Hotel Naigara is ambitious
Dec 05, 2002
Place: Niagara Hotel<br>Rating: Worth a visit<br>Food: Continental<br>Service: Good<br>Ambience: Relaxed and pleasant<br>Parking: Secure<br>Location: Najanankumbi, 100 metres off Entebbe Road<br>Hours: They never close
One should not mistake Naigara, as in the hotel, with the famous Niagara Falls of North America. From our understanding, this hotel was named in memory of Nayagala, the late mother of its owner.
Less than 10 years ago, nobody would have ventured to set up a hotel complex in the areas of Najanankumbi, Zanna and the like.
In the case of Zanna, the area where Hotel Millennium stands was nothing but swamp. Conventional wisdom would have dictated that such an undertaking was too risky.
Wrong. The area from Kibuye
Round-about all the way to Seguku along Entebbe Road has grown in leaps and bounds, the latest development being the Naigara Hotel. Off the beaten path, it is nestled in a little cul-de-sac, making it into a sort of hideaway; ideal for those who desire seclusion coupled with a feel of country air.
I am full of praise for those who think beyond and plan for the future, as is the case of the owners of this new property.
Though not yet fully complete, it is habitable, with a conference facility that can accommodate about 200 people. It has 16 complete rooms. Last month, Naigara Hotel opened without any fan fare or much publicity. We decided to check out the food. I must say that the al fresco was perfect for a hotel of this size. The owners wisely decided to woo the population who live within the vicinity rather than rely on city-dwellers.
Accordingly, the food has been priced with the locals in mind. Suburbian living is relatively cheaper than life in the inner city. If one is going to attract these people, one must give them a worthwhile incentive. Low price has always been an attraction.
The menu has been chosen as a la carte, but I honestly feel that it is simply too ambitious and unworkable. Whoever is behind this long-winded document would be well advised to go back to the drawing board and come up with something more suited to an out of town joint.
To wit, the lunch or dinner menu, while going for a very inexpensive sh3,000, failed to live up to its expectations. It was wonderful to see that one could get matooke, yams, Irish and sweet potatoes, rice, chapatis, pumpkin, posho, millet et al. These were served with afro-fish stew, beef stew, brown goat stew, chicken stew, luwombo... the list is endless.
In all fairness, the above would rightly never be called a la carte. Here, I blame the chef for getting carried away with what one can only term as his sense of limited understanding of menu engineering. Somebody once remarked that a little knowledge was dangerous. I am afraid that this was all too evident in the form of the menu card that was presented. We would have thought that more than 100 items for a place this size is just sheer overkill.
Matters are not helped by the numerous spelling gaffes one finds on the menu. Sandwitches, persley, becon, omolette, jacked (potatoes), humbergers (sic), just to mention a few. The management has assured us that they are going to correct these aberrations. This is good news and can only help the hotel.
We had some fried fish that was nothing remarkable, served with tepid rice and a sauce of some sort. I have to admit that there is room for vast improvement in the kitchen and I have no doubt that the powers that be shall act accordingly. The owner insisted on picking up the tab, a generous offer that would nevertheless have set us back a mere sh5,000 for the two of us; chump change!
Ratings
Excellent: xxx
Very good: xx
Worth a visit: x
Not worth a visit: o
Less than 10 years ago, nobody would have ventured to set up a hotel complex in the areas of Najanankumbi, Zanna and the like.
In the case of Zanna, the area where Hotel Millennium stands was nothing but swamp. Conventional wisdom would have dictated that such an undertaking was too risky.
Wrong. The area from Kibuye
Round-about all the way to Seguku along Entebbe Road has grown in leaps and bounds, the latest development being the Naigara Hotel. Off the beaten path, it is nestled in a little cul-de-sac, making it into a sort of hideaway; ideal for those who desire seclusion coupled with a feel of country air.
I am full of praise for those who think beyond and plan for the future, as is the case of the owners of this new property.
Though not yet fully complete, it is habitable, with a conference facility that can accommodate about 200 people. It has 16 complete rooms. Last month, Naigara Hotel opened without any fan fare or much publicity. We decided to check out the food. I must say that the al fresco was perfect for a hotel of this size. The owners wisely decided to woo the population who live within the vicinity rather than rely on city-dwellers.
Accordingly, the food has been priced with the locals in mind. Suburbian living is relatively cheaper than life in the inner city. If one is going to attract these people, one must give them a worthwhile incentive. Low price has always been an attraction.
The menu has been chosen as a la carte, but I honestly feel that it is simply too ambitious and unworkable. Whoever is behind this long-winded document would be well advised to go back to the drawing board and come up with something more suited to an out of town joint.
To wit, the lunch or dinner menu, while going for a very inexpensive sh3,000, failed to live up to its expectations. It was wonderful to see that one could get matooke, yams, Irish and sweet potatoes, rice, chapatis, pumpkin, posho, millet et al. These were served with afro-fish stew, beef stew, brown goat stew, chicken stew, luwombo... the list is endless.
In all fairness, the above would rightly never be called a la carte. Here, I blame the chef for getting carried away with what one can only term as his sense of limited understanding of menu engineering. Somebody once remarked that a little knowledge was dangerous. I am afraid that this was all too evident in the form of the menu card that was presented. We would have thought that more than 100 items for a place this size is just sheer overkill.
Matters are not helped by the numerous spelling gaffes one finds on the menu. Sandwitches, persley, becon, omolette, jacked (potatoes), humbergers (sic), just to mention a few. The management has assured us that they are going to correct these aberrations. This is good news and can only help the hotel.
We had some fried fish that was nothing remarkable, served with tepid rice and a sauce of some sort. I have to admit that there is room for vast improvement in the kitchen and I have no doubt that the powers that be shall act accordingly. The owner insisted on picking up the tab, a generous offer that would nevertheless have set us back a mere sh5,000 for the two of us; chump change!
Ratings
Excellent: xxx
Very good: xx
Worth a visit: x
Not worth a visit: o