Town over the past several years.
The group said the growing movement of people between the two countries has created demand for authentic Cape cuisine in Nairobi.
Taste of Capetown said its Nairobi restaurant will offer diners the flavours, hospitality and coastal spirit associated with Cape Town.
Speaking at the opening, South Africa’s High Commissioner to Kenya, Salome Zulu Baloi, said the restaurant was a natural extension of the relationship between the two countries.
“For years we have welcomed Kenyan visitors into our kitchens and dining rooms in Cape Town. They have brought energy, curiosity and a genuine love for our food,” she said.
“Opening here in Nairobi feels like the most natural next step.”
Baloi said the restaurant was more than an expansion of a food business, describing it as a continuation of the relationship built through travel and shared experiences.
“We are not simply transplanting a concept we are continuing a conversation that Kenyan travellers started,” she said.
She added that the menu reflected the experiences shared between visitors from Kenya and South Africa.
“Every dish on this menu carries the memory of those exchanges the braais, the seafood, the spices, the late-night conversations,” Baloi said.
The Nairobi restaurant’s menu is centred on classic Cape dishes and KwaZulu-Natal cuisine, reinterpreted using seasonal East African produce.
Among its signature offerings are slow-cooked Cape Malay curries, wood-fired meats and a selection of South African wines.
The restaurant’s design also draws from Cape Town’s harbour-side architecture and street culture.
The group said the setting was designed to feel familiar to travellers who have visited Cape Town while also welcoming diners experiencing the cuisine for the first time.
The opening marks Taste of Capetown’s entry into East Africa and forms part of its commitment to celebrating culinary links between African cities.
The group also said the restaurant would honour the travellers who have helped strengthen those connections between Kenya and South Africa.
