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Coffee and more at Pure Africa

Friday June 07 2019
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The view from the terrace at Pure African Coffee. PHOTO | JEFFERSON RUMANYIKA | NMG

By JEFFERSON RUMANYIKA

Coffee houses are sprouting all over Kigali. The latest addition to the scene is Pure Africa Coffee, a social entrepreneurship project by Dutch entrepreneurs aimed at empowering local farmers through microcredit loans.

I recently paid Pure Africa Coffee a visit. It is located in Kimihurura neighbourhood in an idyllic spot nestled at the top of a hill that provides a bird’s eye view of the city and beyond.

The cafe’s exterior is made of rustic oak branches, and it has a thatched roof.

Pure Africa Coffee’s interior has khaki dining chairs and tables with dark brown cushions much like the colour of coffee beans. The walls are adorned with imigongo art, and there are African wax print pillows on the lounge chairs.

Pure Africa Coffee is built on two levels. Never one to shy away from a meal with a view, I opted to go upstairs.

The service was rather slow, but when the waiters showed up they were courteous, and gave me advice on what to order from the menu.

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On offer were sandwiches, burgers and light snacks. To drink, they had regular, iced and blended coffee.

I settled for a chicken Stroganoff with chips on the advice of the wait staff. This was accompanied by a Funky Kawachino, which is one of their blended coffees and a house special.

The chicken was quite impressive, tender and served in a delicious sour cream sauce. The chips were hot, soft and slightly crunchy, but the portion was rather small. There was plenty of mayonnaise and ketchup for dipping.

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Chicken Stroganoff served with chips and a Funky Kawachino. PHOTO | JEFFERSON RUMANYIKA | NMG

The Funky Kawachino was appropriate for the clear sunny day, with ice cream, chocolate and coffee blended. I added a few more ice cubes to ward off the sweltering Kigali heat.

Pure Africa buys coffee directly from local farmers, which it then exports to the Netherlands. The coffee house is an extension of its social initiative to empower the locals.

Pure Africa Coffee is also a good place to grab a quick lunch or dinner. It was reassuring to see the newly opened cafe full of people.

The prices at Pure Africa Café Kigali range from Rwf 1,000 ($1.1) to Rwf 7,000 ($7.7).

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