The Kenyan Nomad: About Thyme Review: Nairobi Restaurant Week 2017

Saturday, February 11, 2017

About Thyme Review: Nairobi Restaurant Week 2017

How could Nairobi Restaurant Week have come and gone without my traditional About Thyme visit? Thankfully, my current team also loves the place, and we decided to grab dinner there on Wednesday night.

I was a little surprised (and some coworkers a little disappointed) the restaurant didn't do their regular menu during NRW - don't quite remember how it happened last year - but I think at the end we all agreed it was worth it!

I will apologise in advance for the pictures, as it was a little dark and I'm a little hesitant using flash photography at dinner time. I also forgot to take a picture of the menu, so this screenshot will have to do.

All the restaurants who did dinner for NRW2017 had the same complimentary cocktails, so this time around, I decided to go for the Absolut Mule - and it was great!! I wish I'd chosen this earlier too. With vodka, ginger beer and fresh lime juice, it was perfectly light and refreshing - exactly the drink that the summer night inspired.

My choices this dinner shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone - for starters, I chose the sweet potato, butternut and ginger soup. And yes, it was even more delicious than it sounds! The only thing I didn't like about this was that the salt was on the lower side. What may come as a surprise to those of you who know me is that I tried a bite of the tuna tartar that my coworker ordered - and I really liked it!! I like sushi, but for some reason the thought of tartar (and especially tuna) has always terrified me. However, the avocado, lime and soy sauce made it seem more bearable, and I was very pleasantly surprised by the taste. It was smooth and creamy and a perfect, melt in your mouth blend of flavours.

Tuna tartar with avocado

Next up? The pepper steak, of course. I briefly toyed with the idea of getting the amaretti tortellini, but after some deliberation (coughpeerpressurecough), decided to go for some steak instead - and it was an excellent choice.

As I've undoubtedly mentioned before, I'm a steak heathen. When asked how I like my steak, my answer will always be something along the lines of "so well done it's almost burnt. Make sure it's all the way dead, please." And yes, it's always a source of disappointment to those around me. When most people envision steak well-done, they think of tough, chewy leather. Absolutely not the case here. About Thyme's pepper steak, even well done, was perfectly soft and juicy, and all the flavours blended together really well! The dish didn't even need the potatoes on the side. The onion rings on top and the vegetables on the side (which were fresh and crispy and perfect) complemented it beautifully. The pepper sauce was rich and creamy, with the subtlety of thyme really hitting it home. Definitely a ten out of ten on this one - even better than steak I've had in some of Nairobi's famous restaurants who're famed for it! My coworker, who was initially apprehensive about ordering the steak, pretty much had love hearts erupting out of his eyes every time he took a bite of his.

What I also liked is that this portion of steak was a LOT more manageable than their regular portions, which I quite appreciated.

The picture absolutely doesn't do the steak justice!

The sticky date pudding sounded too good to pass up, so despite how full I already was by this stage, I managed to do a good job with it. It was really good, and the toffee sauce/ ice cream mixture was DIVINE. The pudding was a little sweeter than I expected, but not sickeningly so.

My coworkers tried the peanut butter ice cream pie (verdict? GOOD!) and the crème brûlée. From what they told me, the latter could have been a little more brûlée and a little less crème. Perhaps a shallower dish would've helped!