Ali Barbour’s Cave Restaurant at the Kenya Coast is not your average restaurant. First, they never serve lunch – only dinner, which, by the way, starts at 7 PM.

Secondly, and most notably, the restaurant resides within an ancient open-air coral cave, a site believed to surpass 120,000 years in age.

If you’re looking for a unique dining experience in Ukunda, then the cave restaurant is a must-visit! It’s conveniently located just a seven-minute drive from the Ukunda airstrip and can be easily accessed via Diani Beach Road and Ali Barbour’s Road. Trust me, the ambience and the food are definitely worth the trip. The beach is around a hundred metres away. You also enjoy convenient access, about a five minutes walk, to the Diani shopping centre. The cave comprises a series of interlinking chambers, some at depths of up to 10 M below ground level. In other words, dinner at Ali Barbour’s is a deeply intimate relationship with your food.

Except for the chamber that houses the kitchen, the lavatories and the stone floor in the restaurant area, everything else is as it was in nature. The furniture, fittings, lighting, and sound effects are other additions.

A triangular makuti (palm leaves) umbrella supported by a single 20 M blue gum pole provides ample canopy over the cocktail bar and reception area.

At Ali Barbour’s Cave Restaurant, guests indulge in a variety of international cuisine while seated beneath the starlit sky. The main speciality here, though, is seafood. Starters include fresh oysters and Beef Carpaccio, followed by the main course, which can be seafood or meat from the highlands. There is also a vegetarian menu to spoil you for choice.

The seafood platter comes with fresh Calamari, Crab of the mangrove and oysters, among others. The dessert, which features the Coupe Barbour as a favourite, is flambéed at your table. This is one place you will most likely not forget very quickly.

Have you been to Ali Barbour’s Cave Restaurant? Share your experience by leaving a comment below.