EnterUganda

. Kampala, Uganda.

By Timothy Bukumunhe

What do you mean you and your guest were the sole diners?
We'll get to that later on. Golden Fish Chinese restaurant for those of you who don't know, is located in Bugolobi, almost next door to Bamboo Nest. Looking up at it from the road side, there appears nothing much to the place, and when you walk in, this impression is confirmed. There is a small car park court that can fit about fifteen or so cars.

Do go on, I am listening.
Up the first flight of stairs are the toilets (which are clean I must say), and on the second flight is the restaurant itself. Diners have the option of sitting out on the balcony or in the dining area, which is sadly devoid of atmosphere and warmth. In one corner is the small makeshift bar, still with last year's Christmas decorations and plastic onions that are meant to spruce up the place but don't. The layout is just 'there', put together almost without thought.

Where did you opt to sit?
We headed for the balcony first, but as the heavens opened up we were getting soaked so we moved inside, and that is when we discovered we were the sole diners during our entire stint there. It was rather freaky - does it say something about the food, I wondered?

In comparison to the other Chinese restaurants in town, how does Golden Fish compare?
Golden Fish ranks down on the lower half of the scale, and their menu is not comparable or as extensive as the other Chinese restaurants in town. Let me quickly run through the menu for you. Appetisers start at sh1,500 up to sh7,500 for the Golden Fried Prawns. Soups, say Hot and Sour, Won Tun or the Mixed Seafood for example, are priced between sh2,500 - sh3,000. Chicken dishes are priced between sh6,500 - sh8,500 for, say Diced Chicken with Green Chilli for example. Of course there is the usual Beef, Duck Seafood and rice dishes which, due to space constraints, I won't go into. To summarise, the average price for lunch or dinner for two without Appetisers and soft drinks is around sh23,000.

Did the service sparkle on the day you were there?
With all the attention we had to ourselves, you would have expected it to be running on all four cylinders, but it didn't. The girl who tended to us appeared quite unsure of what was on the menu, and if we pressed her to give a detailed explanation of a particular dish, it would have made matters worse so we left it at that.

We are out of space. Any last comments?
The food, though palatable, is nothing to write home about. My spare ribs were rather lacking. And don't go rushing down to the toilet and expect to find them open. You have to inquire at the bar for the key which comes on an MTN airtime card.

THE CROWD: What crowd? It was just Tina Turyagyenda my guest and I at the Tuesday lunchtime. Nobody else!
THE GOOD POINTS: If you want privacy, it's the place to go.
THE BAD POINTS: Slow, and staff appear to have a problem in comprehending what one wants.
THE TOILETS: Clean, though they don't provide hand towels.
Golden Fish, is located almost next door to Bamboo Nest in Bugolobi. Open all week from 11:00am - Late. For reservations, call 222040 or 077407464.

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