It didn’t take me long to settle on a restaurant to feature this week. It’s not brand new, having opened early last year, but it’s somewhere I had been meaning to visit for many months. It’s the Peppertree Restaurant in Westlands, at Delta Towers.
Peppertree is perched above a long-term favourite diner of mine, Nyama Mama, in the spot previously occupied by Budhaa Bar. My wife, Gabie, and I booked a table for an early lunch last Sunday, after studying their menu online.
We wandered across Nyama Mama’s outside terrace, and followed a sign to Peppertree up a short staircase. We were then led to a semi-circular booth along the edge of the main dining area. It’s not a large restaurant, but an illusion of space is created by the walls of glass that wrap around the building.
It was a gloomy Sunday, but plenty of light still filtered in through the windows, and we enjoyed the view out across Westlands.
With the construction of the elevated expressway, this is a part of the city that’s still in transition. From our lofty vantage point, the towering expressway, and the relegated Waiyaki Way beneath it, seemed to divide the Westlands of old from the new. We looked out across shiny new Jaguars and Range Rovers in the Inchcape parking lot, towards The Mall and other weathered landmarks on the other side of the highway.
It was a juxtaposition made more stark by Peppertree’s very modern interior. Surrounding us were stylish furnishings of varnished woods, painted metals and patterned tiles, with a sense of luxury provided by splashes of blue-grey and rose gold. Brightly coloured murals of tropical flowers, and a central forest of dangling creepers, gave the impression of dining in a lush, glass greenhouse.
At the centre of one end of the main space, beside a busy live kitchen, is a spiral staircase leading to a roof terrace. Two tables sit out in the open, and the rest are clustered within a cosy nook beneath hanging plants and streams of fairy lights.
On its website, Peppertree is described as a “craft cocktail and global flavours concept”. Their cocktail options are varied and creative, but after a few too many cocktails of our own the night before, we chose a refreshing mixed fruit juice.
The food menu draws inspiration from culinary traditions around the world, using local Kenyan ingredients, most noticeably in their “global charcoal grill”. Their “Argentinian Asado” is a tri-tip cut of beef from Morendat Farm, grilled in a charcoal oven, with sides of chimichurri, salsa criolla, crispy garlic potatoes and green salad. Also under their grill section are the “Jerusalem lamb chops”, “Tokyo teriyaki chicken”, “snapper with Indonesian sambal”, and “pork ribs”.
Their burgers and tacos are also creatively international, such as the “Ethiopian-style lamb tibs taco”. There are plenty of bitings, salads and desserts too. The prices for the main dishes mostly range between Sh1,100 and Sh1,900.
Gabie and I both went for their “Halloumi burger”, with sides of sweet potato and Irish potato fries. It came with two delicious sauces — a smoky tomato ketchup and a sticky sweet chilli dip.
We enjoyed our early lunch but I think Peppertree is at its best in the late afternoon and evening, with a cocktail and a view of the city lights. Early this past week, they launched their new happy hour cocktail menu, with a selection of cocktails for Sh500 and a sampler of bar bites available between 3pm and 6pm from Monday to Thursday.
On the last Saturday of every month, Peppertree also usually hosts a Cocktails & Jazz event in collaboration with The Botanist Gin. The next one will be between 3pm and 6pm on August 28, where guests will be able to choose from a range of herbs and botanicals to create their perfect gin and tonic. For bookings and more information, head to peppertreekenya.com or call 0721172950.
