Nairobi Street Kitchen

Five years in the making, FINCH can finally unveil the eclectic and eco-friendly street food kitchen experience in the Kenyan capital.

Touted by fans as one of Nairobi’s “most Instagrammable projects” NSK is home to 11 brands and concepts that were designed and created by FINCH’s interiors and branding teams, as well as co-founders and siblings Alyana and Alyssa Popat of Simba Corp.

Taking inspiration from food markets and street food concepts from over the globe, NSK is a pleasing assault on the senses, from the food on offer to the thriving and bustling environment created and adorned by gorgeous murals and art works created by local artists from the city.

The restaurant concepts take visitors on a gastronomic tour around the world and include Mexican street food served out of a chopped-up VW Winnebago; an Indian restaurant inside a disused Leyland bus; a BBQ smokehouse; pizzeria; chicken joint and a sweet truck, as well as a roof top bar. There’s also Nood, a cheeky Singaporean noodle stall and Butter’d Buns, which creates burgers. Anchor outlet Spilt Milk is the all-day café and for harder beverages, there’s the Library 68 wine bar.

Emma Stinson, FINCH co-founder and recently highly commended winner at the CID Awards 2021 for interior designer of the year, says: “NSK has been a real labour of love, I remember how excited and over the moon we were when were awarded the project, I experienced the exact same feeling when it was finally unveiled. Whilst a few concepts or ideas have changed since the original concept, as would be expected over such a time period, the overall project is absolutely stunning and I love it, the Kenyan team headed up by Alyssa and Alyana have done an awesome job in delivering the project. I love how we got to use so many reclaimed and recycled materials in such a large space as well as how the client really involved the local community in the development of the space. East Africa really is booming in terms of design and NSK now stands as one of the flag bearers for large scale independent projects in the region and that’s what I think we are all most proud of – that and rescuing an old derelict building that could easily have been bulldozed.”

NSK co-founder Alyana Popat adds: “Nairobi Street Kitchen is the first project of its kind in East Africa and Alyssa and I have been working to bring our vision to life for the past five years. We are delighted to have been afforded the opportunity to join a community of people at the forefront of building the continent’s food and beverage industry, whilst also introducing a novel style of dining to Kenya, our fellow Nairobians, and those visiting from afar. We were excited to bring on design partners that could help turn our ideas and visions into reality. When we first started, we met a lot of design experts, but it was the FINCH team with whom we felt the most chemistry. Without their attention to detail, creativity and implementation of our vision, NSK would not be what it is today.”