Green tea should be more familiar with their menus
Mar 25, 2010
GREEN Tea Chinese Restaurant is not what I, or you, would expect. If you have come to think of Chinese restaurants as elegant and ornate and flamboyant establishments, with deep red livery and hanging lanterns and the echo of chimes hanging lightly in the air, then you will suffer the same first imp
By Ernest Bazanye
GREEN Tea Chinese Restaurant is not what I, or you, would expect. If you have come to think of Chinese restaurants as elegant and ornate and flamboyant establishments, with deep red livery and hanging lanterns and the echo of chimes hanging lightly in the air, then you will suffer the same first impulse I had when we turned up to the Kololo driveway.
We found ourselves inside the compound of what was, to all senses, someone’s house. Just a house. A large one, admittedly, but a house. Where people live. No lanterns and no chimes. I was going to ask the first person I saw: “Excuse me, could you direct me to a restaurant on this road?â€
It turned out, of course, that the house was, in fact, the restaurant. Another residential domicile converted (or, more likely, in the process of being converted into) a commercial eatery, and as we climbed the stairs to what would be the front door, we found that there were glass-topped tables laid out on the verandah.
There are more tables on the well-kept lawn beneath, huddled amidst flowering bushes, from which a small Ugandan woman in a Chinese jacket appeared bearing menus.
She gave me one with a list of teas running down its length, and I was intrigued. I have heard of the medicinal value of the herbs of the Far East and would not have turned down a cup of something that would treat insomnia, lethargy, stress, schizophrenia — but the waitress was not a good guide.
She was able to tell us, however, that Green Tea’s most loyal customers are Chinese people themselves, so they probably do not need to have it explained to them.
However, for the benefit of us Ugandan customers, I hope the management takes the time to train their waiters to explain these teas to us.
We were there for food, so we ordered. Egg fried rice, kungpow chicken and sweet and sour pork. The chicken arrived (and this was novel), with groundnuts — crunchiness and everything — garnishing the plate. It all cost sh39,000 in all.
My guest observed that Ugandans tend to like to smother their food in gravy after I had mused that the meal was a bit dry, but it was nevertheless well-eaten.
So, here is the verdict:
The best thing about Green Tea is the ambience, though you might want to check out the more restaurant-like layout at the back of the compound if you do not want the gardens and the verandah.
The service is not horrible, but they should be more conversant with the menus they offer.
GREEN Tea Chinese Restaurant is not what I, or you, would expect. If you have come to think of Chinese restaurants as elegant and ornate and flamboyant establishments, with deep red livery and hanging lanterns and the echo of chimes hanging lightly in the air, then you will suffer the same first impulse I had when we turned up to the Kololo driveway.
We found ourselves inside the compound of what was, to all senses, someone’s house. Just a house. A large one, admittedly, but a house. Where people live. No lanterns and no chimes. I was going to ask the first person I saw: “Excuse me, could you direct me to a restaurant on this road?â€
It turned out, of course, that the house was, in fact, the restaurant. Another residential domicile converted (or, more likely, in the process of being converted into) a commercial eatery, and as we climbed the stairs to what would be the front door, we found that there were glass-topped tables laid out on the verandah.
There are more tables on the well-kept lawn beneath, huddled amidst flowering bushes, from which a small Ugandan woman in a Chinese jacket appeared bearing menus.
She gave me one with a list of teas running down its length, and I was intrigued. I have heard of the medicinal value of the herbs of the Far East and would not have turned down a cup of something that would treat insomnia, lethargy, stress, schizophrenia — but the waitress was not a good guide.
She was able to tell us, however, that Green Tea’s most loyal customers are Chinese people themselves, so they probably do not need to have it explained to them.
However, for the benefit of us Ugandan customers, I hope the management takes the time to train their waiters to explain these teas to us.
We were there for food, so we ordered. Egg fried rice, kungpow chicken and sweet and sour pork. The chicken arrived (and this was novel), with groundnuts — crunchiness and everything — garnishing the plate. It all cost sh39,000 in all.
My guest observed that Ugandans tend to like to smother their food in gravy after I had mused that the meal was a bit dry, but it was nevertheless well-eaten.
So, here is the verdict:
The best thing about Green Tea is the ambience, though you might want to check out the more restaurant-like layout at the back of the compound if you do not want the gardens and the verandah.
The service is not horrible, but they should be more conversant with the menus they offer.