OUT&ABOUT: Tasty meat, great music at Moran Lounge, Nanyuki

Succulent nyama choma at Moran Lounge, Nanyuki. PHOTO | COURTESY

What you need to know:

  • If you want somewhere where the music will keep you up on your feet all night long, then Moran Lounge has your back there.
  • The guest deejay on the Saturday night I was there, DJ Tboy, surprised us with some guest performances from the “Odi Dance” singers.
  • Do you have feedback on this article? E-mail: [email protected]

My last leisure visit to Nanyuki was an ill-advised mountain-climbing trip that ended up in swollen limbs and sun-burnt skin.

I was unfit and unprepared and Mt. Kenya never let me forget that from the moment my hired boots landed at the bottom of it.

Five years later, Nanyuki is still synonymous with the pain of mountain climbing.

This time I wanted to create fonder memories of Nanyuki. That is, while not crying in triumph and pain from a mountaintop.

I decided to sample the nightlife and my inquiries led me to Moran Lounge, the hottest club in town, they said. Not just famous for its music but also its food.

And the music did not disappoint. If you want somewhere where the music will keep you up on your feet all night long, then Moran has your back there.

The entrance of Moran Lounge in Nanyuki. PHOTO | COURTESY

Moran Lounge is a massive semi-permanent structure with an alluring nyama choma section at the entrance. The club boasts of both a VIP and VVIP section.

I’ve always wondered about this VIP concept in clubs. Why pay more to stay as far away from the deejay and action as possible? I don’t understand.

UP ALL NIGHT

And speaking of DJs, Moran is well-known for bringing in guest DJs every week.

I tried out the Moran Special. Or Kuku Mtungo as it is popularly known in other quarters. I’ve seen it referred to as Mashakura in some social media quarters too and the term even made its way into a TV advert! Such is the popularity of the dish. It is a special mix of kienyeji (free range) chicken, boiled eggs, boiled maize, nduma (arrow roots), cucumber and chips.

The starches vary from kitchen to kitchen. As do the proteins too, sometimes. That’s the other things I have never quite gotten the hang of. The taste explosion that people claim to have in their mouths when they eat Kuku Mtungo has never happened to me.

The Moran Special. PHOTO | COURTESY

A formula for a fart-inducing meal, if you ask me, but according to the waiters I spoke to, it is one of the fastest-moving dishes.

If you are like me, who believes that food belongs in its various respective plates and not in one large serving dish, and that cucumber belongs in salads and not next to shallow fried chicken, then Moran Special is not for you. But apparently, Nanyukians swear by it! I know a number of my friends as well who do.

Me, I will stick to my regular nyama choma—which was delectable, by the way. Salted and spiced just right and not too dry. Succulent to the core. I had to beg myself to stop eating.

The guest deejay on the Saturday night I was there, DJ Tronix, surprised us with some guest performances from the “Odi Dance” singers and his music mix kept us dancing all night long.

At least the cramping in my feet in the morning was not as a result of a disastrous mountain-climbing trip!

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FACTS

Moran Lounge is located in Nanyuki Town, which is about three hours from Nairobi.