I was tempted to start this review in a very tongue-in-cheek (and risque) way, but I remembered that it’s 2025, not 1975. This was how. And please note, this opening would only make sense if you know that an aviary is a cage or enclosure where birds are kept.
Anyhow, here goes. “So, there I was having a drink at the Aviary Lounge talking to a bird about bicycles.” Yeah. I know. This is 2025, you can’t be calling ladies “birds” anymore. So, let’s do this the proper way, then.
Last week, as the cold slashed outside the empty balcony of the 8th floor of Dusit Princess, I sat inside listening to a lady school me about bicycles. I’m trying to get into cycling.
Actually, I plan to cycle to Mombasa in December. This lady knows a tonne about cycling and bikes. Last time I cycled was in a spin class full of b-, uhm, ladies with furiously determined looks.
The Aviary was heaving with the Friday crowd, a deejay keeping the veins of the lounge thumbing. I was last here when they just opened a while back and I wasn't surprised to see it thriving for it's a sweet spot.
We were four of us, seated on low tables, looking outside the city through the glass walls. The view of Nairobi’s skyline is definitely worth talking about. It’s a beautiful city that, you get the distinct impression, is facing imminent doom.
Just like Gotham City only the threat this time is leadership and a citizenry with emptying souls. However, it was perfect inside the Aviary Lounge for that moment; warm, cozy, a place to take a first date, a low-key anniversary, a belated birthday you forgot or just a nice group of people with good vibes like our table.
At our table was a retired banker, now a farmer and a beauty queen. [The banker isn’t the beauty queen, for purposes of clarity]. The beauty queen ordered steak, which didn’t come out as fatty as she wanted.
I was surprised that they prepared her a new one, when they discovered that fact halfway through her meal. That’s a true litmus of service. In short, a great night of learning and socialising and fatty steaks.
