Nairobi restaurant scene out in full raising funds for Farm Africa

Ashley Palmer-Watts, Group Executive Chef at Dinner by Heston Blumenthal, Luca Pintus, head chef at Tribe, and Dennis Mwakulua, group chef at Eversheds Restaurant Associates, were joined by ambassadors and government officials as well as the leading lights of the Nairobi restaurant scene at the Tribe Hotel in Nairobi last Thursday, 19 January, to launch Nairobi Restaurant Week. Farm Africa was the official charity of the cocktail and canapé launch night that was hosted by online restaurant booking system EatOut Kenya.

The festivities kicked off with a Q&A session with Ashley and Dennis, providing an opportunity for Kenyan chefs to learn from the two top chefs’ career paths and find out what it’s like to work in a Michelin-starred restaurant.

The canapés were a big hit with the guests! The recipe was built around and inspired by Farm Africa’s work with smallholder farmers in western Kenya. The event was sponsored by Toyota, Absolut Vodka and local food outlet Browns.

As part of his trip Ashley, who has been working with Farm Africa for over five years, visited the charity’s projects in western Kenya, where local ingredients for the chosen canapés can be sourced.

The tilapia canapé was inspired by Farm Africa’s aquaculture project around Lake Victoria, whilst the vegetables used in the dish – such as the chillies, French beans and cabbage – were influenced by the charity’s work with smallholders based just outside of Nairobi.

Farm Africa’s work to boost farmers’ production has brought about major economic benefits to the local communities, helping to lift people out of poverty. With the support of Farm Africa, farmers have formed collectives in order to increase their bargaining power and achieve better prices for their crops, so increasing their long-term financial security.

Nairobi Restaurant Week runs from Thursday 26 January to Sunday 5 February 2017 and is Nairobi’s most exciting and biggest culinary event, involving 60 top restaurants offering distinctive menus at fixed prices.

It is organised by Yummy magazine, part of the EatOut group that operates across Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. Yummy Magazine brings news of the region’s fast developing culinary scene.