Review of A C De Souza & Co (Kilindini Bar)

When you enter this bar you are literally travelling back in time; you actually get the feeling of entering a time warp - it is as if the clock has stood still since 1908 when the bar was established. The [more than a century] old signs outside the bar still survive, having withstood the ravages of time.

I had been brought up in Mombasa in the 1960s and 1970s and had even heard about the bar from publications more recently but I did not even know of its location until earlier this year [2011]. I was on a brief visit to Mombasa, and we doggedly searched for it together with a distant relative. Although it was still in the afternoon, we of course had to down a beer when we eventually found the place [tucked among godowns near the western end of the railway station property, very close to the Kilindini Harbour after which it was named]. In 1908, being close to the then new railway and harbour must have seemed an ideal choice for the location of the bar and grocery store. The grocery store shut down in 1940.

The biggest surprise was to discover that the current proprietress [who lives behind the premises] was also a distant relative of ours [she is the daughter of the previous proprietor and the grand-daughter of the founder, Mr A C De Souza himself] and she also happened to know my late parents quite well! Actually, being a rather small community, most Goans in Kenya can find some link through marriage or otherwise with many of their fellow Goans in the diaspora….perhaps that partly explains why I married outside the community??

The faithful bartender who serves you your cold tusker [or your brew of choice from a wide range of beers and spirits] is an old Mkamba gentleman. He has worked for the establishment for ages and fits in quite well amidst the really ancient coke and beer ads still hanging from the walls of the bar. Those framed ads of times gone by could be worth a fortune on eBay. Do ask for some bitings on a side dish to accompany your drink.

All in all, a rather nostalgic ride down memory lane and a must-visit place for all the old timers who once lived in or visited Mombasa and also for the present-day tourists and other visitors to the Coast. Make sure you get the mandatory photo taken of you in front of the "Established in 1908" sign [perhaps convincing the proprietress to join you!]