Salty Squid - Diani

January 19, 2024

This is one of my favourite places to eat at in Diani, I’m surprised it’s taken me so long to write about it! Also - fun fact, it’s a sister restaurant to Funky Monkey, didn’t know that until just the other day😄.

Salty Squid can be found along Diani beach road and the first thing you notice when you get here is the stunning ocean view! The restaurant opens up into a vast compound filled with vibrant seating areas, you can choose from the standard dining tables to the community style booths with very comfy cushions that will really ignite the itis after your meal😅

It has a very Swahili yet modern style of decor and architecture, everything just screams holiday mood and relaxation. Their menu is large but inviting. It’s good to have many options that all sound great rather than many options that all sound underwhelming so this is probably the one time I’m appreciative of a large menu.

We were here for an early dinner and one thing you need to know about Salty Squid, they are very strict on reservations. Being quite a popular place it’s very hard to get a table upon walking in especially if you’re a large group. I’d highly advise making reservations way in advance.

For starters I had the crispy fish tacos (KSH980/) and my friend had the smoked sailfish bruschetta (KSH950/). The last time I was here I really didn’t like the tacos - they were a tad dry and I assume they got that feedback from other people, not just me because this time they were so much better! Their signature colourful taco shells will always be a vibe and the mix of crunchy fish (white snapper), chilli mango and fresh cucumber cubes makes for a well-balanced and tasty taco. I didn’t taste the smoked sailfish but it looked good too.

For mains we tried the creamy prawn linguine (KSH1720/)and sticky pork (KSH1260/). The portions are so healthy! We both couldn’t finish our meals and that’s also because we had starters but yes, they’re very generous with their portions. The sticky pork was really good, the pork belly pieces are a bit crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. They’re tossed in this sweet tamarind sauce and lie atop a bed of red pepper rice accompanied by some Chinese cabbage - so yum!

The pasta was creamy and very flavourful, they didn’t mince on the number of prawns too which I appreciate. But out of everything we had, the pasta was the least favourite of the bunch… It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t the best.

Aside from the food, the ambience is something else I really love! I think the perfect time to go there is around 4/5pm… just when the sun is about to set so you can see it from the comfort of your dinner table as you’re overlooking the stunning white beaches and the Indian Ocean and you’re soon covered by the beautiful dusk sky and eventually surrounded by stars… magical✨

Salty Squid being right by the beach makes it perfect for good food and some fun in the ocean all at once. You can do water sports there, it’s a great place to bring your kids, also great place to work from, for friend hangouts, and a nice beach date… it works for everything. Highly recommend👌🏾