A taste of Chef Kabelo’s designer meals

Whenever you are in nairobi for a business or leisure visit, there are many places to stretch your dollar for value for money.

But if you want to combine both, Fairview hotel awaits your visit, amid its world class offerings.

Set on two hectares of leafy grounds, in the exclusive ngong Avenue area that hosts embassies, the relaxed hotel offers 127 taste fully decorated rooms, six meeting rooms, gourmet restaurants, spa, fitness centre, a tour desk, among other facilities.

however, if you are a foodie, a visit to the hotel without a taste of Chef Kabelo Mooketsi’s specialties is not complete.

The South African-born executive chef leads a team of culinary experts in the hotel’s kitchen to curate specialties across all menus and for all taste buds.

Another reason to taste the chef’s specialties is because of his wealth of experience in the culinary business.

Chef Kabelo, as he is fondly called by guests who enjoy his creations, had worked on cruise ships before coming into mainstream hotels; an experience that afforded him global exposure and expertise to satisfy his very diverse guests, no matter their taste buds.

On a special night during the recently concluded Magical Kenya tourism expo, which was held at The Bomas of Kenya, in nairobi, the hotel extended an invitation to selected guests for an exclusive menu tasting at its Pango restaurant.

The event, which was tagged The Chef’s Table, was curated by Bruce Potter, general manager and Chef Kabelo, executive chef of Fairview hotel, respectively.

For those who are used to 3 course meals, the guests at The Chef’s Table lost count of the number of meals served as the meals kept flowing from the kitchen, amid introduction of each meal and matching wine by a team member of the kitchen staff and some by Chef Kabelo himself.

excited and satiated, Charity Githinji, CEO of Tandaza, confessed that Chef Kabelo’s offered his guests a 9 course meal, same as nev Jiwani of Go Places, who said the menu was more than Githinji’s counting, and of course, Ikechi Uko, CEO, Akwaaba African Travel Market, who has vast experience in east Africa offerings, imagined the menu to be 15 over courses.

no matter the number, of course, the menu was unique because of Chef Kabelo’s ability to include lots of Kenyan flavours, and also being creative in the fusion of local and international flavours.

But what is in Chef Kabelo’s 9-course, 15-course or whatever number of courses you wish to give the menu?

What the guests assumed as the first course was the small portions of Amuse Bush a rosalia Prosecco Treviso, which was followed by “pigmy” plantain with mango in peanut butter, then beef cheek and tongue, duck and beetroot risotto, granite which includes ginger and lemon grass.

each meal came with a different drink; white wine, rose, red wine, and champagne.

Shortly, the waiters served coconut foam and vodka, coconut rice, sea bass and tamarind sauce.

Then came lobsters with local Kenyan arrow root chips and blue cheese.

While the guests seem to have lost count of the menu, the waiters came again, this time with beef fillet with red wine. The chef specifically said that the beef was aged for 40 days and dried for 20 days.

As in the tradition of ending all meals with dessert, the chef and his team did not disappoint. They offered a special dessert; ice cream dipped in Amarula and honey, and it came with Champagne.

Well, the special guests were happy to be the first set of guests to sample the new offering, The Chef’s Table and also to be feasted by Chef Kabelo, who is a new executive chef of the hotel.

now that the new offering is launched, Maureen Ogola, Fairview hotel’s sales team leader, is urging visitors in Kenya’s capital city to breeze in to sample the masterpiece creation by African talents, and so also Bruce Potter, the hotel’s general manager, who insisted that the new offering was created to refresh the hotel’s menu offerings and also to introduce the new chef discerning guests and foodies.

Meanwhile, The Chef’s Table is available by special request, it allows guests to host friends/small groups for a small fee and it is also a special package for Safari groups.

recently Fairview hotel, one of nairobi Kenya’s iconic hotels, had a change of ownership and management, and Chef Kabelo is one of the new team brought in to renew the appeal of the hotel, which is now managed by the Intercontinental hotel Group IHG).