How do some hotels do it? Build a wall of magic around themselves. Isn’t that the feeling one gets at Kwetu Nairobi, Curio Collection by Hilton on Peponi Road? That somewhere during construction, someone abandoned all reason and decided to pursue atmosphere instead? And boy, what an atmosphere that is.
The first thing that hits you is how the bar on hotels keeps rising. The second time you visit, you begin to suspect there is actually no bar at all, that these hoteliers simply went mad with design and kept building upwards out of pure delusion and confidence.
The third time, for me, involved sharing the hotel’s small, intimate lift with two beautifully dressed women with aggressive perfumes that we all floated up toward the rooftop bar where I was meeting a friend.
Upepo Rooftop Bar itself is a restaurant and bar of sorts. Small tables. A loungy feel. An electric fireplace. A long, glowing counter. And a dramatic wall of windows stretching from one end of the room to the next.
My friend had already settled into a corner table, nursing a drink. Around us were diners, couples on dates, friends beginning their weekends properly. It was a Friday, and the room carried that unmistakable celebratory energy without ever becoming noisy.
The music, at the right decibels. Forks clinked gently against plates. Waiters appeared and disappeared with almost supernatural politeness, stopping by every so often to ask if things were going alright. Things were going more than all right, actually.
Meanwhile, the two perfumed women from the lift seemed to be celebrating something important because, before long, a bottle of champagne arrived at their table in an ice bucket.
And yes, in case you are wondering, Upepo is exactly the kind of place you take someone you are trying to impress. Though if you prefer something quieter and more intimate, slip downstairs to Meko, their excellent restaurant, where I once had an interview dinner and a great steak.
Honestly, do both. Why the hell not?