Bird, bread and a view by the beach
Nothing quite tops off a great meal than a spectacular backdrop of the ocean that sets the perfect tone for a light lunch or an evening out. Now imagine if your meal was a varied choice of imaginative mix of Italian, Indian and local cuisine!
Jasmine Atieno @sparkleMine
When a friend recommended this particular restaurant, the idea that I would have my meal with the direct view of the Seven Islands, one of the most popular features of Watamu beach, was exhilarating.
Tamu Restaurant is an extension of the Crystal Bay Resort located right at the heart of the Watamu Marine Park.
As I walked in, I was received by the warm smile of the restaurant manager Nadia Lucas.
She tells us that restaurant is not always this busy, but with the Seven Islands Festival, held two weeks ago, the restaurant is extremely jammed and the kitchen super busy.
The menu is a mix of Italian, Indian and local cuisines. Also a professional chef, Nadia offers to take us through the preparation of our meal for the day. Chicken curry and naan is my pick from the menu.
“The chicken curry is prepared by first sorting the onions in a pot then adding all the spices: garam masala, dhana njeera, tumerics, red chilli powder, dhania, garlic and ginger, which are all fried together.
The chicken is added to the mix and is fried again untill it is dry. Blended tomato sauce is added to the chicken, as well as some salt and pepper to taste,” she shares.
The naan is cooked with yeast, flour, sugar, salt, yoghurt and dough. Prepared into a dough and left for 20 minutes to rise, it is then rolled into a chapati-like shape and cooked in the pizza oven for eight minutes.
After it is put on a plate, a mix of dhania and butter is rubbed on the bread and it is ready to be served... hot of course.
This meal costs only Sh900 and it is, I have to say, totally worth it. The servings generally range between Sh600 to the most expensive meal, the seafood platter that goes for Sh3500.
If you don’t want to eat inside the restaurant, your meal can be served at the actual shore... yes lunch at the beach!
She was glad that life had started going back to normal and events such as the festival were beginning to come back again.
“The festival has really pushed business for us. At some point, I was forced to go into the kitchen myself to help out with the cooking,“ she flashes a hopeful smile.
She, however expressed fear that stringent restrictions by the government might again pull things back to where they are coming from.
