Meat Galore at the Carnivore, Nairobi

by Leigh Kemp, 27 November 2007

'Does anyone have a special interest or request?' I asked my new safari guests on the night I met them.

'I want to try and eat the whole savanna!'

It took me a while to grasp what he meant. 'Oh, for a night at the Carnivore,' I thought to myself.

No More Game but Enough Meat

The Carnivore Restaurant in Nairobi, Kenya has since stopped serving much of the game meat it was famous for but the experience of dining there is no less intimidating.

As stakes of beef, chicken, pork, lamb, ostrich, crocodile and more were being served to guests, they realised soon after starting to devour their food, that it was pointless to resist trying to taste everything.

We were welcomed with a 'Maya', a vodka-based drink of honey and lime on ice. After a few sips of this new delicacy, it occurred to me that a few more could make for a very pleasant evening but a terrifying morning after.

I settled for a Tusker, the local beer enjoyed by the Kenyans, to complement my carnivorous longings.

'Is anyone vegetarian?' seemed an out of place question as the smell of roasting meat flooded our senses.

A vegetarian's nightmare, the Carnivore holds nothing back, from the entrance where chunks of meat hang from long spears over an open fire to the lowering of a flag on the table to signify surrender.

Starters, Awards and Final Surrender

In a place where swallowing huge amounts of meat is the goal, the small bowl of tomato soup as a starter seemed a little odd and the very lonely looking salad leaves that were brought to the table with all the sauces and other additives seemed to shrivel with each moment that passed.

Voted by Restaurant Magazine as one of the top 50 restaurants in the world a few years ago, the Carnivore still lives up to its reputation as a carnivorous orgy despite the loss of game meat from its menu.

This measure was introduced by the Kenyan authorities in a bid to stem illegal hunting of the country's wildlife. They figured that by banning all sales of game meat the illegal trade in game products would stop.

'There will never again be a time when I can consume so much meat without a conscience,' I thought to myself as I contemplated another ostrich meatball.

When the flag was finally dropped we were shocked to see the waiter moving towards us with what looked like a menu. It was the dessert menu. I settled for some Kenyan tea.

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