All about Ki.chen and Susan

Ki.chen is one of the new restaurants on the Yum site. They specialize in weekday lunches.

On Wednesday I had the pleasure of chatting up Susan from Ki.chen and gained a few lovely insights on the restaurant and the person behind it as well. She makes for good conversation and has a pearly laugh that’s infectious. Here’s how the interview went:

Q.Tell me a little bit about Susan and Kichen…

A. Kichen is a food business delivering lunches across Nairobi. It started in November 2014 out of the frustration many Nairobian’s face in finding an affordable meal with variety.

Susan…

A.*chuckles* She’s a lover of food, and outdoorsy.

She’d love to try skydiving, in fact it is on her bucket list for this year. She used to be afraid of heights but went on one of those banana boat rides and it was more fun than terrifying. I still believe man wasn’t made to jump out of a plane but she convinced me it’s something I should try so hopefully it will end up on my bucket list too. Did i mention bungee jumping too? Yes she is adventurous — and this extends to her cooking as well.

Q.Why the name anything special behind it?

A. Neeketa (her partner) would always say I’m going to the kitchen when they had meetings to discuss their idea for the restaurant. It is basically kitchen but spelled as the pronunciation.

Q. Who comes up with the recipes?

A. We (her and Nikita) came up with recipes over a period 3 months perfecting each of them. Initially they were over 20 recipes but we brought this down using a focus group. Now we only work with ten recipes.

Q. What would you say is the most popular meal on your menu?

A. The Swahili coconut chicken curry

Q. What meal do you have the most fun preparing?

A. Swahili coconut chicken curry .

It would be fun to note that while talking to her I asked her how long it would usually take her to prep the Swahili coconut chicken curry and she only takes fifteen minutes. Yes, fifteen! The food is freshly made when you order.

On the flip side she has a hard time preparing the halloumi harissa wrap. Getting the consistency for the tortilla wrap was hard for her — even though it’s almost like making chapati which she’s an expert. Also cooking the cheese is a balancing act, if it’s overcooked it gets rubbery so timing is essential.

Q. Do you plan on expanding ki.chen to accommodate dinner?

A. People request for dinner but plans for expanding to dinner are not yet in the pipeline. If there’s a large need we can think about it.

Q. What about turning ki.chen into a sit-in restaurant?

A. Initially ki.chen was a walk-in plan we just expanded into delivery because of the demand. No, we will not be looking to become a sit-in restaurant… at least for now.

Q. What should clients expect when they order form Ki.chen?

A. Fresh meals. Our ingredients are always fresh and nothing is pre-made. They can also expect consistency in quality and that the food will arrive on time.

Q. Red wine or white?

A. Red Dry — Cielo

Although she confessed she is not that much of a wine enthusiast. But once in a while she does enjoy a glass of dry red.

Q. That food you’ve always wanted to try but never had the chance to?

A. Proper squid… and how to prepare it.

So from banana boats,to bungee jumping and finally eating proper squid that’s Susan for you. You can view their menu here, while at it enjoy pictures of their delicious food:

The Swahili Coconut Chicken Curry

The Ultimate BLT Sandwich

The Beef Massaman Curry

A refreshing mango delight