6 Best Restaurants in Kenya

Serving the best samosas in Mombasa, this family-owned Indian restaurant has been in business for almost 70 years. It seats 140 people, making it one of the largest restaurants in the city and it's a good stop after a hot walk around the Old Town thanks to the whirring ceiling fans and clean restrooms. The menu features more than 65 items of both Western and Indian origin, and its bright, clean interior with tiled floors and plenty of chairs and tables keeps people coming. The curries and Indian vegetarian dishes are especially good, as are the tasty snacks. Try the pizzas, kebabs, pastries, or even fish-and-chips, and the variety of house-made ice-creams are delicious. They have two other outlets at Likoni Mall and on Nkrumah Avenue.

A firm fixture on the tourist trail, Carnivore became famous for serving wild game. Although this is no longer the case, you can still get crocodile and ostrich as well as beef, pork, and lamb. The emphasis, as ever, is firmly on meat, and lots of it, roasted on traditional Maasai swords. Waiters carry the sizzling meat to your table on long skewers and carve whatever you wish onto the cast-iron platters that serve as plates. Only when you offer a little white flag of surrender do they stop carving. As strange as it may seem, there are also many excellent choices for vegetarians. There's an à la carte option if you feel your appetite may not be equal to the set menu.

Opened in 2000, this eco-lodge is the type of spot where you kick off your shoes when you arrive and don't remember where you left them at the end. The menu has seafood and Swahili bbq, but the delicious wood-fired thin crust pizzas are where it's really at. There's always something happening here, from pizza and film night to international DJs to their epic full moon and Saturday night parties, which make the short speedboat ride from Shela and Lamu Town worth it.

This space merges an art gallery featuring local and international artists with manicured green lawns complete with a water fountain, live music, and food. In the backyard is a coffee stand by Ethiopian brand, Tomoca coffee, and plenty of areas to sit where customers enjoy dishes like chicken satay or lamb chops with hasselback potatoes. The cocktails average $9 and are named after numbers like the Seven, which has pink gin, pink tonic, strawberry puree, lime and rose water. 

The perfect place to spend a few relaxing hours on a low-slung cushioned sofa with a tropical cocktail, Nomad is a luxurious beach bar that overlooks the white sands of Diani. Open all day from breakfast right through to dinner, the menu features the usual popular snacks, sandwiches, pizzas, and pastas, but also has some dishes based on traditional Swahili cooking, plenty of seafood, and even Indian curries and Japanese sushi—there’s something for everyone.

Expect breathtaking 360-degree views of the city, while you dine at this revolving restaurant on the 24th floor of the Movenpick Hotel & Residences. The Mediterranean-inspired menu features an array of seafood, pasta, and soups to choose from; try the antipasti platter for a starter, and the roast pork loin with merlot wine sauce, served with grilled red bell pepper for the main. The tiramisu and lemon tart are an incredible way to end your meal. The hotel's all-day dining restaurant, Baluba, which was relaunched in May 2022, offers an East African and continental cuisine fusion.