The Great Eatery Migration of 2021

Nothing makes a foodie’s heart sink like skipping towards your favourite eatery only to find it boarded up, for sale or something else entirely. The heart flutters. The gastronomic memories taunt. And if you’re the kind of person who makes a particular seat in a particular spot a cosy home away from home, well, it can feel a bit like an eviction.

While Windhoek’s revolving door of restaurants are a thing of local legend, sometimes these dazzling disappearances are only a matter of a minor relocation.

While it’s always bittersweet to follow your favourite places to their new spaces, The Great Eatery Migration of 2021 has been a boon to these three travelling eateries and each is well worth getting to know anew.

In The Great Eatery Migration of 2021, Windhoekers who went in search of Café Prestige, El Barrio and Haiku would have found them spirited entirely away.

You see, eateries, like people, also seek fairer shores.

For Café Prestige, which used to ply its trade on Rev. Michael Scott Street in the city centre, the new digs is downtown.

Still just as modern, minimalist and embracing of drag queens and digital nomads, Café Prestige now calls the Franco-Namibian Cultural Centre’s red house home.

Inside you’ll be amazed at how precisely the place fans know and love has been transposed while the sprawling new exterior boasts a scattering of sunny tables, a rustic elevated nook and an outdoor bar.

To eat, you’ll love the tacos and savour every last lick of freshly baked quiche which both go down a treat with a well-curated wine list or your fancy of a cocktail menu that includes an Aperol Spritz, gin fizz and French 75.

As for El Barrio, say goodbye to The Village (Liliencron Street) and find the casual little tapas bar and restaurant at Nyama at the Showgrounds. Ramping up the live music and events and offbeat in its quirky turquoise gazebo overlooking Jan Jonker Road, El Barrio has packed up its Salsa Sundays and terrific Tequila Sunrises but is still the same friendly neighbourhood spot it has always been.

How about Haiku?

Well, ironically, it’s right next to where El Barrio used to be and now goes by the name of The Kapital at Haiku.

Certainly a step up from its former location in Klein Windhoek, The Kapital is an airy and largely outdoor eatery where its mix of Mediterranean, Thai and sushi teases from a multiple-page menu.

For sushi lovers, culinary adventure awaits in offerings such as The Kapital’s tempura prawn and spicy tuna Jade Dragon Roll while Thai food enthusiasts can enjoy everything from Tom Yum soup and Suki to Pad Thai and Khao Pad.

If you’re going to try their signature cocktail ‘The Kapital’, you’ll be swimming in a goblet of sauvignon blanc, lemonade, strawberry liqueur and Martini Rosso.

Pretty but potent.

While it’s always bittersweet to follow your favourite places to their new spaces, The Great Eatery Migration of 2021 has been a boon to these three travelling eateries and each is well worth getting to know anew.

Be sure to head out hungry and say hello.

Martha Mukaiwa is a columnist and writer based in Windhoek, Namibia in between spirited sojourns around the world. Her narrative nonfiction, personal essays, travel writing and short stories have appeared in #JournalistsToo, Iowa Magazine, Travel Africa, Quartz, Fields & Stations, Holiday, The Africa Report, Truthdig, Matador Network, Africa is a Country, The Namibian & The Kalahari Review. Martha is an honorary writing fellow at the University of Iowa. Read more at marthamukaiwa.com.