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Food tours in Nairobi: what to eat and which tour to book
Nairobi eats nyama choma — goat or beef roasted over charcoal, ordered by weight, chopped at the table and eaten with kachumbari (tomato and onion salad) and ugali (stiff maize porridge). Around that sits everyday Kenyan food: chapati, sukuma wiki (braised collard greens), githeri (maize and beans), pilau, mandazi and sweet milky chai, plus street snacks such as mutura (a spiced blood-and-meat sausage) and smokies with kachumbari. The city's long-established Indian community shaped its food too, from samosas and bhajia to the restaurants of Parklands, and the Somali-run district of Eastleigh is known for its halal food.
Use this page to decide what to order and where, with rough prices in Kenyan shillings and euros. The tours shown are real GetYourGuide listings, with prices as seen when we checked; confirm the price, pickup and what food is included on the booking page before you pay.
What to eat in Nairobi
| Dish | What it is | Where to eat it | Typical price* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roast meat nyama choma | Goat (preferred) or beef roasted slowly over charcoal, usually ordered by the half-kilo or kilo, chopped into pieces and served with salt, kachumbari and ugali. A social meal, best shared with a group and cold beer. | Nyama choma bars and butcher-grills across the city; Kenyatta Market off Ngong Road is a well-known local spot. | roughly KSh 800–1,500 (about €5–10) per half-kilo at local places; more in restaurants |
| Maize porridge with greens ugali na sukuma wiki | Ugali is a firm maize-flour 'cake' eaten with the fingers, used to scoop up sukuma wiki (collard greens fried with onion and tomato), stews or meat. The everyday staple. | Local cafés (kibanda / 'hotel' in Kenyan usage) all over the CBD and estates. | roughly KSh 150–350 (about €1–2.30) at a local café |
| Flatbread chapati | A soft, layered, pan-fried flatbread of Indian origin, eaten with beans, stew, tea or on its own. | Every local café and many street stalls. | roughly KSh 30–60 each |
| Maize and bean stew githeri | Boiled maize kernels and beans, sometimes fried with onion, tomato and potatoes; filling, cheap and vegetarian. | Local cafés and canteens. | roughly KSh 100–250 (under €2) |
| Spiced rice pilau | Rice cooked with cumin, cardamom, cloves, cinnamon and usually beef or chicken, a Swahili coastal dish eaten across Kenya, especially on Fridays and at celebrations. | Swahili and Somali restaurants, including in Eastleigh and the CBD. | roughly KSh 300–600 (about €2–4) |
| Street sausage mutura | A Kenyan sausage of goat or beef intestines stuffed with minced meat, blood and spices, grilled over charcoal at roadside stalls in the evening and served with kachumbari and chilli. | Evening roadside grills across the city, near bus stages and markets. | roughly KSh 50–200 per piece |
| Smokie with kachumbari smokie pasua | A smoked sausage split and stuffed with kachumbari and chilli, sold from carts; the classic quick snack. Boiled eggs are sold the same way (mayai pasua). | Street vendors in the CBD and outside schools, offices and stages. | roughly KSh 50–100 |
| Doughnuts and tea mandazi na chai | Lightly sweet fried dough triangles, sometimes flavoured with cardamom or coconut, with Kenyan tea boiled with milk and sugar. | Local cafés and street stalls in the morning. | roughly KSh 20–50 per mandazi; chai KSh 50–100 |
Where to eat: markets and neighbourhoods
Kenyatta Market
A local market off Ngong Road known for its nyama choma section, where you choose meat from butchers who grill it for you, plus produce, tailors and salons.
City Market (Muindi Mbingu Street)
A covered colonial-era market in the CBD with fruit, vegetables, fish, meat and a lot of crafts. More about seeing and buying than eating; prices for visitors start high.
Central Business District and River Road
Dense area of cheap local cafés, canteens, chapati and pilau places and street vendors serving office workers. Lively at lunchtime; less comfortable after dark.
Parklands and Westlands
Parklands is home to much of Nairobi's South Asian community, with Indian vegetarian restaurants, sweet shops and food courts. Westlands next to it is the main nightlife and restaurant area.
Eastleigh
Busy commercial district run largely by the Somali community, known for Somali restaurants serving rice, goat, camel meat and tea, and for shopping malls. Go with someone who knows the area.
Food tours in Nairobi compared
Every tour below is a real listing on GetYourGuide or Viator, checked on 2 Oct 2026. Prices move with season and group size, so treat them as a guide and confirm on the booking page.
| Tour | Length | Price* | Group | Best for | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nairobi: 1 Hour Gastronomic and Street Food tour of Nairobi | 1 hour | from €35 per person | — | First-timers on a budget who want to try many cheap dishes in one go. | Check dates |
| Nairobi: Street Food and Culture Tour with Local Guide | 3 hours | from €40 per person | — | First-timers on a budget who want to try many cheap dishes in one go. | Check dates |
| Nairobi: Traditional Kenyan Food Tour with Drinks | 3 hours | from €12 per person | — | First-timers who want a broad tasting of the classics with a local guide. | Check dates |
Nairobi: 1 Hour Gastronomic and Street Food tour of Nairobi
On GetYourGuide · run by Ishmael Nzioka
- Length
- 1 hour
- Price
- from €35 per person
- Rating
- 5.0 ★ from 12 reviews (on 3 Oct 2026)
- Included
- Local expert guide with in-depth knowledge of Nairobi’s food scene 1-hour guided walking tour through Nairobi’s key food streets Food tastings at different locations Bottled water to keep you hydrated Transportation t…
- Suits
- First-timers on a budget who want to try many cheap dishes in one go.
- Starts
- International House, Mama Ngina St, Nairobi, Kenya
Nairobi: Street Food and Culture Tour with Local Guide
On GetYourGuide · run by Teyezilla Adventures
- Length
- 3 hours
- Price
- from €40 per person
- Rating
- 3.7 ★ from 8 reviews (on 3 Oct 2026)
- Suits
- First-timers on a budget who want to try many cheap dishes in one go.
Nairobi: Traditional Kenyan Food Tour with Drinks
On GetYourGuide · run by PATRICK CITY WALK TOURS NAIROBI
- Length
- 3 hours
- Price
- from €12 per person
- Rating
- 4.2 ★ from 3 reviews (on 3 Oct 2026)
- Included
- Visit to local places to enjoy diverse food Explanation of food preparation and benefits Recommendations on what to avoid and try
- Suits
- First-timers who want a broad tasting of the classics with a local guide.
- Starts
- UPS drop off location
Some links on this page are partner links. If you book through them TonyPlan earns a small commission — the price you pay is exactly the same.
Street food, sit-down or a cooking class?
Street food
Street food is mostly roadside grills and carts: mutura, smokies, boiled eggs, roasted maize, samosas and fruit. It is very cheap and eaten standing. Many visitors prefer to try it with a local guide or friend at first, because hygiene varies and some areas are less safe after dark.
Sit-down meals
Sit-down eating ranges from local cafés (often called 'hotels') serving ugali, stew and chapati, to nyama choma bars where you order meat by weight, to the restaurants of Westlands, Kilimani and Karen. The Carnivore in Langata is the famous all-you-can-eat meat restaurant; since Kenya banned the sale of wild game meat in 2004 it serves domestic meats and farmed ostrich and crocodile.
Cooking classes
Cooking classes are less common than in tourist-heavy cities. Some are run in homes or community kitchens and teach chapati, pilau, sukuma wiki and stews, sometimes with a market visit. Check the location, transport and what is included.
How much to budget for food
| Style | Per person, per day* |
|---|---|
| Budget (street food, markets) | KSh 1,200–2,000 (about €8–13): chai and mandazi, local café lunch, street snacks |
| Mid-range (one sit-down meal a day) | KSh 3,500–6,000 (about €23–40): nyama choma with drinks and a café meal |
| Splurge (tasting menus, wine) | KSh 10,000+ (about €65+): restaurant dinners in Westlands or Karen, or the Carnivore |
Vegetarian, halal and gluten-free
Vegetarian & vegan: Easier than the meat-heavy image suggests. Githeri, beans with chapati, sukuma wiki, ugali, lentils (kamande) and Indian vegetarian food in Parklands are widely available. Stews may use meat stock or fat; ask 'bila nyama' (without meat). Vegan options are mostly Indian or in modern cafés.
Halal: Relatively easy. Kenya has a large Muslim population, Eastleigh and the Swahili and Somali restaurants are halal, and many nyama choma places use halal-slaughtered goat and beef. Supermarkets and some restaurants display halal certificates; ask if unsure.
Gluten-free: Fairly easy with care. Ugali (maize), rice, githeri, nyama choma and kachumbari are naturally gluten-free. Chapati, mandazi, samosas and bread are wheat. Awareness of coeliac disease is limited in local cafés, so keep orders simple.
Food scams and tourist traps to avoid
- Nyama choma priced per kilo, then served in a bigger amount than ordered or charged at a higher 'visitor' rate. Agree the weight and price per kilo before the meat is cut, and ask to see it weighed.
- M-Pesa payments sent to the wrong till or a personal number, or a fake 'payment received' message shown to sellers. As a buyer, check the business name that appears before confirming an M-Pesa payment, and keep the confirmation SMS.
- Friendly strangers in the CBD offering to show you 'real Kenyan food', then asking for money or taking you to an overpriced place. Choose places yourself, go with a booked guide or local friend, and decline unexpected invitations.
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Staying near the markets saves time and taxi money — most food tours start in the old centre.
Common questions
Do I need to tip in Nairobi?
Tipping is common in sit-down restaurants: about 10% if no service charge has been added. Check the bill, as many restaurants add a service charge plus VAT and catering levy. In local cafés, rounding up is enough. Tips can be given in cash or by M-Pesa. Food tour guides and drivers usually expect a tip.
Is street food safe in Nairobi?
It can be, but hygiene varies a lot. Choose stalls that cook food hot in front of you and are busy with locals, avoid salads and cut fruit washed in tap water if you are not used to it, and drink bottled or filtered water. Mutura and grilled meat are safest when freshly grilled.
How does ordering nyama choma work?
At a nyama choma place you choose goat or beef, usually by the half-kilo or kilo, sometimes picking the cut from a butcher counter. It is roasted slowly, so expect to wait 30–60 minutes. It comes chopped on a board with salt, kachumbari and ugali or chips. Agree the price per kilo before ordering.
Can I pay by card?
Restaurants, supermarkets and malls take cards, and nearly everything — including many street vendors — accepts M-Pesa mobile money, which visitors can use with a Kenyan SIM card. Small cafés and street stalls may only accept cash or M-Pesa, so carry some shillings in small notes.
How much should I budget for food per day?
Eating local, about KSh 1,200–2,000 (€8–13) a day covers chai and mandazi, a café lunch of ugali or chapati and stew, and street snacks. A nyama choma session with drinks brings a day to roughly KSh 3,500–6,000. Restaurants in Westlands, Kilimani and Karen charge prices close to Europe.
Is Carnivore still worth visiting?
It is the city's most famous meat restaurant and good for a group night out, but it is expensive by local standards and aimed at visitors and events. Wild game meat has not been served since Kenya banned its sale in 2004; the menu now has domestic meats plus farmed ostrich and crocodile. For everyday nyama choma, a local bar or market grill is cheaper.
* Prices are approximate, gathered on 2 Oct 2026 from menus, markets and the booking pages linked above. They change with season and exchange rates.