Eating the Pandemic: Season 2

For those still eating their way through the pandemic, 2021 will go down as the year we escaped the tyranny of grazing boards – the moment in which we raged against banana bread, said no more to seafood boils, and finally forgot to post our Sunday plate, hashtag blessed.

After surviving the baking flour shortages of 2020, this year saw many of us return to restaurants.

Utterly fed up with the dirty dishes and acid reflux that comes with following YouTube, TikTok and local food trends, we emerged into the bright lights of the pandemic-ravaged food scene with hope, excitement and the desire to eat somebody (anybody!) else’s cooking.

While a slew of new restaurants may not seem a likely result of the times, Windhoek has a few new eateries on the menu.

From the modern, functional Zenzi’s promising a soothing cup of Zen in the city centre, to the prettily pink The Skinny Cow Eatery, hosting the capital’s Instagram babes in clicking, posing, pink-treat-clutching droves, Windhoek also saw some firm favourites remix or relocate.

Enter Goodfellas, a mafia movie-themed pizzeria by the folks who gave us Plant’d, and just a door down from the former’s spot at The Village.

“But that’s El Barrio?” you may say.

Well, El Barrio @ Nyama has moved to the showgrounds in the strange eatery migration that has also seen Café Prestige move to the Franco-Namibian Cultural Centre.

No fret necessary, however, as each is still doing their thing – just with more space for the pandemic era and the addition of live music and the wildly popular Drag Night at Café Prestige.

As this year’s migrating eateries serve amazing acoustic sets by acts like The Ells, Riaan Smit and Senga Brockerhoff, live music is also a welcome and recurring trend at Isabel’s Table, which, alongside Leo’s Garden Restaurant and Livega, are my top picks for a plush patio, beautifully plated eats and that 
luxurious feel at the trendy Village.

Offering a similar upscale vibe and the best breakfasts, tacos and freshly baked treats is the ever-popular Olivia’s, which never (and I mean never!) disappoints.

The same can be said for Slowtown, Namibia’s beloved coffee franchise, which celebrated its 10th birthday this year and is yet to pull a bad cup of joe.

Though most foodies’ dalliance with food-delivery services has cooled, top of the pops for meals that make it to your house hearty, hot and delicious are 
burgers and wings from RocoMamas, and Sicilia, whose daily and weekly specials are a gift to Windhoek’s pizza and pasta lovers.

As for sushi, Daisho Sushi and Wine Bar, which has celebrated its seventh birthday, still takes the sake for dining in and delivery.

Stratos is the capital’s queen of sexy, sophisticated rooftop bars, and after my multiple-month stint living at Swakopmund, I’m a sucker for an afternoon spent sipping the best Cosmopolitans this country has to offer at Strand Hotel’s Welwitschia Lounge, or devouring big succulent oysters as I somewhat diabolically enjoy the view of their oceanic habitat from my solo, sea-facing perch at Ocean Cellar.

By no means an exhaustive list of what Windhoek has to offer, simply a round-up of some favourites from a veteran dish killer and local food writer, thus ends my glimpse into this year’s gastronomic delights.

Until next time, have a safe and cheerful holiday!

And to those who happily indulged in the Daebak Ghost Pepper Noodle Challenge, no doubt this year’s weirdest food trend, I have just one question: Did the ghost pepper Scovilles fry your taste buds, or was it Covid?

– martha@namibian.com.na; Martha Mukaiwa on Twitter and Instagram; marthamukaiwa.com

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