Le Grenier À Pain

November 23, 2023

This restaurant is one of my regular spots. I’ve spent a lot of time here over the years. If you come here in the morning the wonderful scent of freshly baked goods welcomes you and sits with you in their cosy round table booths. She may not remember this but a close friend of mine, Abigail, is the one who introduced me to this spot years ago when they had just opened. She came home with one of the mocha eclairs and I said I just have to get another so I brought myself to the source.

I really like the setup of the restaurant, they’ve managed to use the space they have well enough to allow for solitary seating for those of us who just want to have a coffee and work, nice low level armchairs allowing for those who want to have a meeting or a catch up with friends and well placed outdoor seating for those of us chasing the sun and fresh air.

When I had a recurring gig in the riverside area I spent a lot of time working from Le Grenier, I even had a particular spot I would sit at and to this day I still gravitate towards that spot all the time (of course it’s the spot facing the pastry display😋)

I can’t speak on the full menu as I have only tried a handful of items because I’m usually only there for breakfast/brunch or to pick up pastries. I really like the simplicity of the menu though, less is always more.

I’ll talk about some of the stuff I have tried starting with my favourite - The croissant salès i.e. the breakfast croissant. Let me tell y’all something… if there’s one thing the French are good at, it’s croissants! I haven’t tasted a better croissant anywhere else in Nairobi, airy, flakey, soft, buttery goodness! The croissants at Cultiva are a close second. This breakfast croissant comes with your choice of cheese, your choice of ham or smoked salmon and an egg of your choice + lettuce, tomato, cucumber & avocado. It comes with a side salad and a sauce of choice as well, mine is always the aioli. So because I’m a picky eater my version isn’t as hefty as it should be - it only has emmental cheese, honey-glazed turkey ham and lettuce (yes I don’t eat eggs or avocado) but I still get quite full from it and I tried it with the pork ham once & didn’t like it, so that’s why the turkey ham - nothing against pork of course.

Another favourite from the menu are two particular pastries i.e. the strawberry tart (KSH300) and the mocha èclair (KSH250). Love love LOVE the strawberry tart… the slight tartness of the strawberries, the sweet smoothness of the cream filling (I wanna say it’s a custard filling but I could be wrong) and the crunch of the crust makes for a perfectly balanced treat😊 I’ve tried the raspberry one - it was a bit too tart for me, the lemon one is brilliant for the lemon lovers, and the salted caramel one was a tad too sweet for me but many people love it. Please note these tarts are a popular item and sell out quite quickly on any given day… so… be like me and call ahead to have them put one aside for you😉

I love the mocha èclair simply because it’s a nice twist on the traditional èclair - it’s coffee flavoured which may not work for some people but it’s perfect for me, I prefer it over the chocolate one.

Of their main meals, I’ve tried the beef burger once (KSH1,300) it didn’t do much for me, the patty was a bit too large and not seasoned so it came off a tad dry. A dish I tried and enjoyed thoroughly was the BBQ chicken sandwich (KSH950), it was very filling and very yummy! And lastly - the orange chicken salad (KSH950) not to be confused with Chinese orange chicken please. This salad is fresh and filling and the orange slices add the touch of sweetness I feel all salads should have just to make them exciting🙃

PS: They also have the most refreshing lemonade I’ve had in a minute at KSH600.

I’ve not had a problem with service here, the wait staff are always on call when needed but I have noted that service is much slower when you’re seated outside than when you’re inside the restaurant. I don’t know why but that’s something they should work on improving.

Because I’m a creature of habit I tend to order the same things over and over whenever I come here but one day I’ll be adventurous and try other dishes. I’d recommend Le Grenier as a great spot to work from, for meetings, catch up with friends and breakfast/lunch dates. They close at 7pm so unfortunately you can’t make dinner plans here, unless it’s a very early dinner.