First seaside restaurant opening – fun for the whole family

With quite some structural finesse the first seaside restaurant in Fumba Town is opening – complete with a sun deck, pizza oven, premium steaks and even sea access.

Enjoying sunsets only in Stone Town and Kendwa? Think twice. A long awaited new attraction in Fumba Town, a restaurant with a wooden deck on top of coral rocks directly overlooking the Indian Ocean, promises entertainment for the whole family – and golden Westcoast sunsets. Open from 5-11 pm, and on weekends from morning to night, kids are welcome to play beach volley ball here, grown-ups to enjoy a rooftop shisha lounge, a sun deck and even swimming access (depending on the tide). Fine casual outdoor dining in a friendly atmosphere is the focus of the new “KwetuKwetu Chill”. The location will be open to residents and visitors alike, with direct road access from Zanzibar City.

“For now it’s the first seaside restaurant in Fumba, but in ten years there will be a whole string of them all along the coast”, envisions Sebastian Dietzold, chief developer of Fumba Town, who has seen the peninsula develop from barren coral rock land to a sprawling suburb.

Finally a sea spot in Fumba

So far, the new seaside community Fumba Town, just 18 kilometres southwest of Zanzibar City, had been missing one important highlight – a beach. Some residents have taken to explore a natural lagoon and river towards within the vicinity, yet a proper ocean-side entertainment along the cliffy stretch of 1,5 kilometres shoreline had been lacking. All that has started to change with the construction of Kwetu Kwenu Chill (KKC). Metal poles drilled into the rocks are holding a deck with in-built hammocks in place; a wooden stairs leads more than three metres down to the sea. A shipping container was turned into a kitchen and bar.

Soft opening in coming weeks

“In the weeks to come we will have a soft opening”, announced Franko Goehse and Bernadette Kirsch, the proprietors of the restaurant, confident that “it will not only be a great addition for residents of Fumba Town but will attract visitors from all over the island.” The directors of the Permaculture Design Centre (PDC) are well-known personalities on the island and responsible for the green footprint of Fumba Town, setting new standards in urban landscaping in Zanzibar and beyond. In 2018 they opened the first and only Kwetu Kwenu Bistro in Fumba Town, a popular neighbourhood-hangout since its inception, 2019 a monthly farmer’s market of the same name. The new restaurant is the third enterprise in the Kwetu Kwenu family.

Everything locally sourced

Healthy, natural and local are keywords. The restaurant is designed in casual beach style with palette furniture by Ahmed design, dhow wood tables from Nungwi, eclectic sisal lamps from Katani. The food promises to be premium with a wood-fired pizza oven, “papy stove” barbecue grilling stations and a steak menu utilising “the best beef available in Tanzania”, as Franko Goehse puts it – prime steaks and dry-aged beef from “Let’s meat” in Dar es Salaam, already a favourite with upmarket clients on the mainland and exporting to Kuwait. Burgers, fresh seafood and chicken will compliment the menu, there will be seasonal salads and greens, sweet potatoes, cheli-cheli and plantain chips. “Will serve only the freshest local ingredients” the proprietors assure, vegetable, chicken and eggs from Msonge farm; fish from local Fumba fishermen; chutneys, honeys and more from Kwetu Kwenu farmer’s market.