THE SHERATON KAMPALA HOTEL TICKLED MY TASTEBUDS WITH AN UNUSUAL CROISSANT FILLING
(Posted 21st July 2020)
Breakfasts, the way they were served in Kampala’s leading hotels, are no longer the way they were. Gone are the days of breakfast buffets which allowed for self service and to load one’s plate with the culinary delights the chefs conjured up, gone are the days of cheese and cold cut sections, of a wide pastry and bread variety, of cereals and cut fruits galore. Physical distancing and the requirement that only staff handle serving spoons and tongs, have, for now at least, put an end to my favourite pastime when coming into the city in the early hours, indulging in a 2 hour long breakfast before then moving my attention to work matters.
While conventional menus are still available, if a guest chooses to use them are they wiped down with disinfectant promptly afterwards – but hotel have introduced a new contactless method to peruse what they have on offer, with the menus reaching from breakfast – very extensive – over snacks, starters, main courses, desserts and of course speciality menus and special themed offers.
All one needs is a smart phone, a scanning application – I use the QR Scanner – and after pointing the phone towards the cards found on hotel dining tables will the image then produce a download from which a guest can then access the menu. Clean, hygienic, contactless and safe!
At the Sheraton Hotel in Kampala is the breakfast menu on offer for just over 55.000 Uganda Shillings – a notable departure from the previous price for the full buffet breakfast – but the choices are many for guests and additional items are available, at a cost.
I opted for the fruit platter, well presented and always a good starter for the morning meal, before venturing towards a crispy toast – this version with Cinnamon Scented Creme Cheese. I substituted the grilled jackfruit against some sausages, baked beans and mushrooms and was not disappointed. Crispy it was and the taste was, well, how to put it best, intriguing on the positive side.
Under Egg Dishes did I then find another item which caught my eye – Scrambled Eggs in a Croissant with Smoked Salmon and Avocado Mash.
Why not, I thought, let me try the chef’s invention and perhaps find a substitute to my regular chocolate croissants I enjoy every weekend.
On arrival did the dish look as I had hoped and after using a pepper grinder to add some bite to the avocado mousse and some generous sprinkling of Tabasco on the scrambled eggs, did I begin to devour this unusual creation.
And lo and behold, it was the kind of dish I will return to the Sheraton Kampala Hotel for breakfast, time and again, stilling my appetite for more as I equally return to other venues for their Egg Benedict, Florentine and Arlington, the latter my favourite …
Besides the hotel’s extensive breakfast menu is the entire range of items available on display once the download has been completed and saved on the phone, giving easy access to what one plans to eat when coming to the hotel and perhaps surprising the serving staff with order instructions before they can even ask … as I did twice, leaving them to wonder how I pulled that out of my hat.
My lunch and dinner experiences – equally superb – will make it into my upcoming TripAdvisor review of the hotel.
The Sheraton Kampala, looking back at 53 years of operation, remains a landmark for many Ugandans and Kampaleans and their food and service stood the test of time – and surely not just in my humble opinion but that of the dozens upon dozens of guests seen returning to their favourite hangout while I stayed there last week.
Compliments to Chef Alex and his team and yes, I will be back!
Bon Appetite!
