Kenya cuisine
Though food in Nairobi hotels and some of the game lodges may be blandly "English", Mombasa and other coastal resorts benefit from the Indian Ocean's succulent spiny lobster, superb shrimps and prawns-astoundingly cheap by European standards. There is also excellent kingfish and swordfish, all best when grilled and served with, at most, a butter sauce. But all around the country, vegetables, salads and tropical fruits-papaya, pineapple, mango and several sorts of banana-are first-class.
African dishes are an acquired taste, but worth trying at least once. Sukuma wiki na nyama is a saute of spinach with meat, kuku wakupaka is spiced chicken and irio is a Kikuyu mixture of mashed chick peas, sweet corn, pumpkin and potatoes eaten with meat or fish. Matoke on the menu refers to mashed plantains and maize, while maharagwe means kidney beans.
There is a good choice of wine available from South Africa as well as more expensive European wine. Imported spirits are also widely sold. The beer is good, and fresh coconut milk a good cool pick-me-up in the heat of the day.
