We booked in here at Sevendials via TT, expecting quite a lot. Unfortunately, we ran 30 minutes late, so we rushed over, knowing the kitchen would soon close. We were greeted with “no, sorry, the kitchen’s closed”, but after a couple of questions and explanation, they went back, thinking they could do *something* for us after all.

Apparently the chef had just shut down the grill, and they decided to re-open it for us! Awesome.

Then out came a procession of:
Smoked duck breast: Lovely duck, smoked to perfection, not too cold, not too warm– and they’d run out of figs, so they replaced it with citrus which cut and complemented the duck all too well.
Aubergine, Red pepper, Goat’s cheese roulade: which sat under a pile of fresh lovely roquette which gave a peppery twist to the combination of lovely baked-together flavours underneath.
Braised Pig’s Cheeks: buttery, creamy, porky, and fantastic– an all-too-often overlooked lovely bit of the pig (not to mention cow!) Fully approved of by the Fellowship of the Pig.
Roast Partridge with partridge crumble: Which was an odd thought, as it’s partridge with a partridge side, but it worked– and worked well.
Monkfish with parmentier potatoes: I know, I know, I’m not meant to order Monkfish, but this place is known for its sustainable food, and I figure once a year… In any case, the Monkfish did not leave this plane of existence without good reason– it was brilliant. About 200g of monkfish in a round fillet, grilled to perfection, where it didn’t flake, didn’t go rough, but just poured flavour out into your mouth.

Wine: I thought the wine deserved its own space. El Muro Carineña Garnacha/Tempranillo, ‘08. I have no idea what 2008 looked like in Spanish wine, but this wine punched way above its weight. Eminently drinkable, like a middling reserve Tempranillo that’d been laid down for five years. Obviously it’d been done with some new world techniuqes, but at £14 a bottle (the cheapest on the list– I picked it ‘cos I figured you can’t go wrong with a Garnacha/Tempranillo blend), it drank like a £25 bottle of wine, and tasted reassuringly old world. It reminded me exactly why I love Spanish wine so much. I am desperate to drink more of this.

Looking forward to heading to Brighton again where you can get what would in London be a £100 meal for £40…

Uganda
The nightclub capital of East Africa– and the alcohol consumption capital of the world. It’s hard to come here and not have a good time. You might consult a couple of resources for help with some of the more colourful expressions, but it’s pretty easy to get along, pretty safe (except for taking Boda bodas at night or, indeed, even during the day).

Wine is South African and heavily overpriced. Go for it if you must, but the locals drink gin/waragi, whiskey, or beer.

Warning: You may have to specify that you want your beer cold. And “cold” may end up being a bit of a relative term.

What to drink

Waragi
The local (Ugandan) equivalent of gin. It’s not bad– especially with tonic– although apparently gives a massive headache to some. Conveniently sold in bottles or in 200ml sachets. Awesome for sneaking into clubs. Take some home with you and impress your friends.

There’s also a gold version…

Club
Cool Ladies Understand Brothers, apparently. This is your bog-standard lager. All the beers in Uganda come in 500ml bottles. Club’s 5% or so, and pretty decent, though without huge flavour.

Moonberg Lager
AKA Moonbaga Laga (in the local dialect). This is a new brew made according to the German Beer Purity Law. I don’t know what the style is but it’s not my personal favourite, but it’s definitely one of the better beers. If you’re into that sort of thing. It just has a certain arse flavour that I don’t particularly like.

OK but not preferred

Bell
Named for Port Bell, where the rail barges load to cross Lake Victoria. This is an old local brew, and very similar to Club. Safe to drink, if nothing special.

Castle
Blah blah, available all over Africa, they do have a milk stout as well, kind of expensive but OK and comes in cans so there’s no hassle about bottle returns if it’s a home party. Made in and imported from South Africa at god knows what carbon footprint…

Pilsner
Exclusively in cans, looks kind of sketchy, tastes a little worse. It won’t kill you but I never really liked it.

What not to drink… ever

Nile Special
I personally believe this beer is made with poison and methanol and, maybe, antifreeze. It has this flavour that reminds me of the worst warmed over Colt .45 I ever drank, but worse. Kind of what I imagine licking a sweaty man’s genitals would taste like. It is strong, though, at 6.5% or stronger, but I wouldn’t drink it.

Plus, the hangover from it (hey, sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do) is eminently miserable.

Tusker Malt Liquor
This is not your tasty Kenyan Tusker lager which is OK, this is some odd malt liquor. also a strong beer, with some strange additives, not quite as foul as Nile Special, but you do get the sense that they’ve put something really cheap in it. Best avoided.

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